Do you think a party can transform a city?
“The best way to predict the future is to create it”
Off the Grid promises to do exactly that. Something that no-one else has ever done before, three days before Christmas.
A music festival birthed from the passion to get things done, where 100 per cent of the profits will go to a renewable energy power plant project – inviting the city of Melbourne to create its own future based on infinite resources.
To bring people together through sound, music has always driven and implemented innovative technologies, from headphones to stadium audio. In Melbourne, on 22 December, the Off the Grid music festival will begin the final stage of this relationship.
Every sound, light and feeling will be powered by renewable energy.
The event, to be held at The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, is a collaboration of Melbourne’s most promising creative minds and institutions: The Creators Project (thecreatorsproject.vice.com), Mary Grigoris (www.wearecyclopes.com), Mash Design (www.mashdesign.com.au), and Ross Harding (Finding Infinity, Fuck Fossil Fuels).
Greenpeace Australia Pacific has also signed up as an official partner of Off the Grid 2015 and will be running a campaign to promote the festival’s cause. The team is successfully engaging the youth culture of Melbourne and is dedicated to pushing the transition towards a 100 per cent renewable energy policy in Melbourne, to happen as fast as possible.
The festival’s five-star line-up includes names the likes of Banoffee, Sui Zhen, Prequel, Tornado Wallace, Cut Copy DJs, Wax’O Paradiso, Average Rap Band, Silent J & Jace XL.
“We won’t stop partying until we power the whole city,” says Ross Harding, the founder of Finding Infinity.
“It’s a party to transform the city, but also to have more parties.”
Finding Infinity is a social organisation. It’s goal is to create real, meaningful change and to have a good time doing it.
“Musicians, people, technology and the sun above are coming together for Australia’s premier Off the Grid festival to bring us the dance party that ignited Melbourne’s energy transformation,” he adds.
The lighting design for the event will be from internationally-acclaimed lighting design consultancy Electro Light. Established in 2004 by Paul Beale, the comapny has studios in Australia and London. Some of its most recent projects include NGV, AAMI stadium and Australia 108, and with over 400 projects under their belt ranging from theatres to art galleries, restaurants to retail outlets, hotels to casinos, there is no doubt this will be a spectacular feature for the event.
Moreover, The Fashion Market AU will be presenting ‘Threadbare’ at Off theGrid, sponsored by Stella Magazine. ‘Thread Bare’ uses art, music and fashion to focus attention on promoting the use of recycled material in fashion, supporting independent designers and investing in ethical clothing and slow fashion. Last on the line-up is the bar, by local legends Shebeen, a social enterprise that has committed to donating 100 per cent of its profits to tackling poverty in the developing world. It has also committed to help Off the Grid achieve the target of zero-waste. The money raised thereafter, from selling renewable electricity, will go directly back into paying a team of staff to organise the next event.
“With this party, the profits go directly into a renewable energy project that Off the Grid owns,” Harding stresses.
“Energy, such as solar power, is to be sold to the city. And like any other provider in the current system, its energy services will earn a profit.”
This future vision is a perpetual cycle like no other – a unique blend of music, technology and community at one end of the spectrum, while the other extreme pursues an innovative approach to incorporate radical ideas with the pre-existing economic structures. “Once we power the whole city, we will give the infrastructure back to the people of Melbourne, thus giving the people the power,” Harding says. “A snowball effect of change is coming.”
Here’s how they are powering Australia’s first solar-powered music festival:
A five-metre-high solar stage is at the heart of the event. Its design is comprised of 28 Risen Solar panels – each being 250W, which equates to 7kW of power. In the high afternoon, when the festival spurs on into the evening, the solar panels will face west to soak up the sun – the time when most of the power is being used. Like a rainwater tank filled with sun, a battery bank, providing about 33kWh of energy, stores all of the power harnessed by the solar panels. And the festival’s energy will flow all around – from the sky, to the stage, and to the crowd, across the forecourt of the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art and back again. The purpose is to power the whole city with renewable energy. It’s a beautiful thing. And to do this, Off the Grid understands that meaningful change must come from within. It’s not about large, charitable donations, or even giving away the funds for a greater good. Change will be made through a head-on approach of intelligent, and financially sound action. “Off the Grid will work with the existing economic system. Naturally and harmoniously planting a seed to which its ideas will grow inherently and exponentially,” Harding explains. “People, the government and businesses will arrive at a common intersection of empowerment as they experience the viability of renewable energy.”
How you can become an Off the Grid volunteer:
The festival needs all the help it can get. It will be solar-powered and aiming for zero waste. And a big party too. It is rapidly growing closer to its own capacity because it is here to push the envelope and break the rules of what is considered normal. An energy revolution is already underway and “every revolution needs an army”.
At Off the Grid, the volunteers will also embody the idea that every individual can make a difference. It’s a festival to transform a city and they want the volunteers to be part of it. The music will build the community, and through community meaningful change will happen.
A volunteer will learn the ideas behind the party, and use their own experiences with the solutions to teach others – so that they may do so as well. Spreading it throughout the city. But without their work the event won’t run – the purpose will never be actioned. Nobody will be blown away. That is why it is so important that the festival has 60 volunteers on the day.
The festival respects the efforts and commitment of the volunteers by sharing with them responsibilities and trust – there are no deposits, and a free ticket in return for 3-5 hours of work.
The roles are:
-Gate/Ticketing: Assist gate manager with processing tickets, sales enquiries, giving stamps and directing patrons to information.
-Crowd control/Security: Ensuring a steady flow of foot traffic in and out of the venue, assisting security with disposal of prohibited items, monitoring festival borders and general welfare of patrons.
-Info tent/Operations: Assisting patrons with general enquiries and liaising with festival managers to solve any issues, assisting volunteer manager with sign in and sign out of volunteers, administering lost and found procedure.
Waste watchers: Patrolling the festival encouraging patrons to comply with the zero waste policy, and completing clean up duties where required.
-Wash Against Waste: Play an important part in washing reusable cups for patrons so they can enjoy our zero waste bar facilities.
-Post-festival cleanup/Sorting: Assisting managers after the event in collecting and sorting any items that have been discarded incorrectly by patrons and making sure compost and recyclable materials are ready for pick up by contractors.
Where: Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 111 Sturt Street, Southbank, Victoria.
When: December 22 2015, starting time 12.00 pm
For more information call +61 3 9697 999 or head to www.offthegrid.global
Get a small taste here: