Live Earth apres le Live 8

par Dimzur Ven 16 Fév - 1:29

Climate change concerts 'to dwarf Live Aid'

By Carlos Grande and Fiona Harvey

Published: February 8 2007 02:00 | Last updated: February 8 2007 02:00

A series of concerts "bigger than Live Aid" is being planned for July, in a bid to put the subject of climate change before an audience of a global audience of 2bn.

The event, scheduled for July 7, will feature co-ordinated film, music and television events in seven cities including London, Washington DC, Shanghai, Rio de Janeiro, Cape Town and Kyoto, with major broadcasters and media owners aiming to extend the reach of public awareness of global warming.

It is understood that former US vice-president Al Gore, whose movie An Inconvenient Truth brought climate change to cinema audiences last year, will announce the event tomorrow in London.

The organisers hope to involve up to 2.5m people in events and link-ups at the cities involved, as well as other locations.
They are promising a line-up of artists to "dwarf" that of the Live8 and Live Aid concerts, thought to be branded under the name "SOS".

Source : http://www.ft.com/cms/s/ebad1e4a-b719-11db-8bc2-0000779e2340.html

Gore announces climate-change concerts By MICHAEL R. BLOOD, Associated Press Writer
34 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES - Al Gore announced on Thursday a series of worldwide concerts to focus on the threat of climate change, with a powerhouse lineup from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Snoop Dogg to Bon Jovi.

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The 24-hour event on July 7 is part of a kickoff campaign, Save Our Selves — The Campaign for a Climate in Crisis, that promoters hope will trigger a broad movement to address what the former vice president calls a "planetary emergency."

"We have to get the message of urgency and hope out," Gore said at a news conference, where he was flanked by actress Cameron Diaz, rapper Pharrell Williams and producer Kevin Wall.

The environmental activist and 2000 Democratic presidential nominee is often mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2008 despite his repeated statements that he's not running. Recently, some former aides met in Boston to discuss a campaign to draft the former vice president.

"I haven't changed my answer about politics," Gore told reporters. "I have no intention of running for president again."

The concerts on seven continents will bring newfound publicity to Gore, who already is enjoying celebrity status with his Oscar-nominated documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth." Gore said he was thrilled that the film, on the perils of global warming, was nominated for best documentary and for best song, the latter nod coming for Melissa Etheridge's "I Need to Wake Up."

The Academy Awards are Feb. 25.

More than 100 performers are scheduled to appear at the July concerts, including Etheridge, the Foo Fighters, Lenny Kravitz, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer, Duran Duran, Korn, the Black Eyed Peas, Akon, Enrique Iglesias, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw.

Promoters said the Live Earth concerts will take place in Shanghai, China; Johannesburg, South Africa; Sydney, Australia; London and cities to be announced in Japan, Brazil and the United States. One concert will take place in Antarctica, Gore said.

Promoters said the concerts — dubbed Live Earth — could reach 2 billion people through attendance or broadcasts. Proceeds will create a foundation to combat climate change led by The Alliance for Climate Protection, which is chaired by Gore.

The Save our Selves campaign was founded by Kevin Wall, who won an Emmy as Worldwide Executive Producer of Live 8.