Marketing and communications director, Ana Laura Sivieri talks about the brand’s participation in festivals and the challenge of engagement
Braskem presents itself not just as a petrochemical company, but as a company committed to the circular economy and carbon neutrality. Currently, with 29 plants in Brazil, located in the states of Alagoas, Bahia, Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro and So Paulo, the company started to invest in actions focused on ecological education in several places, such as Big Brother Brasil, music festivals and Ibirapuera Park, in So Paulo.
We identified that the best way to connect with the audience would be through moments in which people are having fun and, therefore, are more likely to receive this message, explained Ana Laura Sivieri, director of marketing and communications at Braskem. In the following interview, the executive talks about the brand’s communication strategies and goals.
What are the main aspects of Braskem in Brazil?
Braskem’s operating segments in Brazil include Basic Petrochemicals, Polyolefins and Vinyls industrial units. Furthermore, in Triunfo, Rio Grande do Sul, the world’s first Green PE plant is located, opened by Braskem in 2010. The plant’s capacity recently increased from 200,000 to 260,000 tons/year, as a result of an investment of US$87 million. With the same properties, performance and versatility of applications as polyethylene of fossil origin, which facilitates its immediate use in the plastic production chain, Green PE is produced from sugarcane ethanol, a renewable raw material, 100% It is recyclable and helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
How much does Brazil represent in Braskem’s revenue?
According to data from 2021, Brazil represents approximately 62% of Braskem’s revenue.
How does the company work on its communication?
We have strived to communicate our commitments, goals, partnerships, initiatives and solutions to stakeholders through inspirational communication, which is always linked to sustainability and brand purposes in a strategic and targeted way (the brand served by Pubicis). Due to the diversity of products and audiences with which Braskem interacts, communication is designed based on a map of stakeholders in which we define the message we want to build for each one. We have more than 12 stakeholders, but the main ones for communication are our customers, brand owners, financial market and society.
What is the biggest challenge in brand communication?
For society, we understand that our biggest challenge is to engage people in conscious consumption and correct disposal, so that they can understand that plastic is recyclable and that they have a fundamental role in this cycle. To build this message, in addition to awareness campaigns, like the ones we did at the end of the year and during BBB, we defined a sponsorship platform to help build this change in habits. We identified that the best way to connect with the audience would be through moments in which people are having fun and, therefore, are more likely to receive this message. We looked for places and events where plastic was present and arrived on three main fronts: parks, festivals and beaches. With that, we began to unfold into the large projects that we are present in today.
Braskem is one of the companies that has a presence in Ibirapuera Park. How did this relationship start?
Within our strategy, parks were already a priority and when we think about parks, Ibirapuera is the great postcard of São Paulo, which had a project very aligned with what we wanted to communicate. The relationship began in April 2022 and, when Ibirapuera Park turned 68, in September, we launched the zero waste campaign. Braskem entered into a partnership with Urbia, the concessionaire managing the park, to enhance recycling on site and with the ambition of making Ibirapuera zero landfill by 2025. The partnership allowed this goal to be brought forward by two years through adequate management of waste generated by the public who frequents the space. In 2023, Ibirapuera Park will already have zero landfill and in the second stage of the project it is planned to include waste generated from third-party events and equipment outside the concession.
What is Braskem’s objective with the activation at the park?
The idea is that we could contribute to the goal of transforming Ibirapuera into the most sustainable park in Latin America by 2030, raising awareness and encouraging visitors to dispose of waste correctly, so that it can be sent to a recycling center that works within the public facility itself and that allows better use of all waste generated there.
The company participated in music festivals, such as Lollapalooza and The Town. Why did you decide to enter this universe?
Plastic plays an essential role within the festival for the consumption of food and drinks. Therefore, we understood that in this space we had the opportunity to show in practice that, by correctly disposing of waste, it could return in the form of benefits for people. We materialize this by encouraging the correct disposal of plastic and scoring each plastic waste discarded. The more correct discards, the more points and more gifts people could win. This exercise during the festival allows the person to change their daily habits. By recycling, people will allow plastic to return to industry in the form of new products. That is why, in recent years, the company has been developing a series of activities with an educational aim at events and mass media. The idea is to reinforce the importance of changing habits, of small everyday attitudes in building an increasingly sustainable future. It is only in moments of collective relaxation and joy that we want to engage consumers in this journey of environmental education and commitment to sustainability.
Read the full interview in the October 30, 2023 edition
