The voice of Gen Z
What does “being a woman” mean in society, and why does gender inequality still exist? How can we live more sustainably, and why is representation in the media so important? Rosanne “Rosie” Coetsier seeks answers to these and other questions in *Rebels With A Cause*, a podcast for Gen Zers who care about the world, created through a collaboration between the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and Chase.
The goal of this project was to raise awareness of social issues and spark discussions. At the same time, it serves as a platform that showcases young thinkers and the topics they are passionate about. We believe that young people have something to say and can come up with brilliant ideas. It would be a shame not to give them a voice.
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Turning complex topics into an engaging and accessible video podcast
Each episode focuses on a theme from the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and showcases Brussels as a creative and vibrant city. After thorough research and planning, we identified eight themes: mental health, affordable and sustainable energy, poverty, sustainable cities, gender equality, reducing inequality among nations, sustainable development, and quality education.
The challenge was to translate these weighty topics into a format featuring accessible and understandable conversations for young adults that would also be engaging. The goal was to spark discussions, encourage listeners to reflect, and inspire action. That’s why we selected enthusiastic young creators and activists such as Mohamed El Hajjouti, Laura From The Desert, and Abdullah Sediqi. Each of them has clear opinions and stories to share—overall, they are ideal representatives of the youth and the perfect people to have meaningful conversations with.
In addition to creating a platform to inspire young people, we also wanted to make this project educational. That’s why we selected several VUB professors and scientists—our advisors and fact-checkers. They work on the topics discussed every day, making them the ideal experts to inform listeners and offer interesting perspectives. Their insights added value to the conversations and helped shape the structure of the episodes.
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A comprehensive Gen Z campaign
Music podcasts alone are no longer enough to stand out. Young people today place much greater importance on visuals, which is why YouTube has become the go-to platform for listening to and watching podcasts. “Rebels With A Cause” didn’t want to be left behind, so it became a video podcast available on all major podcast platforms and on YouTube. For the visual aspect of this project, we selected meaningful and aesthetically pleasing locations in Brussels to serve as the backdrop for all the conversations.
When it comes to social media, Gen Z prefers Instagram and TikTok. We therefore needed to adapt our promotional campaign to both platforms. The result is an attractive and colorful visual identity that appears in a series of social media posts and vertical video teasers. We also launched a broad advertising campaign on these platforms.
In addition, outdoor advertising was used to raise awareness of the project: printed posters, digital screens, and campus totems, visible throughout the entire VUB campus.
The result is eight in-depth episodes featuring amazing guests and a 360-degree campaign with standout content, informative interviews, and a visual identity that truly resonates with Gen Z.
Want to learn more about this project? Visit the VUB website. All episodes are available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.
Credits
VUB team:
- Research: Lies Feron, Sarah Janssens
- Marketing & PR Team: Cynthia Pieters, Heleen van Schooneveld, Ann Van Driessche
- Scientists: Imke Baetens, Eveline Peeters, Marc Theeboom, Dimo Kavadias, Karen Celis, Hans De Wolf, Latifah Abdou, Inge Plackle
Chase team:
- Pre-production: Hanne Van Vlaenderen
- Research: Hanne Van Vlaenderen, Ioni Villanueva, Charissa Vanthieghem
- Production: Hanne Van Vlaenderen, Hanne Penninck
- Audio recording: Wederik De Backer, Bert Ballegeer
- Video recording: Reda Iben Boura, Alexandre Brehm
- Story editor: Hanne Van Vlaenderen, Rosanne Coetsier
- Audio mix: Wederik De Backer
- Strategy: Jan d'Hont
- Host: Rosanne Coetsier
- Story coach: Pieter Blomme
- Podcast promotion, artwork, social media content, copy, and visuals: Hanne Penninck, Ioni Villanueva, Michael Chin, Sophie Oome, Emma Pouleyn
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