Women stripping to promote awareness of climate change? Not hot.

Non-profit 350.org is promoting their Global Day of Climate Action with a video ad of women stripping. Because nothing says the planet’s going to hell on a melting glacier like women in their underwear.

This sort of advertising from for-profit companies is de rigeur, as Huffington Post blogger Alex Leo outlines in “Five Sexist Trends the Advertising World Just Can’t Shake. Sites like Jezebel regularly track sexist ads, like this recent Reebok commercial:

And print ads for cars:

Video games:

Even lesbian TV shows.

But except for Peta, non-profits have traditionally avoided, you know, exploiting people. 350.org is now apparently hopping on the selling-out-women band-wagon.

I’m a big proponent of educating people about global warming, but I doubt most people watching “Supermodels Take it off for Climate Change” are paying attention to the spoken message. If the models weren’t all white women, you might think you were watching a risque Benetton or Calvin Klein ad. Or an episode of Big Brother or Tila Tequila.

And if you are halfway paying attention to the message of 350’s ad, you’re just as likely to come away thinking global warming is a good thing because it means women will wear less clothing. Mixed-messages much?

Putting out an ad that distracts viewers from your message while exploiting and alienating a large number of them doesn’t seem like such a great way to encourage unification. Or solutions.