Back in July, we wrote about this fake LEGO video ad created by Greenpeace entitled “Everything is NOT awesome” (a somber play on The LEGO Movie theme song), which was a call to sign a petition for LEGO to break its historic partnership with Shell Oil. And it worked, guys!
“Everything is NOT awesome” depicts a quaint arctic LEGO landscape complete with polar bears, pine trees, and a smiling Inuit fisherman, all slowly drowning in oil. Oy. The video is really depressing, and it’s a darned good thing, too, because repentant LEGO execs announced today that the company would not renew its multimillion dollar contract with Shell. The video, along with other forms of protest, is partially responsible for the breakup.
Needless to say, Greenpeace is stoked out of its mind. From the organization’s website:
This is fantastic news for LEGO fans and Arctic defenders everywhere. And it’s a huge blow to Shell’s strategy of partnering with beloved brands to clean up its dirty image as an Arctic oil driller.
When the video was first released, LEGO squabbled with Greenpeace, saying that the advocacy group should instead take things up with Shell. But today, LEGO announced a change of heart. From The Guardian:
Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, the toy maker’s chief -executive, said LEGO would honour its existing deal with Shell, which began in 2011, but “as things currently stand we will not renew the contract with Shell when the present contract ends”.
LEGO’s move may prompt other companies to think twice about partnerships with Big Oil, but that doesn’t mean that everything is awesome quite yet. Shell still plans to drill offshore in the U.S. and explore off the coast of northern Alaska in 2015. Which makes us wonder: How many tiny, drowning LEGO fishermen would it take to put a stop to that?
