Discussion hosted by Merijn Oudenampsen and Ana Méndez
On Thursday March 18, starting at 21.00 hrs, Merijn Oudenampsen and Ana Méndez will host a debate on city and country branding strategies, which contribute disproportionally to increased travel and mobility, both for touristic purposes as well as for professional travel and conference-mania (the thing that the ElectroSmog festival-format is a practical critique of).
The strategy of promoting cities, or as in the case of a country such as New Zealand after the Lord of the Rings trilogy an entire country, in international systems of circulation to attract visitors of various kinds makes a lot of sense from a short term economic point of view. The reasons for doing it for individual cities and countries are obvious. From an ecological point of view, however, the branding strategy is highly questionable. In a broader sense the critique of city branding addresses the question of whether it is a good idea to profile a cities as products (in an international market) instead of living environments for its inhabitants? Is an ecologically more responsible approach possible?
With contributions by:
Daniel van der Velden, designer and writer, Meta-haven, Brussels / Amsterdam
Beka Economopoulos, Not An Alternative, New York
Jason Jones, Not An Alternative, New York
Ana Méndez, Observatorio Metropolitano, Madrid
Isidro López, Observatorio Metropolitano, Madrid
Eva Ramos López, Town Planning and Housing Area, Madrid City Council
Merijn Oudenampsen, Amsterdam
Damoclash, Amsterdam
Invited responses from the ADA network, New Zealand
You can find all program details in the program overview:
http://www.electrosmogfestival.net/program/#branding