Adland Inmates Raise $100k For Charity

Last Friday night, 45 advertising industry ‘inmates’ spent the night in prison, to raise funds and awareness for young people at risk.

Together, the inmates raised over $102,000 for UnLtd’s work campaigning to break the vicious cycle of youth incarceration. The top 5 fundraisers were Kristiaan Kroon, Brittany Crowley, Philippa Noilea-Tani, Winston Stening and Lauren Dawber.

The ‘inmates’ were shouted at and forced to hand over all control of their lives to the guards, quickly realising the toll this loss of autonomy could take on a young person’s self-belief and mental health. They were fingerprinted, questioned and locked into isolation in their cells, getting a glimpse of the reality that many young people in the justice system face daily.

The participants also took part in eye-opening workshops hearing from people with lived experience about the impacts of youth incarceration, and hearing from organisations like Down The Track and Musicians Making a Difference who are providing better alternatives for preventing crime and keeping young people from reoffending.

Lauren Dawber, senior director of media, operations and performance at Optus, said of the experience, “Last night was one of the most thought-provoking, stereotype-challenging and transformative experiences. It opened my eyes to the sad realities and circumstances that lead to youth incarceration, but also gave us hope by hearing from organisations doing incredible work to prevent crime and stop kids from going to prison. Let’s raise the age together, no child that young should experience the justice system; they need care, not incarceration.”

The event took place at Yasmar Detention Centre in Haberfield, a former youth detention facility. To help maintain order inside, several past ‘inmates’ returned -- this time as volunteer ‘guards’ -- to keep the new recruits in line.

The participants also got to hear about the industry-wide campaign for Raise the Age NSW, aiming to raise the age of criminal responsibility in NSW from 10 to at least 14.

Philippa Moig, CEO of UnLtd and one of the inmates said, “This was my first Bail Out and it was an incredibly powerful way to understand — and truly feel what life is like for children in the justice system. It reminded me that there are no ‘bad’ kids, just better alternatives we must fight for. I’m deeply grateful to all our inmates who went above and beyond to fundraise for this important cause and gave up their weekend to spend a night behind bars in solidarity. As an industry, we harnessed our collective goodwill and turned it into action. We’re in a unique position to create change — and that starts with awareness, courage, and showing up.”

​There is still time to donate and to view the leaderboard here.