and raise awareness of suicide prevention. Bringing hope and help with the orange sticky note.
Using orange sticky notes to represent positivity, we invited schools and groups around the world to write notes of encouragement and inspiration for friends, family, and beyond.
34,244 handwritten notes
The Orange Project set a new Guinness World Record—not only a record of size, but also a record of hope.
Hope that tomorrow is suicide free.
Introducing the orange project
A youth-driven and youth-focused educational
and social media campaign to…
- Share handwritten words
of hope and inspiration - Support more open
communication about suicide - Raise awareness of the
warning signs - Encourage adolescents to feel
comfortable asking for help - Hopefully, help save a life
Why the color orange?
Orange offers emotional strength in difficult times and represents
optimism and rejuvenation. It stimulates communication and assists
in recovery from grief.
There are more than 2000 suicides a day worldwide.
Among adolescents, SUICIDE is the 2nd leading cause of death.Every 40 seconds another life is lost to suicide.
Yet, suicide is a global epidemic that is rarely talked about. Together, through open dialogue and increased understanding, we can reduce the stigma of suicide, help prevent it, and improve the lives of those affected.
THE INSIGHT BEHIND
#worthliving
Connectedness is crucial to individuals who may be vulnerable to suicide. Reaching out to those who have become disconnected from others and offering them support and friendship may be life saving.
HOW IT ALL STARTED
When the unspeakable happened—a colleague and friend lost her partner to a lifelong battle with depression—out of anguish and loss she found the courage to break the silence, challenge the stigma, and get people talking about something that no one wants to talk about: suicide.
Everyone will experience a personal tragedy at some point in their lives; it is how they deal with it that defines their character.
Inspired by her openness, positivity, and desire to create change, #worthliving was born.
Have you been affected by suicide? Know someone
who has?
Because life is #worthliving, join a worldwide suicide prevention movement. You could help make it easier for someone you know to ask for help. American Foundation of
Suicide Prevention If you are in crisis, get help immediately
Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline or visit their website 1.800.273.TALK (8255) suicidepreventionlifeline.org International Association for Suicide PreventionPrevious Campaigns
On the road to breaking a world record
For World Suicide Prevention Day 2016, we asked teens how they would prefer talking to one another about suicide. Writing words of encouragement on sticky notes was their solution. Created by teens, for teens, The Orange Project sent kits to schools, set up booths at live events, and kick-started conversations about teen suicide around the world.
Reach out to theorangeproject@mccann.com and join us in ending the stigma around suicide by breaking a world record for the most handwritten notes.
18 million impressions worldwide
For every 1 suicide, there are 20 attempts—20 lives at risk. What if we could intervene and stop a suicide before it happened?
For World Suicide Prevention Day 2015, we encouraged the world to #attemptlife instead of suicide, because 1 less suicide attempt means 1 more life saved.
We asked people to attempt something they haven’t done before or may have been scared to try, by themselves or with friends, and to share it on social media. Every brave and fun attempt at life was a way of reaching out with support, compassion, and understanding in support of suicide prevention.
18 million impressions worldwide
On September 10, 2014, World Suicide Prevention Day, the #worthliving campaign was launched to promote suicide prevention by taking one day to show why every day is worth living. #worthliving invited the world to tag and share images, videos, or words that represent the beauty and meaning of life.
1 tweet on 1 day started a worldwide conversation about a subject that is normally shrouded in secrecy and silence.
