Ever since PayPal set up shop in Brazil, they became a client of Brand Connect, the ad agency I worked for. Over the course of almost 8 years, I had the chance to be part of various PayPal projects, collaborating with different agencies and partnering with other brands. But one project that stands out for me is Competition for Good: a program created in collaboration with Waves For Water, a non-profit organization that works towards providing clean water access worldwide.
When the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup came to Brazil, Waves for Water joined forces with Neymar Jr., his foundation, and PayPal to bring clean water to underserved communities in all 12 cities hosting the games in the initial phase of the project.
Through this initiative, W4W were able to provide clean water to more than 85,000 Brazilians living in underserved communities across these areas.
For the second phase of the project, when the FIFA World Cup started in 2014 and with ongoing support from PayPal, they extended the program to all host cities for the games, including Curitiba, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Recife, Fortaleza and Brasília from June to December 2014.
On World Water Day, March 22nd, 2015, the program was concluded by implementing a total of 5,000 water filters, positively impacting the lives of over 125,000 people throughout Brazil.
Competition for Good was a clever initiative during the FIFA World Cup in Brazil. It used the tournament as a platform to raise funds and provide clean water to the host cities. With 32 nations involved, people could choose their favorite country to support, and the donations would go towards providing clean water in that country's host city. It created a friendly competition to see which country could generate the most donations—a competition for a good cause.
Behind the scenes, the true purpose was to engage people worldwide in bringing clean water to those in need across all the host cities in Brazil. The outcome was highly gratifying, making it a win-win situation for everyone involved.
In my role, I had to work closely with UX designers and other stakeholders to design the program's interfaces. It was quite a challenge to find the sweet spot between PayPal's strict guidelines and design system, blending with the program's visuals and UI components. Oh, and let's not forget that we had to keep a mobile-first mindset throughout the whole process.
It required effective collaboration, careful consideration, and attention to detail.
Moreover, Neymar, the renowned Brazilian soccer player of our time, not only lent his support as a spokesperson for the initiative but also contributed with signed merchandise. These valuable items were auctioned on eBay, a partner company of PayPal, to generate additional funds for the cause in special filters by Waves For Water to provide clean water to the host-cities in Brazil.
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Please help the cause: wavesforwater.org/donate
