BNE is a New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 based graffiti artist, who has left his mark in cities throughout the world, including the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

,Australia Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, and South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

. He is considered to be one of the most prolific street artists of all time. His identity is unknown by the public, yet he is likely to have been born in the late 1970s or early 1980s. BNE's relentless graffiti / street art campaign has awed some of the world's largest advertising agencies and caught the attention of major media and millions of people around the world.

BNE Water Foundation

After saturating the globe with the BNE logo for more than 15 years and achieving world wide brand recognition, the artist decided to use the famous name that he created to advocate important issues, make a positive social change, and encourage others to do the same.

After having done over one year of extensive research, BNE concluded that the biggest impact on poverty could be made by providing clean water and sanitation solutions to people in developing countries. In 2011 he founded the
BNE Water Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing clean, safe water, and basic sanitation to people living in extreme poverty.

Apprehension Reward

Legally, the majority of BNE's work is vandalism

Vandalism

Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable...

 according to the law, and considered so by the police and general public. In May 2006, the San Francisco Police Department

San Francisco Police Department

The San Francisco Police Department, also known as the SFPD and San Francisco Department Of Police, is the police department of the City and County of San Francisco, California...

 noted BNE's stickers appearing on parking meters, traffic signs, and other public property fixtures across the city. As a result of the broken window theory, Gavin Newsom

Gavin Newsom

Gavin Christopher Newsom is an American politician who is the 49th and current Lieutenant Governor of California. Previously, he was the 42nd Mayor of San Francisco, and was elected in 2003 to succeed Willie Brown, becoming San Francisco's youngest mayor in 100 years. Newsom was re-elected in 2007...

 the mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 of San Francisco, offered a $2,500 reward for information leading to BNE's arrest.