CHALLENGE

In Britain, saying ‘sorry’ is a national pastime. We apologise for anything and everything - on average, eight times a day. That’s nearly 3,000 “sorrys” a year per person. But when it comes to climate change, polite apologies risk replacing meaningful action.

 

Despite widespread concern about the climate crisis, urgency was stagnating and public momentum was slipping. As Potential Energy Coalition prepared to launch its first campaign with Parents for Future UK, the challenge was clear - how do you cut through climate fatigue and apathy to make inaction feel personally consequential, especially for parents, without resorting to fear, guilt or preaching.

​
 

SOLUTION

Sorry contrasts everyday, meaningless apologies with the one that would truly matter. The film humorously shows people saying “sorry” for the most trivial moments, before shifting in tone to the growing weight of climate change. It ends with a simple, unsettling truth: “Sorry is easy… until it isn’t,” reframing climate inaction as an apology we may soon owe to future generations.

 

Grounded in PEC research showing that protecting children’s futures is the strongest motivator for climate action, the campaign reframed climate inaction as a moral legacy, urging Britain to stop apologising quietly and start demanding change.

 

By turning a familiar national behaviour into a moral reckoning, the film made the climate crisis feel personal, urgent, and impossible to ignore.

​

​

RESULTS

The campaign achieved disproportionate impact for its scale, delivering 12.2 million video views, 18.3 million impressions, and reaching 2.4 million people.

 

Crucially, it shifted attitudes where it mattered most: in targeted areas, support for immediate climate action rose by 11 points among the Loyal National audience. Climate change remained a top-ranked issue in exposed regions, while concern declined in control areas - proving the campaign didn’t just reach people, it kept climate action on the agenda.

​