In 2025, BLAKE redefined its annual leadership awards to reflect the organisation’s kaupapa of protecting and restoring the natural environment. The BLAKE Leadership Awards (the Awards) had been recognising broader types of leadership outside of its purpose, so this shift saw it solely focus on environmental sustainability and conservation leadership.
This repositioning also reflected a changing national context – growing public concern, evolving policy settings, and a need for visible, credible environmental leadership. Following Anthem’s support of the Awards in 2024, which also marked the 20th anniversary of BLAKE (formerly the Sir Peter Blake Trust), BLAKE engaged Anthem to help bring its renewed direction for the awards to life.
BLAKE’s three objectives were to:
- Strengthen awareness of BLAKE’s mission and to position the Awards as New Zealand’s eminent platform for celebrating environmental leadership
- Inspire New Zealanders by showcasing committed environmental leaders
- Achieve national and regional media coverage celebrating the 2025 recipients’ mahi and impact.
Anthem supported the call for nominations phase of the awards and the announcement of the award recipients, shaping the communications strategy and the narrative itself. We produced a new “The BLAKE Awards Story” – defining a unifying narrative to ensure consistency across media, stakeholders, website content and speeches.
Anthem delivered a proactive, layered media strategy, translating the Awards into a clear, compelling national story and identifying the strongest human and environmental angles across recipients. Media engagement was carefully sequenced across key moments to maintain momentum and maximise visibility, supported by an earned media-led approach including embargo pitching and tailored media engagement.
The campaign secured 15 pieces of media coverage, achieving more than four million in audience reach. Highlights included a front-page feature in The New Zealand Herald and a prime-time Breakfast interview. This strong national and regional media presence brought BLAKE, its Awards, and their recipients, into the public spotlight.
Importantly, the campaign strengthened BLAKE’s position as New Zealand’s leading organisation championing environmental leadership and conservation. This demonstrated the importance of having a clear narrative for cut through and how a disciplined media approach can turn purpose-led initiatives into stories that resonate on a national scale.
