Social First behaviour Change At Scale

Recycling only works when people clearly understand what to do. Sustainability Victoria’s brief was to create a single, statewide campaign that could help all Victorians recycle properly, across cultures, languages and communities. Small Acts, Big Impact became a clear, practical platform that turned everyday actions into consistent behaviour, using simple guidance people could recognise instantly.

Our Challenge

Victoria introduced a standardised four‑bin system to improve recycling, but many households were still unsure what went where.

With four bins rolling out to homes across the state, and a highly diverse population, recycling guidance needed to be immediately clear and accessible wherever people encountered it.

The HERO Insight

Victoria introduced a standardised four‑bin system to improve recycling, but many households were still unsure what went where.

With four bins rolling out to homes across the state, and a highly diverse population, recycling guidance needed to be immediately clear and accessible wherever people encountered it.

The Idea

Small Acts, Big Impact was built as a practical social‑first behaviour change system designed to live across film, social, community channels and public space.

We created a distinctive illustrated animation style aligned to Victoria’s four‑bin colours: purple for glass, yellow for recycling, green for food and garden organics, and red for general waste. Clear colour blocks, simple linework and short demonstrations showed exactly what to do, without relying on heavy text.

The campaign focused on everyday actions that make the biggest difference, including keeping recycling loose, removing food and liquid from containers, and safely dropping off batteries and e‑waste. Assets were designed in short, repeatable formats suitable for organic social, paid distribution and community sharing.

More than 90 films and OOH executions were produced in multiple languages, forming a modular content library that councils could adapt to local audiences, platforms and waste systems while maintaining a consistent statewide look and message.

The Impact

Small Acts, Big Impact was delivered as a truly statewide campaign, supporting recycling education for more than 2.6 million Victorian households as the four‑bin system rolled out across the state. The platform addressed the most common causes of recycling errors, including contamination from food, liquids and bagged recycling.

The campaign produced 90+ social, film and outdoor assets, delivered in 10+ community languages, and designed for use across social platforms, video, outdoor media and council‑led community channels. This modular system enabled councils across metropolitan and regional Victoria to localise delivery while maintaining a consistent statewide message.

An always‑on social and community approach ensured recycling guidance appeared in everyday moments, not just during campaign bursts. Content addressed common points of confusion as they arose, through short social films, council posts, community shares and local digital placements. This reinforced correct behaviours through relevance, repetition and context, helping guidance from our community managers to remain relevvisible, practical and easy to act on over time.

Today, Small Acts, Big Impact continues to support behaviour change at scale, reinforcing correct recycling practices and contributing to Victoria’s broader circular economy reforms, backed by more than $500 million in state investment in waste and recycling transformation.