“Waste is only waste if we waste it” – global musical artist and producer, will.i.am. After a 2008 performance with his group The Black Eyed Peas, will.i.am stood on an empty stage and looked out at the debris left behind by the 30,000+ concert revelers. The trash pile ultimately inspired will.i.am to join forces with The Coca-Cola Company to create a movement that would support recycling and communicate that items considered waste today can be a part of a lifestyle product that may be used tomorrow.

This idea is now known as EKOCYCLE™ - a stand-alone brand initiative dedicated to encouraging recycling behavior and building sustainability awareness through aspirational, yet attainable lifestyle products featuring an eco-conscious focus. At the August 2012 launch of EKOCYCLE, a strategic media relations plan was executed to announce the brand and anchor partners Beats by Dr. Dre® and New Era®.

The team brought the EKOCYCLE initiative and process to people, influentials and media in a way that thoughtfully and passionately told the brand’s story of sustainability and social change. The global launch of the EKOCYCLE brand was announced via a strategic media relations campaign.

The PR campaign was supported with a highly conceptualized event for media and influencers pegged to the October 24, 2012 announcement of EKOCYCLE’s newest partners – the Levi’s® brand, MCM and RVCA . The event featured a build out at the SIR Stage37 venue, a warehouse in New York City that featured sustainable materials that were sourced locally.

Positive editorial placements were secured among key media outlets during the brand announcement timeframe through a pipeline of outreach efforts to unveil the brand story. A photo and b-roll shoot was conducted with will.i.am, Bea Perez and EKOCYCLE products to create media assets. A teleconference with key global media announced the initiative, following a global news release. A toolkit for Coca-Cola global markets outlined the brand and communications strategy for local implementation.

One-on-one interviews with will.i.am, Bea Perez and anchor brand partners Beats by Dr. Dre and New Era drove exclusive coverage with top media targets.

All aspects of the New York Fall 2012 event focused on the EKOCYCLE mission and message from sustainable planning to a carbon neutral certification. Social media messaging and guest photo opportunities created buzz-worthy moments and engaged millions in a conversation and helped to kick off digital and social initiatives for EKOCYCLE.

• Secured one-on-one interviews with “Entertainment Tonight” and “Bloomberg West” for will.i.am to discuss the launch of EKOCYCLE. Also coordinated media category exclusives with the Associated Press, Billboard and Nylon Magazine online.

• Garnered 95 percent positive coverage about EKOCYCLE with feature stories highlighting program messaging, event branded photos and quotes from will.i.am and Bea Perez, including: ABC News Radio, LicenseMag.com, The Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, WWD, Yahoo!’s OMG!, TIME, Perez Hilton’s CocoPerez and Inhabitat.com, among others. Resulting in more than 75 million impressions.

• Guest editors from outlets such as Billboard.com, E! News online and New York Magazine attended the launch event, and media interest was enhanced with celebrity guests such as Krysten Ritter, Carrie Keagan and Katie Lee.

• Social media efforts increased the Twitter following six-fold, and conversations from influencers strategically engaged in the digital space, lead to 25.8 million expressions on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.