The 2018 D&AD Impact Award shortlist has been announced

A veritable stack of the earth’s most positively-minded, socially-orientated creatives have woken up to some very good news in their inboxes this morning. 116 pieces of work have been plonked on the shortlist for this year’s D&AD Impact Award.

The result of a partnership between D&AD and Advertising Week, the Impact award seeks to drive positive change while “supporting great creative ideas that have the potential for impact, and rewarding those that have.” It is, they say, “for everyone who believes in the power of creativity to change the world, whether you’re a brand, NGO, start-up, entrepreneur, agency, social enterprise or aspiring innovator.”

This year the panel have chosen to honour a suitably diverse selection of creative talent. The LadBible, fresh from being honoured with a place in the 2018 Beazley Designs of the Year list, find themselves rubbing shoulders with everything from work on gun reform in the United States, to work that focuses on LGBT+ rights in Australia.

Tom Lindsay, the CEO of D&AD, says, “More than ever, brands and businesses are leading the way in developing products and ideas that shape the world we live in for the better. The works that’ve made this year’s D&AD Impact shortlist are truly inspiring examples of the power of creativity and, more importantly, an encouraging sign of things to come.”

He adds that he “doesn’t envy” the judges who have to narrow the shortlist down to a select few recipients who’ll walk away with a prestigious Pencil come October 2, when the award ceremony takes place in the Big Apple.

If you want to play clairvoyant — we’re not sure if William Hill take bets on the D&AD Impact Award yet, so this is just for fun — the shortlist can be perused in full right here.