In Toronto, there are more than 116,000 families struggling to put a roof over their head (2019). This problem has gone largely unnoticed because on the surface, Toronto appears to be a wealthy and prosperous city with an ever-growing skyline. To bring attention to this issue, United Way created The #UNIGNORABLE Tower – an AR experience that imagines the tower we would need to build to house every Toronto family who can’t afford a place to live.
The tower design was informed by data from the City of Toronto Open Data Project, specifically the number of households in the city who are on the waitlist for affordable housing, and those relying on shelters. This figure informed the number of units required.
The tower footprint was constrained to one city block, and the size of each unit to 700 sqft – the size of an average apartment. These dimensions defined the staggering height of the tower at 485 floors and 1478m of elevation.
The #UNIGNORABLE Tower AR experience rendered a 3D model of the tower at 100% scale. Using device GPS and time of day, the app ensured that the tower was displayed at the correct height and with accurate lighting. This meant that the scale of the problem was always accurately represented and seamlessly integrated into the city skyline at any time and in any part of the city, helping to make the experience more immersive and impactful.
Within the app, the CN Tower was used as an AR target to ensure the tower was rendered in the correct location each time.
The app interface also included a story button to educate users on the meaning behind the tower, as well as a link to donate directly to United Way. A screenshot function was included so that images of the tower could be easily shared on social to spread awareness.
AR activation sites were created at Toronto’s most beautiful and popular vantage points to engage people around the city. Brightly lit AR stands in the shape of the tower displayed QR codes for people to access the experience and uncover the true scale of poverty.
At Brookfield place, a physical model of the tower and the city was displayed to educate passersby, encourage them to donate, and prompt them to try the AR experience.
We partnered with Norm Li studio to created renderings of the tower that were used in this display as well as PR, social, OOH and print placements
Blue Development Notice boards are commonly seen at construction sites across Toronto, detailing the plans for new condo buildings.
To gain further attention for the campaign and the issue of housing affordability, we created a variation on these boards featuring the #UNIGNORABLE tower as if it were a real construction project.
The campaign succeeded in raising awareness of the critical issue of housing affordability in Toronto, netting over 141 million impressions in the first week of the campaign and increasing donor traffic for United Way by 10,000%.
Design & Art Direction: Will Cuthbert
Copy: Mike Mehrasa
ECD: Kelsey Horne & Alexis Bronstorph
CD: Frank Macera
ACD: Dan Cantelon & Marc Levesque
Producer: Kelsey-Lynn Corradetti
Production Partners: Array of Stars, Norm Li, KPMB, Lossless, Saints, Alter Ego