Congrats to Nedbank. Their outdoor billboard has just won the top rated global advertising industry award in Cannes – the Lions Outdoor Grand Prix.

The “Power to the People” billboard was erected on a school property in Alexander township in Sandton (Johannesburg, South Africa). The solar panels built into the billboard supply the school with electricity. I believe the bank also pays the school R 2,000 (about US$ 300) rent for the billboard space each month. Together with the money and the saving in electricity costs, the school has been able to afford to provide every student a hot meal at lunch time every day. In the impoverished community of Alexander this is nothing short of miraculous.

This is a great example of what companies need to be doing in the “Connection Economy” – where its more and more about WHO you are, and less and less about simply WHAT you sell.

To learn more about Nedbank’s sustainability drive, read their 2006 report.