This week celebrates the 35th anniversary of the Live Aid benefit concert.
Live Aid left an indelible impression on me.
In that year of 1985, I would have completed the eighth grade and would be entering my freshman year of high school in just a few weeks time.
Not only was this a hopeful and endless time of wonderment and possibility in my life, but there was a concert which would gather some of the world's top musicians and entertainers in the noble effort to raise money to fight famine in Ethiopia, where hundreds of thousands of people were starving to death.
Not only was this a worthy cause, but the organizers of the concert had massive ambitions calling for concerts and performances to be staged in Philadelphia and London.
It is no wonder in the days leading up to the Live Aid benefit concert on Saturday, July 13, 1985, young people like me were being told that this was our generation’s Woodstock.
One massive display of moxie from the Live Aid experience which has never escaped me was the ambitious execution and instant classic performances.
One of the biggest was Phil Collins.
Phil Collins had the ambition of performing two sets on Live Aid on each side of the Atlantic, at both London's Wembley Stadium and Philadelphia's JFK Stadium.
After finishing his Wembley set, Collins headed to a helicopter, which flew him to Heathrow Airport, where he then caught a supersonic Concorde jet to New York City and then grabbed another helicopter to Philadelphia.
Amazing.
Prior to boarding the Concorde jet to New York City, Collins reflecting on the question regarding performing two sets across the Atlantic in one day, remarked to a reporter, "We thought if it could be done, wouldn't it be good to do it."
So it is with that spirit of Live Aid and Phil Collins we present Brigadoon 2020.
Brigadoon is organizing its first streamed gathering of entrepreneurs and thought leaders this fall.
For one day in September, join Brigadoon - digitally - as we bring together a sensational mix of doers and dreamers discussing emerging issues shaping commerce and culture.
In a first for Brigadoon, we go all-digital in a program that will have 20 20-minute conversations beamed from whereabouts all across the world.
Prepare for nearly 7 hours of hearing from the top professionals shaping commerce and influencing culture.
Brigadoon 2020 is going to be unlike anything we have ever curated before in terms of format, but the event will still be powerpoint free and focused on the power of conversation. Plus, we will be able to bring in voices from across the world.
In these extraordinary times, it essential that Brigadoon continues to gather participants committed to civic engagement, solving problems, the power of conversation, embracing curiosity, and building businesses.
Quick details:
- Saturday, September 19, 2020
- Streaming starts @ 12:00 Noon ET
- Watch Live or On-demand
- Tickets starting @ $20.20
Website:
www.thebrigadoon.com/2020
Current conversations with:
AJ Schnack - Independent filmmaker + director of “Long Gone Summer”, an official selection of the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival, which chronicles Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa’s storied 1998 home run chase
Melanie Brock - Australian businesswoman and former diplomat living in Tokyo
Christine Baratta - Managing Editor for Bloomberg Television + Radio in DC
Kirk Cheyfitz - Storyteller, narrative strategist, writer for progressive causes + candidates
Gerald Ashley - Adviser, speaker + writer on risk + uncertainty
Virginia Heffernan - Author, Los Angeles Times opinion columnist, and contributing editor @ Wired
Fergus Connolly - Coach, teacher, mentor, author, speaker, and expert in team sport + human performance
Matt Hranek - Explorer, eater + drinker + founder + editor of Wm Brown magazine
Frederik De Pue - Award-winning executive chef + owner @ Flamant
Ian Macallan - former police officer working for the Met's Serious Crime and Operations Command in London and conservationist in Zambia
Tatum Neill - DJ + creative director of Paris Parker Salons + North American Artistic Director, Social Media for Aveda
If you want to be more then a participant or have an idea on a conversationalist, drop me a note.
Thanks for supporting Brigadoon.
-Marc
Marc A. Ross is the founder of Brigadoon and a communications strategist and business advisor working at the intersection of globalization, disruption, and politics. Ross specializes in communications, marketing, and advocacy for economic diplomacy and global commerce.
Brigadoon Daily Rundown = July 15, 2020
Tom Tugendhat: Huawei ban should kick-start a new era of foreign policy https://bit.ly/3fwSvfA
Drug cartel ‘narco-antennas’ make life dangerous for Mexico’s cell tower repairmen https://reut.rs/3921oLQ
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What does the working from home revolution mean for the office? In the latest article from The Times' ‘Future Of’ series, Louisa Clarence-Smith and Sam Chambers speak to experts about the work-life balance of the future and consider whether we will ever return to a working life that is centered around the office. https://bit.ly/32iNymH
Brigadoon 2020 - September 19 = www.thebrigadoon.com/2020
How a small Arab nation built a Mars mission from scratch in six years: The United Arab Emirates’ Hope orbiter is the Arab world’s first interplanetary spacecraft — and has jump-started science in the country. Will the momentum last? https://bit.ly/2CzYd1O
AFP: UAE delays Mars probe launch for second time due to bad weather
The probe was originally due to be launched from Japan on Wednesday but had been postponed until Friday for the same reason.
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Banksy: "If you don’t mask - you don’t get." https://bit.ly/32igbAI
Dark Side of the Lens
Winner - Best Cinematography, Rhode Island International Film Festival, 2011
Winner - Action Sports Category, Vimeo Awards 2012
Winner - G-Raid Driven Creativity award - Professional Category
Winner - Best Cinematography, 5Point Film Festival 2011
Winner - Grand Prize - Chamonix Film Festival 2011
Winner - Best short - New York Surf Film Festival 2011
Winner - Digital short of the Year, Surfer Poll
Winner - Relentless Short Stories 2011
Winner - Amstel Surf Film Festibal, Peoples Choice award
Winner - Best short, Sheffield Adventure Film Festival
Winner - Best International Short, Canadian Surf Film Festival
Winner - Best Short, Waimea Ocean Film Festival
Brigadoon Daily Rundown = July 14, 2020
Robert Kaplan: How Trump is losing Asia: The United States has dispatched two aircraft carrier strike groups to the South China Sea to contest China’s creeping annexation of the maritime region. It is one of the bluntest expressions of US hard power in years. Yet the very fact that such a dramatic step was even necessary indicates how the power balance is shifting in China’s favor. China’s long-term and methodical attempt to dominate shoals and islands in the region is a reflection of both US domestic distractions and its loss of prestige throughout Asia. https://wapo.st/306zfz1
Michael Schuman: China has never liked playing by other people’s rules: From the time of the earliest emperors, its leaders would incur great costs and surrender tangible benefits to return to supremacy. https://bloom.bg/2CAlZKJ
99% of China’s 904 million internet users get online using a mobile device. That is larger than the populations of the US, Russia, Mexico, Germany, the UK, France, and Canada, where 897 million access the internet on mobile.
BTW - The 904 million figure is just 63% of China’s total population, suggesting there is still room for growth. By comparison, the US has an internet population of 298 million, of which 93% access via the internet.
How a tiny Indian Ocean island could force a US-UK rift https://bit.ly/2Ol2hVY
Today: France celebrates Bastille Day
British Gas goes electric: British Gas has ordered 1,000 pure-electric vans from Vauxhall, as the first steps in its effort to have a completely electric fleet by 2030.
The US Department of Agriculture predicts that coffee consumption is set to decline globally this year for the first time since 2011.
George Zaidan: The scientist who says processed food may not be as bad as we think: We’re told Frankenfoods are killing us. George Zaidan, the chemist behind the YouTube series Ingredients, looked at the evidence. https://bit.ly/3esEcam
Monopolies make their own rules: Zephyr Teachout’s new book lays bare the private legal system that shores up their immense power—and hides it from public view.
https://bit.ly/2DyIBvK
Fortune: Why slashing product prices is usually a terrible idea https://bit.ly/2ZpPfNq
Research by the Simon Kucher & Partners consulting firm finds that “only 12% [of companies] believe they can boost profits by adjusting prices.”
The pandemic is rewriting the rules of retail: The latest data from McKinsey shows that consumers are likely to keep the behaviors they’ve adopted amid stay-at-home orders, such as more online shopping and fewer mall visits. Retailers can’t afford to be in a wait-and-see mode. First, they need to reimagine their baseline requirements and then turn their attention to taking their customer experience to the next level. https://bit.ly/2Zn1E4C
Has coronavirus doomed coliving? Coliving was touted pre-pandemic as the future of urban living. But will the coronavirus make people rethink cohabiting with strangers? https://bit.ly/32dy9UJ
Design is not about solving problems https://bit.ly/2WgbmUE
Don’t let micro-stresses burn you out: Most of us have come to accept micro-stresses as just a normal part of a day. We hardly acknowledge them, but cumulatively they are wearing us down. And what’s worse is that the sources of these micro-stresses are often the people — in and out of work — with whom we are closest. The authors of this article have identified 12 common “relational” drivers of stress that are likely taking a significant toll on your well-being, without you necessarily being aware of their impact. Until you recognize these sources of stress, you can’t begin to address them. https://bit.ly/38RZGMQ
YouGov: What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
+ 17% say chocolate
+ 15% say vanilla is their favorite flavor of ice cream
+ 8% say strawberry, mint chocolate chip, or butter pecan are their favorite flavors
+ Americans over the age of 55 (14%) are the most likely age group to say butter pecan is their favorite flavor