by Larry Lagarde

Last week, readers that follow RideTHISbike on Facebook or Twitter may have noticed a flurry of posts and quotes from world leaders concerning the importance of developing and supporting an economy around culture.

I attended the World Economic Forum and the Louisiana Cultural Economy Summit to gain insights and contacts that would help me promote folding bikes as practical and sustainable transportation.

Here are 4 points that reflect the gist of both events:
- Though often over looked, cultural diversity is a vital economic engine.
- Factors like climate change and sea level rise are leading cultures to extinction.
- Louisiana's rich cultural tapestry tops the list of those being swept away.
- Focusing on culture's economic impact can improve livelihoods and quality of life worldwide.

Given the seriousness of the situation, were these events held in another city, the mood could easily have been somber. Instead, by being hosted in New Orleans, it was a celebration, both positive and uplifting.


There were brass bands, song, dance, great food and break out sessions on a multitude of cultural topics, allowing artists, academics and bureaucrats from around the world to rub shoulders and focus on solutions rather than doom and gloom.

As a result of the Summit, I'm one step closer to doing a video series showing how folding bikes are a fun, fit and practical way to improving quality of life. Plus, NPR has expressed interest in a story concerning an innovative approach to increasing transit use via folding bikes.

My heartfelt thanks go to Louisiana's Lt Gov. Mitch Landrieu, Nobel laureate Dr. Sergio Trindade, James Carville and everyone else that made both the World Cultural Economic Forum and Louisiana Cultural Economy Summit so inspirational.

Labels: Louisiana-Cultural-Economy-Summit, World-Cultural-Economic-Forum