It began as a quiet flicker — a single flame glowing softly on an outdoor digital billboard in Tokyo. Within hours, that same image appeared on thousands of screens across cities around the world: New York, London, Paris, Lagos, São Paulo, Sydney, and beyond.
The date was September 21, 2025 — International Day of Peace — and what started as a modest art concept turned into a global moment of unity. The campaign, titled “Candles for Peace,” transformed Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising screens into a synchronized sea of candlelight, reminding billions of viewers that sometimes, the simplest symbols can speak the loudest.
For one luminous day, the world slowed down, took a breath, and looked up — to light, hope, and humanity.
A Global Moment of Illumination
In an age where digital screens are often associated with consumerism, noise, and constant advertising, the idea of using them for stillness and reflection was groundbreaking.
At exactly 8:00 p.m. local time in each city, the OOH screens — normally flashing promotions or bright visuals — faded to black. Then, a single candle flame appeared, flickering gently in the darkness.
The simplicity was striking. No logos. No slogans. No call to action.
Just a candle, accompanied by the words:
“Peace begins with light.”
The campaign lasted 24 hours, looping across time zones as the world turned. By midnight, social media was flooded with photos and videos under the hashtag #CandlesForPeace, shared by passersby who had witnessed the moment in their own cities.
It was, in essence, a silent global vigil — coordinated not through speeches or rallies, but through the quiet glow of shared imagery.
Behind the Campaign: A Collaboration Across Borders
The initiative was spearheaded by the Global Creative Alliance for Peace, a coalition of artists, digital media companies, and humanitarian organizations who believed in the power of art to heal.
According to organizers, over 70 countries and more than 3,000 OOH networks participated. Major cities like Berlin, Nairobi, Seoul, and Buenos Aires turned their digital billboards into luminous tributes.
Participating brands and advertisers even paused their usual campaigns for the day — an unprecedented gesture in the competitive world of media placement.
“It wasn’t about selling anything,” said Elena Markova, one of the campaign’s creative directors. “It was about giving the world a shared moment of calm. For one day, light became our common language.”
Out-of-Home Media as a Canvas for Peace
Traditionally, Out-of-Home advertising (billboards, transit screens, building projections) is designed for attention — bold, fast, and commercial. But over the past few years, a quiet revolution has been taking place: OOH media is increasingly being used for social storytelling and collective reflection.
The Candles for Peace campaign took this concept to its most poetic form yet.
By using the world’s biggest screens as a global meditation space, it reminded people of OOH’s deeper potential — to reach people not as consumers, but as citizens of a shared world.
Commuters paused. Shoppers stopped mid-step. Even taxi drivers, glancing at the glowing billboards reflected on glass towers, later described feeling “oddly calm.”
“It was like the city exhaled,” said a resident of London. “In a place that never sleeps, seeing stillness on every screen felt powerful.”
The Symbolism of the Candle
Why a candle?
The creative team behind the campaign said they chose the candle for its universal meaning. Across cultures and religions, candles symbolize remembrance, prayer, hope, and togetherness.
The flicker of a candle is both fragile and strong — a delicate flame that can be extinguished easily, yet also capable of spreading endlessly when shared.
“We wanted something timeless,” said Markova. “A symbol that anyone, anywhere, could understand without translation. The candle is that — it belongs to everyone.”
Indeed, as the campaign spread, people began lighting their own candles at home, posting photos online with messages of unity. The digital world and the physical one intertwined — light begetting light.
A Peaceful Message in a Noisy World
In 2025, with so much of global life mediated through screens, the idea of digital peace felt almost paradoxical.
Yet that’s what made the campaign so resonant. For once, the screens didn’t shout. They whispered.
No sound. No product. No politics. Just a flame.
Psychologists later commented that such imagery can have a grounding effect on urban dwellers constantly bombarded by visual noise. It offered a form of collective mindfulness — a rare pause amid chaos.
“It was peaceful, but not passive,” said Dr. Rajeev Banerjee, a sociologist who studies cultural media. “The candle is an active symbol — it reminds people that peace doesn’t just happen. We have to keep it alive, like a flame that must be protected.”
Public Reactions Around the World
From Times Square to Trafalgar Square, reactions poured in.
In New York, commuters stood in hushed awe as every major digital screen in Midtown displayed the same glowing image. In Tokyo, people stopped at Shibuya Crossing, their faces lit by a hundred synchronized screens.
In Paris, the candle appeared across the Seine on the Eiffel Tower’s display panels, reflected beautifully in the river below. In Cape Town, billboards carried the same light against the evening sky, while in Dubai, entire building façades shimmered with the moving flame.
Social media became a gallery of global light. People shared the moment with captions like “The city feels softer tonight” and “I didn’t know screens could make me emotional.”
By the end of the day, the hashtag #CandlesForPeace had accumulated over 1.2 billion views worldwide.
A Technological Feat of Synchronization
Behind the quiet magic was an extraordinary feat of coordination.
Digital networks across continents collaborated through a central feed that timed the broadcast for each time zone. Local operators ensured the transition from ads to the candle video happened simultaneously and without glitch.
Even smaller towns and rural billboards joined in through pre-scheduled offline loops, ensuring that the flame reached beyond major capitals.
The campaign’s use of low-energy display modes also underscored its sustainability message. Many of the participating networks dimmed brightness levels, reducing energy consumption while maintaining visual impact — a subtle nod to environmental mindfulness alongside peace.
Voices From the Ground
For many who witnessed it, the memory lingers.
“I was walking home when I noticed every screen in the square had gone dark,” said Maria Sanchez, a tourist in Madrid. “Then this little light appeared. Everyone stopped talking. It was such a small thing, but it felt so big.”
Artists also praised the campaign for merging creativity with compassion. “Public art rarely feels this human anymore,” said Kenji Ito, a Japanese installation artist. “It reminded us that media doesn’t have to divide. It can connect.”
Teachers in several countries even incorporated the event into classroom discussions about peace and empathy, turning a fleeting moment into a lasting lesson.
Beyond One Day: The Lasting Glow
Although the campaign lasted just one day, its influence is expected to linger.
Some cities have pledged to repeat the Candles for Peace display annually, while others are exploring similar art-driven collaborations focused on sustainability, kindness, and unity.
Meanwhile, several museums have already approached the campaign’s creators to include the visual footage as part of exhibitions on “Digital Humanity.”
The candle, it seems, will continue to burn — both literally and symbolically.
Final Reflections: When Light Speaks Louder Than Words
In a divided and distracted world, the day the candles appeared on global OOH screens offered something rare: a shared moment of silence.
It wasn’t about a brand, a government, or an influencer. It was about humanity — billions of people connected by the soft glow of a single, universal symbol.
The Candles for Peace campaign reminded us that even the most commercialized spaces can become sanctuaries of reflection.
And in that brief moment, under city lights and digital glow, humanity remembered what unites us most: the desire for peace — and the courage to keep its flame alive.