In any major city, the problem of homelessness can get so bad that you don’t even notice it anymore–people in dirty clothes bearing handwritten signs sort of just blend into the scenery. In order to raise money for London’s homeless, however, an organization is bringing one of the most common background elements into the foreground–“regular” people with jobs and nice clothes and houses.





Nonprofit group The Passage is sending its volunteers out into the streets to collect for the homeless, not with the typical clipboards but with the cardboard signs typical of the people on whose behalf they’re collecting. In a campaign created by Publicis’s health arm Publicis Life Brands Resolute, the signs bear messages that make it clear that the person holding them is well-fed and sheltered–something their clothing should also communicate–but that they’re collecting for someone who isn’t. While at first glance, the jaded city dweller might walk right by and ignore the sign, perhaps those who look closer will be moved by this clever appeal.

Have a look at some of the volunteers’ signs in the slide show above.