Why worry?
Welcome to Idealog Weekly, the free email newsletter for New Zealand commercial creatives, entrepreneurs and anyone rich with ideas.
In this week’s issue: why worry?, back to the future, the beer chair, brain-eating freak of the deep, air power, Josef Roberts speaks, an eventful Thursday and the quote of the week.
Why worry?
It’s difficult to recall now the air of optimism that surrounded the first Knowledge Wave conference in 2003. Academics, politicians and business types got together to plan how to make this country richer. The aim: to get New Zealand back into the top half of the OECD wealth table by 2011. Back where, most New Zealanders would agree, we belong.
A laudable aim. So how’s it going? Er, not so well. In the latest issue of Idealog we crunch the numbers and find it’s time for a quick reality check. We’re going nowhere fast and it’s hard to see how we’re going to get back on track. This isn’t just about more money or the rich getting richer—it’s about the level of roading, housing and social services we can all afford. It’s about schools, medical care and tax cuts and overseas holidays too.
‘On a road to nowhere’ is uncomfortable reading but it’s a must-read if you care about our economic future. Read the story on our website, share it with your friends and colleagues and post your comments and suggestions on our website.
Back to the Future
In 1993, AT&T, the US telco, made a video called Connections: AT&T’s Vision of the Future. What’s delightful about AT&T’s future is how upright everyone is: traditional marriages, orderly social protest, doting fathers and plenty of heartfelt moments. Oh, and everyone dresses like an extra on Dynasty.
The Paleo-Future blog has posted the video in 6 p a r t s. My favourite is the sixth, where a bride-to-be constructs her very own fashion disaster with the help of a computer called Sydney.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/k59RH2u0VZla2qciv4
The beer chair
Crates of beer certainly make comfortable seating when your drinking buddies are around, but they’re not the most comfortable seats in the world. Now someone has solved that problem with the ‘Bierkastenhocker Bikasi’. Finally, Dunedin scarfies have a reason to shop at German design stores.
Brain-eating freak of the deep
I love these posters for National Geographic Kids, drawn in classic b-movie sci-fi fashion. Stranger than fiction, indeed.
Air power
Wind farms are popular with everyone except the people who live next door, so why not move the farms as far away from people? Like, into the stratosphere? The Economist reports on inventive companies that are designing wind farms that can be hoisted 10km into the air where the wind is stronger, more reliable and there’s no-one around to take offence.
Josef Roberts speaks
Josef Roberts, the Kiwi who gave Red Bull its wings in New Zealand and Australia, is speaking for the first time about his amazing story: from failed property developer to beverage millionaire. And now burger chain king. A great story, told by a great speaker, Josef is the perfect person to launch the AUT Idealog Innovation Series.
May 17, 6pm at Auckland Art Gallery. Drinks and canapes supplied. Idealog subscribers can save $10 on a ticket if you book online. Better hurry because we can only fit 220 Idealogues into the space. And we’ve already sold a heap!
 Blackbox M14 noise cancelling headphones represent the finest Kiwi innovation and ingenuity. Designed for the frequent traveller, the M14 boasts the latest advanced noise cancellation technology from Phitek Systems, blocking up to 92% of background noise. Imagine being able to perfectly hear the in-flight movie! The Blackbox M14 connects to your mp3 player, PC or handheld and is great value at $379. More…
An eventful Thursday
Maori Market 2007 is a new event to showcase and celebrate Maori art and culture, achievement, enterprise and creativity, launching in Wellington on Thursday. Following the highly successful 2005 Maori Art Meets America event in San Francisco, USA, the inaugural Maori Market event brings together the best of contemporary Maori art, culture and business, showcasing artists exhibiting successfully on the international art scene.
On Thursday morning the Aotea Centre hosts ‘Making the grade’, an opportunity to interact with the entrepreneurs of ‘The new cool’, the hip-hop exhibition that has toured the country and is currently on show at the Aotea. ‘The new cool’ features the workd of Dawn Raid, Disruptiv, Misery, Huffer Clothing and Illicit Streetwear. ‘Making the grade’ is part of the very cool Ignite07 festival.
Also on Thursday the partners and staff of Baldwins are inviting Idealog readers to a celebratory event in Auckland next week to mark World Intellectual Property Day, featuring talks from three inspirational entrepreneurs followed by drinks and canapes. Ken Stevens of Glidepath, Mark Backhaus of Ideas Inc and Craig Horrocks of Zorb are the featured guests at the Stamford Plaza Hotel in Auckland. Baldwins is hosting the event to “celebrate and recognise the intellectual, creative and entreprenurial intelligence that drives our country’s profile, commercial success and reputation around the globe.” Check out our website for more details.
And stencil nuts—you know who you are—will flock to the Aveia Gallery in Auckland for Public Access, an exhibition of stencil based works featuring works by Component, Flox, Peepshow, Enforce One, Kool and Trust Me. That’s on Thursday, too.
Check out Idealog’s events guide, Agenda, online and in print. Anyone can add an event to Agenda—just fill out the form on our website.
Quote of the week
“Good music is honest. Bands seem to become successful when they lose their pretentious shell.”
—The Dukes frontman Matt Barus on integristic artistry
More at Idealog online
Read more on our website: web exclusives, opinion, Idealog IP, the Idealog blogs and the Idealog podcast. See you at idealog.co.nz.
Matt Cooney
Editor
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