OMD CEO Laura Nice, oOh!media’s Chris Freel, UM’s Ben McCallum, and Atomic 212 CEO Claire Fenner are among the 100 senior industry leaders participating in UnLtd’s Adland Bail Out to help break the cycle of youth incarceration.
The event, which will take place on June 27 at the Yasmar Detention Centre in Haberfield, will see senior leaders in media, marketing, tech, and creative swap their home comforts for prison uniforms, solitary confinement, and prison grub to experience what life really is like for many young people at risk.
The “inmates” will be stripped of their possessions, fingerprinted, and interrogated before spending the night in the chilling cells of the youth detention centre.
To be released the next day, each participant will be required to raise $1,250 as their “bail”. The funds raised will go towards UnLtd charity partners’ programs, specifically designed to break the cycle of youth incarceration.
Stephen Hunt, CEO of UnLtd, highlighted that Australia is one of the only countries in the developed world that places children as young as 10 years into juvenile justice centres.
“Imprisoning children at such a young age simply does not work and only leads to a revolving door of incarceration, mental ill-health and a huge cost to our society. At UnLtd, we are fortunate to work with several charities that are focused on providing better outcomes for young people and society; ultimately keeping kids out of jail and helping them break the vicious cycle of youth incarceration.
“This event is a fantastic and unique way to bring awareness to this issue, deliver a visceral experience to our participants and to raise funds for more effective programs.”
Additional “inmates” confirmed include Ashley Earnshaw from Nine, Jasmin Bedir from Innocean, Mark Jarrett from PHD, Nicole Bence from Nova, Sam Buchanan from the IMAA and many more. This year, a few previously released inmates will take on different roles, with Fiona Roberts, Paul Kent, and Ricky Chanana confirmed as prison guards.
Inmates are currently busy raising their bail, with Liam O’Meara at the top of the leaderboard for most funds raised to date.
Fiona Roberts, managing director ANZ at MiQ, said taking part in Adland Bail Out a few years ago was “one of the most eye-opening experiences” she had experienced.
“Spending the night on those cold hard floors of a cell is humbling and hearing the real life stories from young people is incredibly touching. But I’ve served my sentence and this year I’m excited to keep the motley crew in order as a Guard. Get ready to do as I tell you.”
The participants will take part in thought-provoking workshops to hear from young people with lived experience on youth incarceration and inspiring experts working tirelessly to help keep young people out of trouble, out of jail, and chasing their hopes and dreams.
2024 Adland Bail Out inmates so far:
Adam Elliott, Advertising Industry Careers
Adam Johnson, Nova
Andrew Gilbert, Yahoo!
Andy Procopis, ARN
Arvind Hickman, B&T
Ashley Earnshaw, Nine
Ashley McGrath, UnLtd
Ben McCallum, UM
Brittany ‘Bad B’ White, REA Group
Cathy O’Connor, oOh!media
Chris Ernst, Dentsu
Chris Freel, oOh!media
Claire Fenner, Atomic 212
Daniel ‘Dmac’ McConochie, Alliance Outdoor Media Group
Danika Johnston, WeAre8
Esther ‘The Pest’ Carlsen, Nova
Geoff ‘Golden Boy’ Cochrane, VMO
Henrik Isaksson, Acast
James Dixon, Atomic 212
Jade Harley, UnLtd
Jasmin Bedir, Innocean
Jo Clasby, Nine
Julia Edwards, Uber
Julie Anne ‘JLO from the Prison Block’ Longano, Peeps Consulting
Kasey Jamison, Amazon Ads
Kathryn ‘Fury’ Furnari, Innocean
Katie ‘The Shark Attack’ Finney, Seven Network
Laura ‘really not’ Nice, OMD
Liam O’Meara, Val Morgan Digital
Marcelle Gomez, iProspect
Mark Jarrett, PHD
Michael McEwan, M&C Saatchi Group
Nick ‘The Thomas Terror’ Thomas, Amazon
Nicole Bence, Nova
Nik Weber, ESPN
Ori ‘notORIous Gold’ Gold
Paul ‘Siggy’ Sigaloff, oOh!media
Pia ‘P-Dogg’ Coyle, PHD
Remi Roques, BroadSign
Sam Buchanan, IMAA
Stephen Hunt, UnLtd
Tom Loudon, Little Black Book
Tiffany Damm, UnLtd
Trent ‘ Bob’ McMillan, Kaimera