The World’s Ugliest Lawn

Challenging the world to save water and share images of ugly dry lawns

Background:
The summer of 2023 was the hottest ever recorded on Earth, and water availability is decreasing around the world. Gotland had decreased its water consumption the previous year by celebrating owners of ugly dry lawns, and saw the need of scaling the initiative globally.

Idea: 
Launching The World’s Ugliest Lawn contest – a competition with the purpose of saving water globally by challenging the norm of green lawns.

Execution:
Gotland joined forces with the Hollywood actress and environmentalist Shailene Woodley. Together they challenged the world to save water and share images of ugly dry lawns. In a recorded Zoom call with last year's winner of "Gotland's Ugliest Lawn" she challenged the world to save water and share images of ugly dry lawns.

We contacted international media and journalists covering sustainability issues. We provided them with the launch video, press images and information of water scarcity around the world. 

Last year's winner of "Gotland's Ugliest Lawn" Marcus Norström and our client Mimmi Gibson were spokespersons. The contest was launched with an article in The Guardian. Many other international media outlets followed.

The Swedish embassies in the USA and Australia published posts encouraging Americans and Australians to enter the contest.

An international jury convened in december 2023 and crowned a winner – Katheen Murray in Tasmania, Australia. And the global media thought The World’s Ugliest Lawn was a beautiful thing.

Result:
Earned reach: 1.1B (and counting)
Media budget: $0
Entries from USA, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Croatia, Switzerland, Sweden and Australia.

Earned Media:
CNN, CNN Arabic, The Washington Post (“Top story” on start page and more than 400 comments, and a “Climate Coach” article), The Drew Barrymore Show, BBC Breakfast (7 minute segment in the BBC's biggest morning show), The Guardian (the most read article in the Environment section), Forbes, Have I Got News for You (the most popular Friday night tv show on BBC1), Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Der Spiegel, ABC Radio, Today Show Channel 9, Le Figaro, Le Parisien, The Weather Channel, Business Insider, Business Insider Africa, Business Insider Netherland, New York Post, The Telegraph, CBC Radio, Irish Independent, NPR Radio (USA), The Sun, 7 News, Arte (2 minute segment), SBS Deutsch, Swedish national television, SVT (10 minute segment x 2). Seattle Times, TAG 24 News, 20 Minuten, Tages-Anzeiger, Basler Zeitung, Koimoi, Ideal Home, Better Homes and Gardens, The mercury News, Green Me, Nachrichten, Casa e Jardim, L’insolite Auquotidien, The West Australian, The Canberra Times, The Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun, Verve times, News 18, The Advocate, Eco Watch, Prothotema.gr, Greenpeace Magazin, ABP Sanjah, New Dehli TV, Times Now, Hindustan Times, Afriqaa, Revista Pepper, She Shight Magazine, She the People, Hawaii Public Radio, Slate, Telex.hu, Yahoo! Finance, 24.hu, PRWeek UK, Trend Hunter, Shepherd Express, Publico.pt, Now This, West Observer, The Storiest, Closer, Climate Club Queensland, Examiner, Newsable, 20minutos.es, Iglesia en Directo, Huaral.pe, Kompas.com, Make Water Famous, Happy Eco News, Thehustle.co, The Week, Salt lake City Weekly, Co188.com, Aktuality.sk, Kids week, Liputan6.com, Lokmat.com, Gulf Daily News, Maroela Media, Nobbot.com, Pique Action, The Jay-Ho, Cool Down, The Swedish Embassy in the USA, Shailene Woodley Update, Almost, Inspire more, The Greater Good, Fenix News Network, Thienpong, Vo Truong Toan High School, Thedirt.news, Aftonbladet, Dagens Industri, SVT Morgonstudion, TV4 Nyhetsmorgon, TV4 Efter Fem, P1 Studio Ett, P1 Lantzkampen, SVT Landet runt, P4 Gotland, P4 Skaraborg, P4 Örebro, SVT Öst, Hela Gotland and a Reddit thread.

”The trend is spreading”
The Guardian

“We can rediscover new standards of beauty”
The Washington Post

”The campaign touched a nerve worldwide”
Süddeutsche Zeitung

”It really gets the point across”
BBC

“It’s all for a good cause”
CNN

”An unusual way to make water conservation fun”
Forbes

“To all American lawn owners: take pride in your brown lawn and become part of a global movement for positive change!”
Embassy of Sweden in the USA

”We are calling on lawn owners in Australia to share images of your ugliest lawns”
Embassy of Sweden in Australia

”A great way to influence people around the world to use less water”
Shailene Woodley

”The Royal Horticultural Society have pegged ugly lawns as one of the big gardening trends of 2024”
Ideal Home

”Could this be sustainability at its finest?”
Happy Eco News

”Kathleen Murray's triumph in the "World's Ugliest Lawn" contest symbolises a shift in perspective towards sustainable landscaping practices”
She The People