Cannes Lions Grand Prix winners’ creative genius is undisputed. Some stretch tech boundaries; others address tough issues. Post-recession blow-outs, an appetite for risk and a desire to make a difference are major themes for 2014's winners. But what human truths underpin them?

During the Sochi Olympics, big-name brands from Google to Channel 4 displayed their logos in rainbow colours to support LGBT rights. But why are brands being more open about their ethical and political stance, and do their customers really care?

People are willing to show support for social causes – provided they don't have to do much - and brands are finding new ways to tap into the strength of the herd. By re-engineering menial actions – from buying body lotion to having sex – there are ways to reward everyone.

“You can still like fashion and be a feminist,” says Mother's Katie Mackay. But with enduring stereotypes, the 'taboo' topic has often been avoided by women's magazines – until now. Can a new campaign by fashion magazine Elle 'rebrand' feminism?

During Pride 2014 in San Francisco, customers eating at a Burger King were served up a special rainbow-wrapped ‘Proud Whopper’. Customers expected it to be diferent from the original Whopper, but once unwrapped, the message “We are all the same inside” was revealed.

In Switzerland, women earn around 20% less than equally skilled men in comparable positions. 'Equal Pay Day' was launched by Publicis Zurich and International Women’s Media Foundation to emphasise this issue by short-changing men by 20% at ATMs.

In a connected world, people are watching more closely what they say and who they align with. As issues of representation and diversity come to the fore, how is the new political correctness changing the way organisations communicate?

Sara Diamond talks to Canvas8 about technology, politics and ideas of global/local. She discusses Canada's ties to documentary, the importance of enabling self-representation and Twitter's opinion-forming role at the recent G20 summit.