Local Organisations and Business Support Live8

The Eden Project and the World of Music and Dance organisation put on the Africa Calling show to coincide with the Live8 concerts. The Cornish Guardian reported today that there was actually a 36 hour rush to raise enough funds to put the show on. They reported this story:

The concert was more than £200,000 short of the money it needed with just 36 hours to go, but the call for extra cash was answered by organisations and businesses across the region who donated enough to plug the deficit.

Cornwall County Council contributed £10,000. County council leader David Whalley said the concert had helped to promote Cornwall to a wider world.

He said: "The council is aware many young people feel there are insufficient opportunities for them to see events such as this within Cornwall. In addition to raising awareness of the important issues raised by the G8 summit, this event is a real boost for the arts in Cornwall.

"It also sends out the message that that the people of Cornwall are aware of the need of Western countries to accept their responsibilities for the poorest nations."

Other sponsorship came from national companies like BT and British Aerospace. Locally, organisations and businesses great and small, from South West Water and Restormel Borough Council to Tywardreath Butchers and Martin's Bakery, helped out.

There was the expensive business of flying more than 100 musicians to the UK, bringing them to Cornwall and finding them hotel accommodation during their stay.

The Eden site also had to be made ready for Live8 and extra staff had to be drafted in.

Restormel Borough Council provided a one-off grant of £10,000 and worked closely with Eden on ensuring all the paperwork and building control systems were in place in order to stage the concert.

Borough councillor Annette Edgerton said Restormel staff had pulled out all the stops.

She said: "Of all the concerts, I think the one in Cornwall was where the artists could get their message across about the people of Africa deserving their dignity through the cancellation of debts and by fair trade.

It is very good to see that Cornwall is eager to get such important issues out into the public eye, and to know that the Eden Project is still at the forefront of such efforts.

Carl Spencer
Editor
7th July 2005