PVBLIC Foundation at Cannes Lions: Photo Essay
Photo: Screen on the Debussy Theatre during the Cannes International Festival of Creativity held in France.
At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2026, PVBLIC Foundation convened leaders from across government, the United Nations, science, technology, media, and the creative industries around a shared question: how can creativity help solve humanity's greatest challenges?
Throughout the week, conversations moved beyond campaigns and communications to explore the systems shaping our future, from artificial intelligence and public-interest media to space governance, sustainable development, and the partnerships needed to turn global ambition into action.
This photo essay captures the highlights on-stage and behind the scenes to bring space to one of the most influential events in the world: #CannesLions.
Young Lions Competition
The Young Lions Competition brings together the brightest emerging creative talent from over 50 countries to tackle real-world briefs at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. That challenge took on a new dimension with a focus on space. UNOOSA, in partnership with PVBLIC Foundation, asked competitors to reframe space from a distant frontier to shared infrastructure that people depend on daily, making its governance feel visible, relevant and worth caring about. See the work here prepared by the young creatives.
The brief was presented live by Professor Brian Cox, Physicist and UN Champion for Space; Aarti Holla-Maini, Director of UNOOSA; Justin Markell, Director of Media at PVBLIC Foundation; Dr. Sian Proctor, Commercial Astronaut, Artist, and Geology Professor; and Dhar Mann, Producer, Dhar Mann Studios.
Later in the week, the proposals were judged by the Cannes Lions Young Lions PR jury, chaired by Sibu Mabena, Founder and CCO of Duma Collective. The Winners are:
Gold: The Official Flag of Space, Norway - a shared symbol that makes space humanity's, not any single nation's or company's. Sebastian Pandonis and Jens Østrem, Creatives, NoA Anorak.
Silver: A safe space for your safe space, Germany - Chiara Huber and Simon Waldner, Concept Creatives, Jung von Matt.
Bronze: The UN-billed Space, Hong Kong SAR - Wing Man Ma, Executive, Brand, and Ka Wing Kavieng Cheng, Art Director, Edelman.
Soirée | An evening with UNOOSA at Cannes Lions
On the sidelines of Cannes Lions 2026, PVBLIC Foundation, and United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), supported by SQREEM Technologies andThe Marketing Academy, welcomed a select group of leaders for an evening of conversation and connection. In a more intimate setting than the Festival's main stage, renowned physicist Professor Brian Cox and scientist, explorer, and the first female commercial spaceship pilot, Dr. Sian Leo Proctor, and Director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, Aarti Holla-Maini.
They reflected on how space is already transforming innovation, creativity, and our shared future. Together, the conversations offered a glimpse into the partnerships and ideas redefining how emerging technologies can advance the public good.
Seminar | Space Isn’t the Future – It’s Your Brief
At this year's Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, PVBLIC Foundation and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) brought the conversation beyond Earth's atmosphere, inviting the world's creative and media leaders to recognize that space is not a distant frontier but the invisible infrastructure powering communications, connectivity, environmental intelligence, and global storytelling.
Opening the session at the iconic Debussy Theatre, Professor Brian Cox, UN Champion for Space, joined UNOOSA Director Aarti Holla-Maini and astronaut, artist, and explorer Dr. Sian Proctor to examine why the creative industry has yet to fully embrace the strategic implications of space technology. From brand accountability and audience intelligence to equitable access and the future of storytelling, the discussion underscored that the rules governing the space economy are being shaped today, and that the media and creative sectors have a vital role in ensuring they serve the public interest as well as commercial innovation.
Check out our Flickr for more photographs.
The Creative Orbit: Why Space is Reshaping Storytelling, Culture, and Brand Imagination
Space is no longer a distant frontier reserved for science. It has become an essential lens for understanding our planet—reshaping how we think about resilience, innovation, and humanity's shared future. At Cannes Lions 2026, PVBLIC Foundation and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) invited the global creative community to consider how the view from orbit is already transforming the stories we tell and the decisions we make on Earth at the iconic COLLINS House.
Featuring Professor Brian Cox, the first United Nations Champion for Space, alongside Aarti Holla-Maini, Director of UNOOSA, and Sergio Fernandez de Cordova, Executive Chairman of PVBLIC Foundation, the conversation explored why space is emerging not simply as the next frontier of exploration, but as critical infrastructure for communication, creativity, and sustainable development.
Earth, Seen from Space: The Story We’re Still Not Telling
The most powerful image in human history may still be Earth seen from space. Once accessible only to astronauts through the Overview Effect, that perspective now helps humanity see Earth's living systems at scale.
This session held at the Little Black Book Beach, The Croisette, brought by the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO), explored how the view from orbit can transform how we communicate about nature, resilience, and the future of life on Earth, with key interventions from Sergio Fernandez de Cordova, Executive Chairman of PVBLIC Foundation, and Dr. Sian Leo Proctor, Visionary Artist, Futurist, Explorer and Astronaut.
Launch | PVBLIC ONE 100
PVBLIC Foundation announces ONE 100: Media Innovators for Good at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity–the premier gathering of global marketing, communications, and media leaders. This initiative convenes 100 mission-driven organizations to shape how artificial intelligence (AI) is applied in public-interest media.
To bridge the gap that exists in large-scale media, now nonprofit organizations will be able to have their own campaigns powered by the very same data intelligence that leading commercial enterprises already access. This initiative will create a more equal playing field in visibility and reach, elevating social impact causes to new heights.
The Team
The PVBLIC Foundation team on the ground was represented by Executive Chairman, Sergio Fernández de Cordova; Director of Events, Megan McAstocker; and Director of Media Justin Markell. From keynote stages and intimate roundtables to conceptualizing and implementing a vision between disciplines, these photographs capture a week of ideas, collaboration, and momentum.
The work continues as PVBLIC elevates creativity and fosters media opportunities to build the public understanding, trust, and partnerships needed to shape the future.
See the full lineup of PVBLIC’s participation at Cannes Lions: pvblic.org/cannes-lions-2026
Comments