Olafur & Little Sun Shine Bright at Pathway to Paris
Solar-powered Little Sun-rise from Studio Olafur Eliasson on Vimeo.
One the eve of the Climate Conference COP23 opening in Bonn, Little Sun and Olafur Eliasson joined forces with a spectacular collection of artists, musicians, innovators, academics and activists in New York, to urge policymakers and political leaders to join the fight for climate action.
Artist Olafur Eliasson turned the whole audience into artists by creating an interactive artwork with all 2,800 attendants. He led choreography that motioned the audience to hold up the Little Suns placed under their seats, resulting in a visually striking “solar-powered sunrise.”, raising awareness for Sustainable Development Goal 7, affordable and clean energy.
Solar light dance for Goal 6, Clean Energy, choreographed by @olafureliasson at #PathwaytoParis. #GlobalGoals #COP23 ☀️???? pic.twitter.com/BGd64AcBLF
— Global Goals (@GlobalGoalsUN) November 6, 2017
Following the solar sunrise, all 2,800 lamps have been allocated to be sent to Puerto Rico with the Maria Fund, to bring solar power and light to the communities affected by Hurricane Maria and those who currently still lack electricity.
The Pathway to Paris concert took place at the historic Carnegie Hall in New York City, and brought together artists including (but not limited to) Patti Smith, Joan Baez, Michael Stipe, Bill McKibben, Flea, Cat Power, Dr. Vandana Shiva, Talib Kweli, and Olafur Eliasson, all who were ready to speak about climate action and the importance of making a difference.
The Pathway to Paris concert also marked the launch of a new initiative called 1000 cities – a global solution to climate change. The initiative invites all cities of the world to transition off of fossil fuels and move to 100% renewable energy by 2040, in order to turn the Paris Agreement into reality. 1000 Cities will work in partnership with 350.org’s new Fossil Free campaign, dedicated to stopping new fossil fuel projects and transitioning to 100% renewable energy for all as fast as possible.
Pathway to Paris was founded in September 2014 by Jesse Paris Smith and Rebecca Foon, with an intimate evening of music and speakers at Le Poisson Rouge immediately following the People’s Climate March in New York City. A series of similar events unfolded in North America over the followingyears. The events were initially intended to build awareness to help establish a global climate agreement, leading up to the UN Climate Change Conference
(Cop21) that took place in December 2015, and culminated with two major concerts in Paris at Le Trianon during the first weekend of the conference.
If you’d like to watch the Pathway to Paris concert in its entirety, watch Ben and Jerry’s footage below:
Centered Carnegie Hall photo taken by Joshua Hammond, Press Here Publicity.
Little Sun is still taking donations to get solar lamps to Puerto Rico! You can donate here.
Want more information on the Promises of Paris? Here is some vital data about our heating planet explained beautifully in this video:
Promises of Paris from Studio Olafur Eliasson on Vimeo.
