The Old Brewery Mission is breaking down prejudices, one neighbor at a time

Insubordination has created the Old Brewery Mission’s new awareness campaign, aimed at breaking down prejudices surrounding its social housing projects.

For several years, the Old Brewery Mission has been pursuing an ambitious social housing development strategy to provide sustainable solutions to homelessness. To ensure these projects integrate smoothly into their neighborhoods, the Old Brewery Mission must be able to count on the support of the local community.

“Housing is much more than just a roof over one’s head,” says Marie-Pier Therrien, the organization’s director of communications and marketing. “It’s a stepping stone toward stability, health, and dignity.” “To develop these projects, which are essential for Montreal, we need the public’s support. We need people to show their support when new social housing units are announced in their neighbourhood. It is through projects like these that we will be able to reverse the housing crisis and break the cycle of homelessness.”

An awareness campaign was needed to encourage the neighborhood to learn more about the Old Brewery Mission’s rehousing projects and to remind residents that what is being established in their neighborhood are not shelters, but permanent, supported housing units integrated into the community.

Transforming Fear Through Connection

Designed by the Insubordination agency, the “Hello Neighbor” campaign is based on a simple observation: people are rarely afraid of a building; rather, they fear what they imagine lies behind its doors.
The concept is based on a shift in perspective. Rather than letting the Old Brewery Mission defend its projects, residents are speaking up to introduce themselves to their neighbors.

“We wanted to shift the conversation,” explains Simon Beaudry, creative director at the creative agency. “We’re no longer talking about a building; we’re talking about a neighbor. When you replace an abstract project with a real person, prejudices lose their power and make way for connection.”

Through a series of personal stories, these individuals share their journeys, explain what supported housing means to them, and remind us that, above all, they aspire to live a neighborhood life just like everyone else.

With “Salut voisin,” the Old Brewery Mission aims to open a dialogue, answer residents’ questions, and remind everyone that a neighborhood is built as much through the connections that unite its residents as through its buildings. The organization also hopes that, when social housing is announced in their neighborhood, the community will express its support and see the new residents for who they are: neighbors just like everyone else.

Credits

Client: Mission Old Brewery – Marie-Pier Therrien, Étienne Desgagnés, James Hughes

Creative Agency: Insubordination
Concept: Insubordination – Simon Beaudry and Catherine Martellini
Creative Director, Art Director, Design: Simon Beaudry
Copywriting: Catherine Martellini
English Adaptation: Kurt Chaboyer
Producer: Valérie Lapointe
Graphic Design: Steve Desmarais
Director: Simon Beaudry
Director of Photography and Photography: Martin Laporte
Editing and Animation: Umi Laporte
Sound Mixing, Recording, and Transfer: Réservoir Audio

Media Placement and Strategy

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