VCU Adcenter instructor to serve on United Nations Committee

By Mike Frontiero
VCU School of Education

RICHMOND, Va. – Jelly Helm, associate professor at the Virginia Commonwealth University Adcenter, has been appointed to a newly formed United Nations panel to work on ways advertising can raise global awareness about the importance of preventing overconsumption of the earth’s natural resources.

Helm is the only American, and the only educator, to serve on the 12-person Advisory Committee of the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) Advertising Initiative. The panel, comprised of business, communication and media professionals from around the world, will hold its first meeting on March 28th, in Paris.

Helm has written and published numerous articles on the subject of sustainable consumption and advertising’s role in runaway consumerism. As an ad man himself, Helm understands his convictions run counter to mainstream advertising philosophy.

"I expect my role on the committee to be an opportunity to voice my opinions about how powerfully influential and damaging advertising can be, and look for opportunities to raise awareness of how our industry may be improved," said Helm. "The ad industry’s first step is simply to acknowledge that the products we choose to represent do have an impact on the world. We must be willing to take responsibility for the sale of these products."

"Sustainable consumption is not about consuming less, it is about consuming differently, consuming efficiently, and having an improved quality of life," said UNEP director Jacqueline Aloisi de Larderel. "It also means sharing between the richer and the poorer."

The aim of the voluntary group is to improve communication between governments, business and consumers about areas in which consumption patterns affect environmental, economic and social goals of the international community.

"A good way to begin is by fully understanding how a product affects the earth – how it is made, from what resources, how the workers are treated and whether the product adds to or detracts from the health of communities," said Helm.

The U.N. Initiative will focus on fostering a better understanding of the concept of sustainable consumption in the advertising sector. The goal is to build a network within the advertising world to raise awareness among consumers and prompt the advertising industry to undertake voluntary initiatives that meet current consumption needs without compromising future generations. Helm’s role on the panel will be to give the perspective of advertising agencies in the United States.

Before joining the VCU Adcenter as a full-time faculty member in 1999, Helm was Group Creative Director at The Martin Agency in Richmond. Prior to that he spent a number of years at Wieden + Kennedy advertising offices in Portland, Oregon and Amsterdam as an art director and creative director, respectively. His work on Nike, Coke, Microsoft and Timberland has garnered dozens of national and international awards. Currently, Helm teaches art direction/layout and portfolio development to first and second year students enrolled in the VCU Adcenter’s master’s degree program in advertising.

Helm’s appointment to the Advisory Committee is for one year, during which time the members will correspond through e-mail, conference calls and meetings in Europe.

The VCU Adcenter is an innovative master’s program for advertising that combines a business-oriented strategic track with a creative program for art directors and writers in an agency setting. For more information, visit the Adcenter Web site at www.adcenter.vcu.edu.