By Judy Song-Marshall, Chief Strategy Officer & Chief Marketing Officer, Public Interest Registry
In April, we launched our largest-ever global campaign in collaboration with Mission 44 across Formula 1 platforms to spotlight the millions of people and organizations using .ORG to make a difference.
Titled “The First Lap,” the campaign originally launched with a 30-second video featuring real footage from a special day that brought together Mission 44 and a team of experts, engineers and coaches from the Association for Black & Minority Ethnic Engineers to teach a group of students about aerodynamics, how Formula 1 race cars work, and karting techniques through workshops and an on-track experience.
As you can imagine, it was incredibly difficult to fit an entire day’s worth of inspiring footage into just 30 seconds. So we’ve released a longer version that shows even more content from that day.
From the beginning, we knew the ad had to feature real people and a real experience. We didn’t want to create a traditional commercial or a manufactured experience. We wanted to capture real footage of the community in action: people coming together, creating opportunity, and giving young people a chance to see new possibilities for themselves.
That shared vision brought PIR, Mission 44, and Formula 1 together. We decided to work with Mission 44 and Formula 1 for this campaign because there’s real alignment in values: both organizations are focused on opening doors and giving back, which aligns with the spirit of the .ORG Community.
We filmed the video at the UK’s iconic Rye House karting track in Hertfordshire, where Lewis Hamilton began his racing career. For a campaign built around the idea of a first lap, it was hard to imagine a more fitting location.
[Watch the one-minute version of “The First Lap” here]
Students spent the day learning about aerodynamics, how Formula 1 race cars work, and karting techniques through workshops and on-track sessions. Mission 44, the Association for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers, the University of Birmingham, and on-site coaches and experts guided them through each part of the experience, while the production team captured the day as it unfolded.
Even with cameras and crew nearby, the students focused on the experience in front of them. They asked questions, tested what they were learning, encouraged each other, and brought a friendly competitiveness to the track. One student described the adrenaline as “so intense,” and that excitement spread across the whole group.
For PIR, that was the whole point. The campaign’s message is all about first steps, and on set we could see what those first steps feel like: curiosity, confidence, nerves, joy, and the sudden realization that a new path might be possible.
Watching students begin to imagine new dreams made the day especially powerful for us. Experiences like this can make big ideas feel more real and within reach, whether a young person starts to see themselves as a driver, an engineer, a coach, or someone working on the social impact side of the sport.
We are honored to help bring the .ORG Community to one of the world’s biggest stages through Formula 1. Across our work, we see every day how .ORGs create real-world impact, and this campaign gave us another meaningful way to celebrate and share those stories.
“The First Lap” reminds us that big journeys rarely begin as big moments. They often begin with a first introduction, a first lesson, a first spark of confidence, or someone making room for possibility. That’s what we saw at Rye House, and that’s what PIR has always been proud to support.
“The First Lap” campaign is part of PIR’s nonprofit mission to support and uplift the .ORG Community. The new partnership builds on PIR’s multiyear “Three Letters that Change the World” campaign.