Wageningen Campus’ Post

What role does "partying" have in your "professional" life? In traditional business, I detested corporate happy hours. It was one more place where I felt pressure to socialize, but the "happy" part was an afterthought rather than the purpose. I currently work with Fit for Service. We're hosting a festival in November. YES, there are some cool speakers. But ultimately, it's a party. A place to express the full spectrum of human experience, to let out the wild and weird and pleasure-seeking parts of us come to play within the container of a festival experience. I never understood festival culture. I didn't like large crowds or pumping music. But last year, I went... because I was working. And I found myself challenged to find enjoyment. NOT because it wasn't great, but because I, myself, had so much judgment about festivals - the culture, the people, the "vibe" all made me roll my eyes. "It's not professional." "It's not 'grown up.'" "It's only for addicts and people trying to escape the real world." :/ I discovered, by "doing it anyways" how wrong I was. For me, my resistance to playful, BIG experiences was a control mechanism. If I only play with my friends, I am controlling who gets to see me being playful. Leaning into being present, and finding ways to ENJOY the big crowd, the loud music, the large energy has had wild and weird consequences in my "business" life. By practicing having fun in places where I felt overwhelmed, I'm able to have more confidence and fun... even at work. Even when I'm trying to impress someone. Even when that someone has more degrees, more followers, more influence and experience than I do. I have danced my way into being more confident as a speaker, as a team member, as a contributor to the world by not just "getting over myself" but by understanding that, in any circumstance, I have access to internal safety and delight. Do you enjoy festivals? Do you have an outlet for all parts of your human experience? What positive impacts has "partying" had on your career? (I know the endless negative ones, I'm not asking for those 😘 ) Resources to Check out: ARKADIA Festival: https://lnkd.in/eza3kRFy ARKADIA 2023 fan Playlist: https://lnkd.in/eFizhbVQ Priya Parker's book "The Art of Gathering" for a deep dive on great events!

It's panel time again! Right after Reeperbahn Festival, our CEO Stephan Thanscheidt is heading to the International Festival Forum in London for an in-depth review of the 2023 season. Arch 33, IFF Campus Wednesday, Sep 27 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM With rising costs, bad weather and mixed fortunes, the 2023 season has not been easy. And with a spate of cancellations, the market has proved too crowded for some. But sell outs and busy fields have been in abundance this year, and many festivals have experienced record editions for one reason or another. Just as there’s no shortage of fans committed to their favourite summer festivals, there’s no shortage of topics to discuss in IFF’s big annual round up of the year that (nearly) was. From a very difficult season for bad weather for many, to supply chain problems, stiff competition, new events, and the steady stream of sale announcements, IFF’s conference programme kicks off with an in-depth review of the 2023 season…

🇪🇺 Preparing with Nele Hertling two sessions for the European Festivals Association summit in Usedom, here are some of the questions we will address: 🌳 *Mon. 13 May: Denis de Rougemont Lab: Experimenting democracy* Why do we choose to create a festival? To promote an artistic form, to respond to a local need or commission? How does an idea, vision, desire germinate? How does a founder (a person, a group) mobilise around this idea, analyse needs, find resources and strengths? How is the festival project organised over time, and what are the consequences for the group in terms of its composition, skills, mode of action and governance? What weakens the core group or, on the contrary, makes it more robust? 🏡 *Tue. 14 May: Festival Cities and Regions Workshop* ❓ What is new in your relation between cities and festivals that you think is relevant to share with the other cities and regions? ❓ What are the methodologies used by cities and regions to consult their festivals: How do cities and regions initiate and strengthen their dialogue with their festivals? How do cities ‘value’ their festivals - in which policy areas and actions do they address festivals? How do festivals define their relation with their cities beyond funding opportunities? We are tapping into the variety of experiences and political ideas of relation ❓ What is the state of play of the work in progress of the EFFE Seal for Festival Cities and Regions focusing on Environmental Sustainability. 😎 Hope to see you at the Baltic Sea! (or in Berlin 15-16 May) ➕ Programme of the summit: https://lnkd.in/gRSw9K-V ⚡ The EFFE Seal for Festival Cities and Regions: https://lnkd.in/eHjbhp4R #culture #festival #europe #germany #berlin 👀 Nathalie Perrin-Gilbert Jochen Schäfsmeier Elisabeth Champollion Jorge Losana Jochen Christian Sandig Martin Bailly Pascal Keiser

Day 13 of embracing the wonders of life! The festival season has kicked off with full vigor here in the Netherlands, where it feels like the celebration never truly ends. Yesterday, I had the immense pleasure of attending a Massive Attack concert in the vibrant city of Tilburg. It was one of those rare, magical days when everything aligned perfectly: the enchanting setting, the flawless weather, and the electrifying music. What fascinates me most about festivals is how they bring together such a diverse array of people in a relatively small space, yet everyone remains joyful and harmonious. While the flow of beer might contribute, I believe it's more about the collective mindset. People come with the intention of having a good time and connecting with others, creating a unique atmosphere of camaraderie and joy. This phenomenon triggers my curiosity. What is it about these gatherings that fosters such a peaceful and unified mindset? Is it solely our connection to the music, which alters our brain chemistry and brings us closer together? Or is the crowd perhaps less diverse than it appears, unified by shared interests? There could be other underlying factors at play that encourage positive behavior in large groups, shifting our focus towards enjoyment rather than discord. I believe that real change in organizations and society comes from learning across disciplines and applying these insights to our own contexts. I challenge you to approach the weekend with an open mind. Look for moments in your activities that could inspire professional innovation. Train your brain to be observant and associative, and you'll find new inspiration along your path ! On a side note: If you are looking for some cool inspiration for the holiday, check out the Thoughtleader Development book on amazon or at https://lnkd.in/ef34hvjq For more insights, join my weekly newsletter: https://lnkd.in/ef34hvjq #thoughtleadership #festival #inspiration

The festival of Holi signifies multiple qualities that make humans special. It’s about righteousness, it’s about friendship. And finally – as most of us have experienced growing up, it’s about celebration – with colors, food, music, dance, games – a whole lot of fun.    One can contextualize Holi to the working world as a powerful day to celebrate diversity. It’s beautiful to see how the day starts with people coming together to exchange sweets, play folk music, narrate stories to each other – and before you know it, the games begin.    In no time, everyone’s looking the same. You have exchanged colors, as if a little quality about you made way into the life of another person around you, giving both of you a chance to be yourselves, yet one. Bright, bold, beautiful. If water is involved, the episodes of feeling cold, getting dry and wanting to jump into it again are universal – they belong to everyone, just the same.    This Holi, allow the festival to give you an internal reset at two instances. One, when you enter to play, go without bias. And two, when you clean yourself up at the end, wash off all your prejudice. Make the festival what it’s truly supposed to be – an opportunity to be together, and to rise as a united society.    Happy Holi to you! Play a safe one.    #TogetherWeRise  #Holi2024     

The Power of 3 ! If you are not yet aware of What3Words then check it out. A unique 3-word address for every 3x3 metre location on the planet. Beats long addresses. Easier to recall than individual postcodes. One Universal solution. #simplicity #powerof3

Adelaide Fringe 2024 was a massive season and it took herculean efforts from everyone to get through! Incredible numbers attended, just over 1 million ticket sold and 4.6 million attendances .. (if anyone has questions about the difference between those numbers please ask! It's quite simple, there's lots of ways to attend that doesn't involve a ticketed show) it was fantastic to see so many tourists come to Adelaide for Fringe 2024 - they bought huge numbers of tickets and spent big in local hotels and restaurants. in many ways a big triumph, but of course there is more to the story and one of the scariest elements is the fact that festival presentation costs have gone up by about 30% in the last year or so .. the ticket sales were up by around 4% (1,040,305) and the average ticket price remained the same around $33. So it doesn't take much to look at the sums and realise it is very tough to make it all balance. Lots of festivals have cancelled and closed down in recent months because of these rising costs in the supply chains. We are going to work harder than ever to try raise enough money to shore up the Fringe in future - Adelaide Fringe is a precious jewel of the nation and we need all the help we can get to survive this storm.

"Is the next generation interested in festivals?" 🎪 Very excited to share my first ever opinion piece for Access All Areas Magazine; give it a read if you have a couple of minutes spare! If you want to join this debate with industry experts who actually know what they're talking about, such as AIF's John Rostron, AEG Presents' Preeti Rajan and S&C Productions' Sam Mellor, then consider attending the ‘Regaining Our Youth’ panel discussion at the Access All Areas Conference & Awards. You can find the link to conference tickets via the article 🎟 #nextgeneration #festival #covid

Do you have anything in mind on how the fitness should looks like? How about Inviting DJ to play a music, drinking a glass of mocktail stimulating mixture of protain power, and someone drawing a tatoo at the side. If you feel a little uneasy putting these pieces together in one place, to break down your stereotypes, check out JR Fitness music club(RSG Group GmbH) with fresh eyes:

An impart report we had the pleasure of working on!