Four more major multinational companies have signed up to the World Federation of Advertisers’ Planet Pledge, a global commitment to making their marketing teams a force for positive change both internally and with the consumers who buy their products and services.

Asahi Europe & International, Carlsberg Group, Ingka Holding (the largest IKEA franchisee), and Pernod Ricard will join launch signatories Bayer, Danone, Diageo, Dole Packaged Foods, Mastercard, Ørsted, Reckitt, Telefónica, Tesco, and Unilever as well as L’Oréal, NatWest, and PepsiCo in using the power of marketing to drive action on climate change.

Alongside this, 22 national advertiser associations have committed to promoting the pledge to local advertisers, highlighting the role marketing can play in delivering real change and creating a network of local champions around the world.

The national associations that have signed up as WFA Planet Pledge partners are AAI (Ireland), ABA (Brazil), ABG (GCC), AEA (Spain), ANFO (Norway), APAN (Portugal), APPINA (Indonesia), BAA (Bulgaria), HAA (Greece), ISA (India), JAA (Japan), The Israel Marketing Association, ISBA (UK), MAA (Malaysia), Marketing Finland, MASA (South Africa), MSK (Kenya), PAS (Pakistan), Sveriges Annonsörer (Sweden), SZZV (Slovakia), Union des marques (France), and UPA (Italy).

The Pledge was launched at WFA’s Global Marketer Week in April this year and seeks to find a clear role for marketing as a positive force for environmental change by encouraging CMOs to take action in four key areas:

1. Commit to being a champion for the global Race to Zero campaign both internally within their organizations and to encouraging their marketing supply chain to do the same;
2. Scale the capability of marketing organizations to lead for climate action by providing tools and guidance for their marketers and agencies;
3. Harness the power of their marketing communications to drive more sustainable consumer behaviors; 
4. Reinforce a trustworthy marketing environment, where sustainability claims can be easily substantiated so that consumers can trust the marketing messages they are presented with as they seek to align their own consumption with their values.

Progress on all these goals will be reported annually by the WFA. The WFA will also work with advertising standards bodies worldwide and other relevant stakeholders in order to deliver industry guidance that will preserve trust in the evolving language of environmental claims in a way that enables consumers to make sustainable choices with confidence.

The Pledge is designed to amplify existing efforts and direct WFA members and their value chain partners towards them. In addition, it introduces new actions that marketing leaders can initiate and champion, thereby playing a distinct role in support of the transition to net zero.

“I am delighted that these four companies and so many of our national association partners have signed up to the Planet Pledge. In light of the recent UN IPCC report which lays bare the challenge of climate change, it’s vital that our members commit to not only reducing their impact but also to educating consumers about how they can have an impact too. Addressing climate change can seem complex but marketing teams have the skills to make it easier for everyone to understand how they can make a real difference. Joining the WFA Planet Pledge is a serious statement of intent; we look forward to more brands signing up in the future and seeing how marketers can take the lead on addressing the world’s most pressing challenge,” said Stephan Loerke, WFA CEO.

“At Asahi Europe & International we have an amazing opportunity to bring alive sustainable behaviors in a locally relevant and engaging way. Our sustainability strategy Legacy 2030 will be the change we ourselves make and the one we inspire in farmers, suppliers, customers, and consumers. The WFA Planet Pledge was obvious and intuitive for us as we seek to create meaningful connections in a healthy planet for generations to come,” said Grant McKenzie, Chief Marketing Officer at Asahi Europe & International.

“The IKEA vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people, and we believe those lives are truly better when they’re lived sustainably. This means rethinking and inspiring changes in lifestyle and consumption, as well as adopting new ways of working. Because the more people we reach, the bigger impact we have in helping the many create a better everyday life. The Planet Pledge is fully in line with our ambition and we are proud to stand behind and sign this commitment,” said Johan Wickmark, Acting Marketing Manager at Ingka Market Support.