Tag: Books/Magazines

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The Conversation gets louder

Age of Conversation
As you all might remember I recently co-authored a dynamic book called The Age of Conversation. Based on the concept of how new communication tools facilitate conversations and shape communities, the book features multiple authors’ insights. I’ve gotten word that the book will be available for purchase a week from today with a special cover design by David Armano. Here are the particulars with more info to come real soon:

Launch date: Monday, July 16th

Formats/Prices:
Hardbacks $29.99
Paperbacks $16.95
E-book $9.99

Background

Authors:
Gavin Heaton, Drew McLellan, CK, Valeria Maltoni, Emily Reed, Katie Chatfield, Greg Verdino, Mack Collier, Lewis Green, Sacrum, Ann Handley, Mike Sansone, Paul McEnany, Roger von Oech, Anna Farmery, David Armano, Bob Glaza, Mark Goren, Matt Dickman, Scott Monty, Richard Huntington, Cam Beck, David Reich, Luc Debaisieux, Sean Howard, Tim Jackson, Patrick Schaber, Roberta Rosenberg, Uwe Hook, Tony D. Clark, Todd Andrlik, Toby Bloomberg, Steve Woodruff, Steve Bannister, Steve Roesler, Stanley Johnson, Spike Jones, Nathan Snell, Simon Payn, Ryan Rasmussen, Ron Shevlin, Roger Anderson, Robert Hruzek, Rishi Desai, Phil Gerbyshak, Peter Corbett, Pete Deutschman, Nick Rice, Nick Wright, Michael Morton, Mark Earls, Mark Blair, Mario Vellandi, Lori Magno, Kristin Gorski, Kris Hoet, G.Kofi Annan, Kimberly Dawn Wells, Karl Long, Julie Fleischer, Jordan Behan, John La Grou, Joe Raasch, Jim Kukral, Jessica Hagy, Janet Green, Jamey Shiels, Dr. Graham Hill, Gia Facchini, Geert Desager, Gaurav Mishra, Gary Schoeniger, Gareth Kay, Faris Yakob, Emily Clasper, Ed Cotton, Dustin Jacobsen, Tom Clifford, David Polinchock, David Koopmans, David Brazeal, David Berkowitz, Carolyn Manning, Craig Wilson, Cord Silverstein, Connie Reece, Colin McKay, Chris Newlan, Chris Corrigan, Cedric Giorgi, Brian Reich, Becky Carroll, Arun Rajagopal, Andy Nulman, Amy Jussel, AJ James, Kim Klaver, Sandy Renshaw, Susan Bird, Ryan Barrett, Troy Worman, S. Neil Vineberg

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Urban explosion and African youth’s global influence

Dakar city, SenegalOn Wednesday the United Nations Population Fund released an insightful report – State of World Population 2007: Unleashing the Potential of Urban Growth – detailing it’s research on the future of global urbanization. Declaring that “urbanization is unavoidable”, the most interesting predictions were that by 2030 the populations in African and Asian cities will have doubled. The populations of those cities will be greater than the number of people living in China and the United States combined.

While the world’s urban population grew very rapidly (from 220 million to 2.8 billion) over the 20th century, the next few decades will see an unprecedented scale of urban growth in the developing world. This will be particularly notable in Africa and Asia where the urban population will double between 2000 and 2030: That is, the accumulated urban growth of these two regions during the whole span of history will be duplicated in a single generation. By 2030, the towns and cities of the developing world will make up 80 percent of urban humanity.

The report details that the growth will take place primarily in small cities and towns raising a concern about whether developing nations, particularly in Africa, have the infrastructure to manage this growth. We all know that many African cities, such as Dakar, are already becoming hubs of activity, but the predicted urban explosion will bring a new generation of citizens who would have been raised within the digital age. Will African enterprise adapt to the change in time?

Without a doubt global youth culture is already influencing big business. But will the explosion of Africa’s cities coincide with it’s youth’s contribution to global culture? And how will African government react to the sudden change?

In a few days African leaders will convene in Ghana to discuss forming a United States of Africa (USA???!!!). We can only hope that they take the UN report with them and realize that cities are market makers and the infrastructure that support urban areas play a large part in how successful a region is. About cities and economics Wendy Waters explains, “It comes down to how easy it is for people and companies to flow into (and out of, ironically enough) the region.” The UN report says “… no country in the industrial age has ever achieved significant economic growth without urbanization. Cities concentrate poverty, but they also represent the best hope of escaping it.” and Head Heeb adds, “African cities in the next decades will have to be everyone’s commitment.” I will predict that the trend of African youth’s influence on global business and media will explode alongside the growth of cities, with or without government’s support.

Your thoughts?

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Who’s doing business in Africa?, Trade Forum Magazine update

Mashudu Ramano Johnnic CommunicationsNot long ago I highlighted a feature in Trade Forum magazine called “Changing Brand Africa”. It turns out they’ve updated their site with a new section called “Who’s Doing Business in Africa?”. The new section complements the previous feature with six new stories:

In all, the six sections give a well rounded view of the various opportunities to do business on the continent. A good read.

The articles below are a collection of inspirational models that reflect the new “Brand Africa.” It is the second in the series of stories about Changing “Brand Africa” to be featured on the Trade Forum site.
From an African media mogul in South Africa, we go to the founder of a home furnishings firm in Ethiopia. A coffee supplier outlines Rwanda’s rapid improvement as a coffee producer, and a Tunisian businessman shows how his country is embracing information and communications technology with a passion. We also look at trends in corporate social responsibility, a “must” for businesses, as practiced at Shell, and at how modern technology used by bushmen opens new job opportunities. – Trade Forum Magazine

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112 years later, African art (and controversy) at Venice Biennale

Olu Oguibe on cover of Modern Painters Junee 2007 Venice Biennale issueThe June issue of Modern Painters magazine features a cover story on the first African Pavilion to ever open at the 112 year old Venice Biennale. The Biennale, arguably the most prestigious contemporary arts festival in the world, has been around since 1895 with little or no African representation, until now. Curated by Fernando Alvim and Simon Njami (Africa Remix), the Check List Luanda POP show at the Africa Pavilion features 30 artists’ works from the Sindika Dokolo African Collection of Contemporary Art in Luanda, Angola. The exhibition which opened on June 10 was selected by a panel of experts composed of Meskerem Assegued, Ekow Eshun, Lyle Ashton Harris, Kellie Jones, Bisi Silva and chaired by Robert Storr to represent the African continent at the 52nd International Art Exhibition.

Venice Biennale Africa PavilionThe selection of the Sindika Dokolo Foundation‘s collection as a representation for Africa came with a bit of controversy surrounding the business activities of Congolese businessman and art collector Sindika Dokolo’s family and associates. Most notably a July 2006 article in the French-language newspaper La Conscience titled “The Dokolo Affair” which alleged that under the Mobutu Sese Seko regime, Sindika Dokolo’s father, Sanu, created the Bank of Kinshasa, which “channeled money to members of his own family including Sindika himself, bilking the state and normal depositors of more than $80 million dollars when it imploded in 1986”. In a reply to the Artnet Magazine’s story titled “Art and Corruption in Venice”, Dokolo stated that the goal of his art collection is to help Africans build “a strong point of view on the world that would be their own,” Despite the initial controversy, the Check List Luanda POP show has gone on to set a precedent which I hope will continue. Below is a list of the artists featured. Also listen to the “Ghostworld” a mix of music accompanying the show, produced by DJ Spooky.

Check List Luanda Pop – African Pavilion
52nd Venice Biennale International Contemporary Art Exhibition

Curators
Fernando Alvim (Angola)
Simon Njami (Cameroon)

Produced and organized by Foundation Sindika Dokolo

Listen to DJ Spooky’s “Ghostworld”
[audio:http://www.annansiclothing.com/Ghostworld.mp3]

Artists works showing

  • Ghada Amer (Egypt)
  • Oladélé Bamgboyé (Nigeria)
  • Miquel Barcelo (Spain)
  • Jean Michel Basquiat (USA)
  • Mario Benjamin (Haiti)
  • Bili Bidjocka (Cameroon)
  • Zoulikha Bouabdellah (Algeria)
  • Loulou Cherinet (Ethiopia)
  • Marlène Dumas (South Africa)
  • Mounir Fatmi (Marocco)
  • Kendell Geers (South Africa)
  • Ihosvanny (Angola)
  • Alfredo Jaar (Chile)
  • Paulo Kapela (Angola)
  • Amal Kenawy (Egypt)
  • Kiluanji Kia Henda (Angola)
  • Paul D. Miller Aka DJ Spooky (USA)
  • Santu Mofokeng (South Africa)
  • Nastio Mosquito (Angola)
  • Ndilo Mutima (Angola)
  • Ingrid Mwangi (Kenya)
  • Chris Ofili (UK/Nigeria)
  • Olu Oguibe (Nigeria)
  • Tracey Rose (South Africa)
  • Ruth Sacks (South Africa)
  • Yinka Shonibare, MBE, (UK/ Nigeria)
  • Minnette Vári (South Africa)
  • Viteix (Angola)
  • Andy Warhol (USA)
  • Yonamine (Angola)

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Hip-hop’s African ancestry at Odyssey Awards

Beverly Fab5 and Kofi at H20Last Saturday I attended the 5th Annual Hip-Hop Odyssey (H2O) Awards, held at BB Kings in New York City. Organized by the Hip-Hop Association, the awards ceremony recognized today’s hottest Hip-Hop filmmakers, industry professionals and pioneers. The event always features appearances and performances by Hip-Hop heavyweights. This year’s event, as usual, was packed with many of the individuals who have played a major part in shaping the hip-hop landscape including, artist/entrepreneur/hip-hop personality Fab 5 Freddy (that’s him in the picture standing in front of me as we listen to DJ Beverly Bond speak about YO! MTV Raps’ late producer Ted Demme), Ice-T (who gave an excellent acceptance speech about staying true to oneself), Dana Dane, Grand Wizard Theodore, (Dr.) Roxanne Shante, Ralph McDaniels (Video Music Box), The Cold Crush Brothers, Chubb Rock and much more.

One thing I’ve always enjoyed about the awards and the preceding H2O International Film Festival, is how the organizers (Martha Diaz, Rolando Brown etc) make a conscious effort to show the influence of African (and international) cultures on the growth of America’s hip-hop/urban culture. A few years back, besides the performance by the Nomadic Wax Global Hip-hop All-stars’ Chosan (Sierra Leone) , Eli Efi (Brazil) , and El Gambina (Korea), the festival grand prize went to Hip-Hop Colony, a film about the African hip-hop explosion – now on DVD. This year Hip-Hop Colony’s Kenyan director, Michael Wanguhu, was on hand to present an award. To further encourage the hip-hop generation to connect with Africa, this year’s awards was sponsored by and involved a presentation by popular DNA lineage identification company African Ancestry Inc. Some of you might remember that African Ancestry Inc. was the company behind VH1’s Spike Lee-directed February (Black History month) spot which promoted a stronger connection between African-Americans and the African continent through DNA swab testing. African Ancestry’s President, Gina Paige, was on hand at this year’s H2O Awards ceremony to present the evening’s host, Paul Mooney, with his personal DNA test results. Upon revealing that Paul Mooney’s lineage goes back to Guinea-Bissau (I don’t remember which specific ethnic group was cited), Gina Paige presented Mr. Mooney with a folder containing the details of the tests as well as a t-shirt with a Guinea-Bissau logo. A very nice touch.

African Ancestry offers a great solution for African-Americans looking to re-connect with their African heritage. With the DNA procedure gaining popularity and support from African-American celebrities like Oprah, Whoopi Goldberg, LeVar Burton, Chris Tucker, Chris Rock, and Isaiah Washington – who also holds a seat on African Ancestry’s Board of Directors -, and media outlets from ABC’s Good Morning America to PBS championing the efforts, African Ancestry has already begun to solidify the link between African-American and African cultures.

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(RED) Vanity Fair charity album by Youssou N’Dour

(RED) Vanity Fair Youssou N'Dour charity albumThe recent issue of Vanity Fair, the “Africa issue”, has spawned a charity album featuring some great West African musicians. Based on Youssou N’Dour’s personal playlist, the “Tracks in the Sand” compilation album is available for sale on iTunes and includes a digital booklet with liner notes by Mark Hudson, author of The Music In My Head.

Tracklist:

  1. “Li Ma Weesu,” by Youssou N’Dour.
  2. “Senegal Fast Food,” by Amadou & Mariam.
  3. “Savane,” by Ali Farka Touré.
  4. “Jiin Ma Jiin Ma,” by Orchestra Baobab.
  5. “Africa Challenge,” by Toumani Diabate’s Symmetric Orchestra.
  6. “Saa Magni,” by Oumou Sangare.
  7. “Chet Boghassa,” by Tinariwen.
  8. “M’bifo,” by Rokia Traoré.
  9. “Sou,” by Cheikh Lô.
  10. “Iniagige,” by Salif Keita.
  11. “Miyaabele,” by Baaba Maal.
  12. “Jaman Moro,” by Afel Bocoum.
  13. “Sigui,” by Djelimady Tounkara.
  14. “Debe,” by Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabate.
  15. “Allah,” by Youssou N’Dour.
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Top African-American talent plan trip to African Union Summit, Ghana

African Union Summit Hollywood Group

On Friday, June 15th, some of Hollywood’s most influential African-American talent got together at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills, California for a panel discussion on promoting African-American interest in Africa. The meeting also served to organize a trip to attend the 9th Annual African Union Summit in Ghana next week. The gathering was organized by designer Ozwald Boateng, and included Jamie Foxx, Chris Tucker, Mos Def, Herbie Hancock, James Mathis, and Isaiah Washington – whose Gondobay Manga Foundation was started after he discovered that he is genetically linked to Sierra Leone’s Mende people. During the African Union Summit, held in Ghana from 25 June – 3 July 2007, 50 influential African-Americans will meet with the 53 attending African presidents to discuss the continent’s future. The African Union Summit’s ultimate goal is of full political and economic integration leading to the United States of Africa. It’s good to see African-Americans playing an active part in planning Africa’s future.

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What’s your Africa strategy?

China AfricaMany of us can agree that today, Africa plays a major role in the development of the global economy. The magazine covers and celebrity reports are a small part of how Africa has become a major player. A large part of my consulting work has to do with helping organizations develop an Africa-related strategy which both addresses the customer’s demands AND provides opportunities for Africans. Whether yours is a foreign or Africa-based company, today you MUST have a strategy which communicates your companies position on the Africa-related issues emerging daily. Any company or organization that has not begun to understand the role Africa’s development is playing in their market stands to become obsolete. In today’s world, NOT having the right Africa-related strategy is a sure sign of an organization’s ineffectiveness both domestically and globally.

Some organizations will simply implement a clichéd aid campaign as a response, but the smart ones will see the bigger picture and realize that Africa’s development is tied to their own long term goals and the goals of their customer. You can promote “Save Darfur” t-shirts but if the shirt is made in China, your company can quickly lose years of credibility with the customer.

It’s probably most important for Africa-based companies to develop an Africa-related strategy. With all the attention that various parts of the continent is getting, they too must adjust to the new found attention to remain relevant. In essence the world’s issues are playing out in their backyard. There are detailed reports of the Chinese push into the continent, and as Tom Barnett says, the Americans are landing. These and other foreign strategies will severely affect how Africans do business. It is important for Africa-based companies to re-think their production and competition strategies. While the age-old image of the starving African has long hindered the growth of many African industries, there are new opportunities which, if approached properly, could easily allow an Africa-based company to become a major player in the global market.

It’s times like this that are important to organizational growth. As a CEO, you can either stick your head in the sand and hope that the change is temporary, or adjust your organizational strategy to take advantage of the opportunities which are already affecting your customers. So what’s your Africa strategy?

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The rise of Kenya’s equity generation

Binyavanga WainainaIf you haven’t already picked up Vanity Fair’s Africa issue, make sure you do so. To my and others’ surprise, the issue covers pretty well rounded views on Africa despite the magazine’s commercialism. Included in the issue is a story about Kenya’s “equity generation”. Written by Kenyan author/journalist Binyavanga Wainaina – who is also profiled in another Vanity Fair feature on Africa’s literati – the article focuses on young people who have survived the hard last years of President Daniel arap Moi’s Kenya that ended in 2002 and are now driving Kenya’s economy. The Wall Street Journal’s Informed Reader summarizes Mr. Wainaina’s article further, and points to a complementing Economist magazine article on the subject.

“Where the country has done well, it is often despite rather than because of the government. When Kenyans have been able to do things off their own bat, they have invariably done better than when they have been locked into state-controlled schemes.” — Robin Moroney (The Economist)