On Tuesday morning, our very first batch of Hatchlings finalists touched down at the Cairns Convention Centre, bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, and ready to take on Round Two of the Cairns Hatchlings, presented by Yahoo.
This round, most Hatchlings were answering a creative brief from Women on a Mission (WOAM), a bold, all-female non-profit that combines extreme expeditions with powerful storytelling to raise funds and awareness for women who’ve survived violence, conflict, and abuse.
Tasked with elevating WOAM’s brand presence and unlocking long-term corporate partnerships, Hatchlings responded with big thinking across audio, design, digital, marketing, media, and PR.
Meanwhile, our Video entrants worked with a different charity partner: Mission Australia, a national organisation supporting Australians in need for over 160 years. With more than 122,000 people experiencing homelessness each night, the brief challenged Hatchlings to create a 60–90 second video that raises awareness, challenges misconceptions, and shows how Mission Australia prevents homelessness before it takes hold.
Each submission had to balance empathy with professionalism, building emotional connection, credibility and momentum for two brands that sit at the intersection of purpose, transformation and social impact. And wow, did our Hatchlings deliver.
The work across all categories was deeply human, showcasing the transformative power of both charity partners and giving voice to people too often left out of the narrative.
So, without further ado, let’s hear it for the inaugural Cairns Hatchlings winners!
PR
Winners: Claudia Warren & Francesca Hampton – Havas Red
In the PR category Warren and Hampton created “Amani”, a fictional AI-generated business leader inspired by the real stories of 612 million women and girls living near war zones.
Amani, whose name means peace, is positioned as a Forbes Asia Power Businesswoman of 2025, designed to be both unavoidable and impactful.
The campaign strategy includes a multi-channel approach: using LinkedIn to connect with APAC executives, earned media to profile WOAM’s founders and beneficiaries, and a virtual TED Talk featuring Amani’s voice formed from lived experiences. The goal was to use Amani as a compelling face and voice to drive corporate awareness, empathy, and action towards women affected by conflict.
Design
Winners: Annabel Cook & Maddy Merzvinskis – Re Design
In the design category, Cook and Merzvinskis reimagined Women on a Mission as not just a charity, but a bold, adventure-driven leadership platform.
They centred their campaign around “The Power of Adventure,” leveraging WOAM’s unique spirit of extreme expeditions to attract and engage corporate partners.
Their strategy included a brand refresh featuring trail-inspired visuals, a manifesto celebrating women’s resilience, and an interactive digital map showcasing WOAM’s global impact.
To drive corporate engagement, they proposed targeted LinkedIn campaigns, testimonial-led storytelling, and a pitch positioning WOAM as a corporate training partner offering transformative leadership experiences through expeditions – ultimately blending purpose with professional growth.
Digital – Sponsored by Reddit
Winners: Hilary OSullivan & Hughie Flannery – Thinkerbell
O’Sullivan and Flannery developed a digitally-led campaign titled Out of Office. On a Mission. to help Women on a Mission (WOAM) attract long-term corporate sponsorships by targeting C-suite women.
Their idea was to hijack LinkedIn’s “experience” section, encouraging expedition participants and corporate sponsors to list their involvement with WOAM as an official career milestone.
This, the proposed would drive visibility, credibility, and curiosity across professional networks.
The strategy also included a retargeting campaign with emotive storytelling via LinkedIn and Meta, a “Why I Walked” video series, and customised partnership packs, all aimed at turning social visibility into sponsorship conversion by aligning WOAM with purpose-driven leadership.
Marketing – Sponsored by Boomtown
Winners: Olivia Ford & Laura Jeffries – Google
Jeffries and Ford developed Whistle for Change, a values-led marketing campaign designed to attract long-term corporate partners for Women on a Mission by targeting the Australian sports sector.
Using the whistle as a powerful symbol of leadership, safety and change, the campaign highlights WOAM’s dual impact: empowering global female survivors and developing future female leaders.
The strategy includes a social mini-series called Faces of Courage, a press release, digital and print partnership packs, and a dedicated landing page.
Their goal is to position WOAM as a strategic ally for companies looking to address the gender leadership gap in sport while aligning with purpose-led initiatives that deliver both social impact and personal transformation.
Media – Sponsored by Yahoo
Winners: Olivia Casamento & Ashley Hill – Match & Wood
Hill and Casamento proposed The Final Summit, an ambitious global campaign positioning Women on a Mission (WOAM) as a key player in ending gender-based violence (GBV) through a strategic partnership with tech giant Palantir.
Their vision centres on launching a WOAM-curated analytics platform, The Peace Suite, powered by Palantir’s AI to identify trafficking routes, track survivor support, and predict GBV flare-ups.
They propose inviting female G20 leaders to participate in a WOAM expedition, culminating in a globally broadcast event that drives awareness, political will, and $260 million in funding.
Through cinematic storytelling, mass media exposure, and predictive data tools, the campaign aims to move GBV from being merely documented to being actively defended against—turning narrative into action and giving WOAM a seat at the world’s most powerful table.
Audio – Sponsored by Acast
Winners: Sarah Brighton & Sally Fiddes – Ogilvy
Brighton and Fiddes created a unique sonic branding campaign for Women on a Mission by transforming mundane elevator music into an immersive metaphor for elevation and empowerment.
Their concept, Elevating Women, uses customised elevator soundscapes to turn a quiet moment in executive women’s morning commutes into an inspiring call to action—inviting them to imagine climbing mountains and deserts with WOAM.
By targeting C-suite women during elevator rides through branded takeovers, the campaign aims to spark expedition interest, drive website visits, and convert curiosity into corporate partnerships, all while delivering a memorable and PR-able audio experience.
Video – Sponsored by Publica
Winners: Thomas Carr – oOh!media & Louis Tanner
For their video response, Carr and Tanner spotlighted Cafe One, a Mission Australia initiative, by telling the personal story of one participant who—before joining the program—had never even made or tasted a cup of coffee.
Their 90-second video highlighted a sobering statistic: by the time the video concludes, 75 Australians will have reached out to homelessness services like Mission Australia—underscoring the urgency and importance of action.
Through powerful visuals and narration, they captured the transformative impact of Cafe One in providing skills, confidence, and community for people at risk of homelessness.
From AI-powered advocates to epic sonic branding, cinematic storytelling to whistle-blown calls for change, every submission proved that creativity can be a force for serious good. The calibre of thinking, craft and heart on display sets a powerful precedent for what the next generation of talent can do when given a brief with real-world purpose.
To all our inaugural Hatchlings winners and finalists– thank you for your bold ideas, your sleepless nights, and your unwavering passion. The future of our industry (and the world) is brighter because of you.
