The Local Collective Makes Visibility a Superpower

2025 Applied Arts Advertising Awards winner, Toronto-based The Local Collective, has released a powerful new campaign for Safehaven Toronto, a charity that supports medically complex children and their families. The campaign challenges Canadians to unlearn looking away when facing children with medical complexities and instead see these children for who they are: kids, with the same hopes, joy and dreams as any other.

What if the greatest superpower a child could have… was simply being seen? That’s the central question driving Safehaven Toronto’s newest campaign, developed in partnership with The Local Collective.

“These children and families are extraordinary, but too often, they’ve been invisible, not because people don’t care, but because society has been taught to look away. At Safehaven, our mission is to change that. We want people to see these children for what they truly are…kids with the same joy, imagination, and spirit as any other. This campaign tackles invisibility head on, turning it into recognition, connection, and a sense of belonging. Safehaven has always been where hope lives, and now we’re leading the charge to make sure these children are seen.” 

Larissa Smit, Senior Director of strategy and innovation at Safehaven Toronto  

The centrepiece film captures children answering the timeless question: “If you could have any superpower, what would it be?” For most, the answer is invisibility—a playful wish to hide or escape. But for medically complex children, sometimes the answer is far more profound.

“This campaign is about removing the veil society has unintentionally placed over medically complex children. They don’t want to be pitied or hidden away; they want to be kids. When we see them, we see their joy, their imagination, their silliness. Our hope is that we can help Canadians truly see these children.” 

Matt Litzinger Fo-Founder, CCO, The Local Collective

The campaign reminds us that all children deserve the chance to be seen, to play, to dream, and to belong, not defined by their medical needs, but embraced as part of childhood in its truest form.

About Safehaven
Safehaven is a Toronto-based not-for-profit organization that supports individuals with medical complexities and disabilities. Our mission is to create an inclusive environment where individuals with complex care needs can live with dignity and respect. Safehaven has served thousands of individuals, providing exceptional care to meet these individuals unique needs, including Residential Care, Respite Care, Transitional Care, and Transition to Adulthood, empower clients to reach their full potential and live a meaningful, independent life not defined, nor limited, by disability.

Advertising at its best. Congrats team Local Collective!