Social change, efficient usage and conservation has become the key themes of a range of initiatives running under brands’ banners—and Toyota can be named one of the most active companies in this game-changing movement due to its numerous initiatives of this kind. Toyota is adding a new initiative to the list by launching Spring Greening Challenge, a Facebook app that features weekly conservation challenges, data on the impacts of your personal domestic green choices and offers a chance to win money for participation. The new application has been unveiled as part of TogetherGreen, a conservation alliance between the National Audubon Society and Toyota, which was created for fostering public awareness and continued involvement in conservation issue.

Kotex wants a woman to talk about her period openly, and to be not shy about this controversial theme. The feminine hygiene care brand has teamed up with Israeli agency Smoyz to launch another campaign dedicated to the theme on Pinterest (the agency says that it’s the first-ever promotional effort that uses this photo-sharing service, which is gaining momentum now). The creative team behind the project dubbed ‘Women’s inspiration day’ selected women, who shared the photos with items which inspire them most on Pinerest boards, and then Kotex asked a female designer to incorporate the new Kotex design into these interests, such as lanterns, bowls, vases, spoons, etc.

Salvatore Ferragamo is looking for girls who are embodying the vibrant nature of the fashion brand and are sharing its passion for style and upscale urban environment. The luxury fashion market player has launched a new initiative dubbed The Girls About Town as part of the promotion of its latest fragrance Signorina, “a subtly cheeky and fresh scent that celebrates chic girls who are timelessly modern and creative with a hint of audacity,” and is inviting everybody to join the movement. So far, the insider content on the website is shared by five female socialites, who are inviting audience into the world of glamour city life.

Two are better than one—creative collaborations of leaders from various fields can really benefit the market and the history of the industries on the whole, and this approach to developing new products is most frequently used in the design sphere. This spring sees two beauty giants, Sephora and Pantone, which both focus on colour, combining their expertise and views to create a unique Sephora+Pantone Universe collection centered on the Color of the Year: Tangerine Tango, #17-1463.

Dove continues to communicate the ‘love yourself as you are’ philosophy to women around the globe (this became the key theme of the brand’s campaigns) with the launch of a new self-esteem initiative. Developed by Ogilvy & Mather, the new campaign will be promoting the importance of establishing positive relationship with you and your appearance, no matter how far from the ‘ideal’ one it may seem.

Intel is celebrating its users’ personalities in a new way: last year, the tech giant ‘build’ an interactive ‘The Museum of Me,’ an app which displayed the users’ connections and personal data in a giant digital gallery, and now it releases the spin-off, a new app dubbed The new app analyzes your social activity in Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and creates an infographic of your social-media presence. Want to know more about yourself and share this report with your friends? You can do it on a dedicated page on Intel’s official website.

Smirnoff, which last year helped Madonna to find a new dancer in a global search as part of the second edition of its Nightlight Exchange project, is continuing its multi-faceted partnership with the pop-diva with a new fan-oriented project. The iconic vodka brand is offering its fans an access to a collector’s album, a set of remixed tracks from the singer’s much-anticipated  latest album MDNA, which is slated to hit the stores on March 26.

Starbucks is determined to compete with energy drinks market leaders such as Red Bull and burn. The company takes on the energy beverage giants with the global release of Starbucks Refreshers, all-natural revitalizing sparkling product based on real fruit juice and green coffee extract. The delicious, low calorie and energetic offering has been tested in select markets in the U.S. starting 2010 in a glass and later in a can, and now Starbucks is ready to introduce it on the national level, according to the press release.

American footwear brand Vans has drawn inspiration from its rich heritage for the new Vans Vault spring collection. The new range is not wholly dedicated to old looks, but still is heavily influenced by traditional styles. Unlike another American-based apparel brand Levi’s, which has built a number of its collections on the old and iconic ranges (in late 2011, the brand even launched a virtual hub dedicated to vintage clothing), Vans is adding modern elements to the new line as well.