Description
In 1863, author and national poet Zacharias Topelius proposed blue and white as Finland’s colours: blue for the open sea, white for enclosing ice: the northern waters that shaped the nation.
More than 160 years later, those waters tell a different story. Eutrophication has turned the Baltic Sea green.
Ice-covered winters are disappearing.
What once defined Finland is now under threat.
The campaign’s central message is deliberately uncomfortable: “Once blue and white, now green and dirty.”
A reimagined Finnish flag, its iconic cross rendered in murky green and grey instead of white and blue becomes both protest and wake-up call.
The campaign runs across print, outdoor and digital media, each execution anchored by the altered flag and Topelius’s original words. Rather than softening the provocation, the work embraces it: if the flag represents Finland’s relationship with the sea, shouldn’t it also reflect what that relationship has become?
Beyond awareness, the campaign calls for action. All communications direct donations toward concrete Baltic Sea restoration efforts. The message is twofold: this is what we have done and this is what we can still undo.
The flag can return to blue and white.
But only if the sea does first.
This professional campaign titled 'Finnish Flag Now' was published in Finland in January, 2026. It was created for the brand: Baltic Sea Action Group, by ad agency: hasan & partners. This Digital, OOH Outdoor, and Print media campaign is related to the Public Interest industry and contains 2 media assets. It was submitted about 2 hours ago by hasan & partners .
