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What’s Mik Aidt been up to?
 2014 : Working as a freelance journalist and consultant, web editor, independent climate change blogger and sustainability radio presenter and podcaster with focus on sustainable energy and cultural diversity. Web editor of Freemuse.org and Artsfreedom.org Co-host of ‘The Sustainable Hour’ on 94.7 The Pulse (FM and podcast) in Geelong. By the end of the year we have produced 57 hours of community radio about sustainability, climate, onshore gas mining and renewable energy. » www.climatesafety.info/TheSustainableHour » www.facebook.com/TheSustainableHour January: Step in as member of the committee for Geelong Sustainability February: Organised an evening at Geelong Performing Arts Centre titled ‘Addressing the biggest issue humanity has ever faced’ Wrote, designed and published the booklet ‘The Solution — A Vision for Our City’ » www.thesolution.org.au/booklet April: Coordinator of the ‘Renew Geelong’ initiative » www.thesolution.org.au/picnic July: Organise an event about Community-funded renewable energy projects. September: Together with two others I organise ‘The People’s Climate March’ in Geelong, several public meetings about onshore gas mining, and one about divestment. I initiate and launch the campaign Energise Geelong. November: Together with two others I organise a seminar with the title ‘Geelong Clean Job Forum’ which is combined with an Open Letter about the same topic which is published in the largest local newspaper. Begin to produce segments for SBS Radio Help produce an annual report for Geelong Sustainability Also continuously providing climate and clean energy news streams on www.scoop.it/u/mik-aidt www.pinterest.com/mikaidt twitter.com/mikaidt – @mikaidt www.facebook.com/climatesafety www.facebook.com/FossilFuelFreeFuture www.facebook.com/CleantechGeelong Member of Geelong Sustainability Group committee » www.geelongsustainability.org.au Member of Transition East Geelong committee » www.facebook.com/TransitionEastGeelong Co-founder and member of Frack Free Geelong » www.facebook.com/FrackFreeGeelong » www.frackfreegeelong.org Assisting with maintenance of surfcoast.airaction.org 2013 : February: Moderated a plenary session at the World Sustainability Development Summit in New Delhi, and, inspired by this, started my own Carbon Awareness Blog Soon after it was renamed Parents for Climate Safety, which later again evolved into Centre for Climate Safety » www.climatesafety.info  January: Moved to Geelong in Australia. And thereby said “hello to the planet” with an ambition to dig deeper into the field of sustainability, among others together with the international organisation Culture|Futures. • Inspirational lecture for 15 teachers of Ringsted Music- and Culture School in Denmark. Travels: India and Malaysia in January-February. Denmark in July. 2012 : Febuary: Starting up an exciting Indian-Danish culture exchange and communication project at the Danish Culture Institute, entitled ‘Co-create Now’. March: • Freemuse’s co-ordinator of the global advocacy event Music Freedom Day taking place in more than 20 countries on 3 March 2012. • Organised a heering in Copenhagen about UNESCO’s convention on cultural diversity. 120 people attended. Interviewed for national tv news that same evening. Production, among other: • Edited a 56-pages report about audience development in the Danish cultural sector, published in February: ‘From gods to servants’ • Six articles for the book ‘Take pART: Artreach’, published by Nikolaj Art Gallery in February. Travels: Australia in December–January. India in April-May. Holland in May. Travel plans and dreams in the pipeline: Arizona. Nepal. Uganda. Mozambique. Australia (2013). 2011 : Production • Article in the magazine Musikeren about the role which music played in the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions. • Article in Politiken in November: New faces in the audience rows. The article lead to a five minutes reportage in national tv that same evening. • Numerous lectures about interculture, audience development, etc. For instance: on 9 June at Skoletjenesten about being ‘Ready for the world - about diversity and intercultural skills’, and on 16 June at a Nordic network seminar organised by The Opera in Aarhus, talking about: ‘How to implement a cultural diversity?’ September: Startup as Freemuse’s co-ordinator of the global advocacy event Music Freedom Day which will take place on Saturday 3 March 2012. January: As director of Danish Centre for Arts & Interculture, I organise a three-day conference for 200 participants on 24-26 January in the Danish Film Institute. Travels: Norway in January and May. Germany in February. England in October. Australia in December–January. 2010 : January: As director of Danish Centre for Arts & Interculture, I organise a two-day conference for 250 participants on 28-29 January in Skuespilhuset (the National Theatre Hall). Production • Interview with Tina Nedergaard, Minister of Education. • Interview article with Birgitte Kofod Olsen from TrygVesta in Cultures. • Interview with MP Marianne Jelved. • Interview with head of the Danish Arts Council Mads Øvlisen. • Web page with video interviews and articles from a conference about visual arts education Travels: Italy in February, Norway (twice) in March, Italy (again) in May, England in June, Australia in September-October, Holland and Belgium in November. 2009 : January: start new job as director of Danish Centre for Arts & Interculture, which gathers and communicates knowledge about how the Danish cultural scene can open up and include artists with an intercultural background. The centre is launched with a one-day seminar for 140 participants on 19 January.  Two days a week I continue to work as web editor of Freemuse.org, an international organisation advocating human rights and freedom of expression for musicians, producing news articles and video interviews, etc.• Working together with Ivan Rod and Niels Righolt on getting the communication bureau and magazine Cultures up and running. We have moved the editorial office to a new address at Nytorv in the heart of Copenhagen’s old city centre. Travels this year: Stockholm, Sweden (March). Australia (March-April). 2008 : January–December: Four days a week I work as web editor of Freemuse.org. Regularly produce radio programmes for CMC and My Way Music. February: Step in as stearing group chairman for Danish Centre for Arts & Interculture. June 1992 to June 2008: Editor-in-Chief of Djembe Magazine. In November 2008, Djembe is relaunched and renamed as Cultures Production • March: Video interview with the American musician Kris Kristofferson, and with Marie Boine from Sámi land in North Norway. • June: Interview with the Turkish musician Fuat Talay • Articles about the Finnish kantele instrument, about the Sudanese musician Abazar Hamid, numerous album reviews, etc  On the home front • 9 December: Arrival of our Number Three: Eva. Travels Norway (March and August). Finland (Arctic Paradise Live, April). Sweden (November).  2007 : • January–December: Continued work for and with Freemuse, CMC, My Way Music, and Djembe Magazine. December: Publish an album with my sister Pernilla, entitled ‘Songs that dream’. On the home front: • 1 March: Nest building – we move to a little house on the island Amager • 2 April: Arrival of our Number 2. • Travels: Jordan (January). Australia and Thailand (July) 2006 : • One day a week web editor of Freemuse.org, until October, where I started working full-time for Freemuse. • Co-editor of Culturebase.net. • Editor-in-chief of the magazine Djembe which on its 14th year is published every third month. • Once or twice a month: produced a 30-minutes radio show where I interviewed artists and orchestras. For CMC: The Olsen Brothers, Big Fat Snake, Smokie, Finn Nørbygaard & Jacob Haugaard, Poul Krebs, Eurovision experts, Tomboy, Jascha Richter, Sonic & David, etc. For My Way Music: Bamse, Dræsinebanden, Keld & Hilda, Thomas Stenberg, Søren Poppe, Jakob Sveistrup, Peter Viskinde, etc. • In March: premiere on a two-day workshop and performance about life dreams at Køng Folkhighschool: ‘The Power of Dreaming’ and ‘I Have A Dream’. The project was repeated with a new group of students in June. • CD-ROM video production for DCCD about a symposium i Hanoi. • Assisted organising and coordinating the conference Radio Days 2006. • Frequently out as DJ. • May: Finished the album ‘Balad Djemil’. (Launched in December) • May–July: web editor of the festival website www.images.org • August–September: Produced 12 hours of radio at DR P2 and a tv documentary about music in the Middle East and some of the artists visiting the festival Images of the Middle East. • Assisted organising the Danish World Awards in November. • Assisted and video documented the third Freemuse World Conference in Istanbul in November. • Write a series of articles about Danish world music for www.danishmusic.info • On the home front: Am the proud father of and for The Babynator, who is very busy growing up and discovering the world. • Travels: Lebanon. Sweden. Germany. Turkey.  2005 : February 11: Wedding with Deb at Copenhagen City Hall. • March: Produced a three-hour radio programme on dreams and creativity. • Radio Days again. • Made music for a little one-minute flash-presentation produced by Lis Kelså: (Click to hear it) • April: Started a new job which I am very fond of – as web editor for the international organisation Freemuse, www.freemuse.org. • June 11: Premiere on the first prototype of what we think can become Djembe's "Traveling Road Show" - entitled 'Because the World is Bigger' • Apart from that, I am presently into producing a video documentary and several articles on dreams, as well as making music and music videos, doing coaching and consultancy work for people who want to publish their own CDs, DJing, and so on. (View calendar for update on when and where I am DJing) • June: writing a special theme issue of Djembe Magazine on creativity and tolerance - inspired by the American book, 'The Creative Class'. • September: Article in the magazine Samvirke about dreams and creativity • Preparing an album with music inspired from Sudan, entitled ‘Balad Djemil’. • Welcome our firstborn on Planet Earth on July 10. • New Year’s Blog: This year circles around the topic happiness • Travels: France (September). Australia and Thailand (December 15 – February 9). 2004 : All winter until 1 February 2004, I was absolutely burried in the challenge of organising a radio conference for 350 people, Radio Days. In May-June, I produced a 60-page jazz magazine for DR about DR Big Band. In June, Mild Records launched its second album, 'Muse', with Gudrun Holck, and a maxi-single, 'L'Aube Remixed', with Pernilla. Autumn was spent with the production of my first DVD, a CD-ROM, eight minor videos, finishing a 40-minutes documentary ‘My Images of Asia’, and giving a full-day lecture on dreams its world premiere on a folk high school (Højskole) in Køng, on November 19 – a milestone in my career as a “professional dreamer”. Established a website for this activity on Dreamer.dk – and a page about my work related activities on Mildproductions.dk • Travels: Cannes in France (Midem), once again. Australia (April). Vietnam and Australia (October). India (December-January). 2003 : Midlife crisis? The “Seven Year Itch”? Maybe. Quit my job as an editor at the radio just after New Year, taking effect on 1st of March. After seven years in the same job, it suddenly occured to me that I needed new challenges. So, I am happy to say that I have entered a new life with more time for traveling, writing, making music, and living out personal dreams of mine... And, oh yes!, less money, and more financial insecurity. A price for my new freedom which I am happy to pay. In July, I started my own production company, Mild Productions, and as such, now the managing director of my own record company... ;-) We launched our first CD, ‘Serene’, in October. In May–July, I was a guest editor at the magazine Kontakt, producing a special theme issue on Asian culture, and at the same time, I joined a project organising a major conference about radio in January 2004. At Roskilde Festival, I was hosting a full-evening radio show for EBU, broadcast live in 16 European countries. Together with Mikkel Hornnes, I built a website for DR about Asian music In August, I sat down in front of the video-editing software Final Cut Pro for the first time, and on September 27, I had my debut on national tv with a 70-minutes programme about the Images of Asia festival. • Travels: Cannes in France (Midem). Uganda. Nepal. France again. London. 2002 : Still deeply involved with DR Rytmisk, DCCD, Djembe, music production, writing articles, DJing, etc. Arranged my first Planet3 party. Radio - among other programmes these six: • Radium at DR P2 on 8th of October (realaudio - 1 hour: Bombay Dreams, Flipside, Moussa Diallo) • Radium at DR P2 on 23rd of October (realaudio: Midival Punditz, Jason Armstrong, Peter Gabriel) • Radium at DR P2 on 7th of November (realaudio: Asian Massive, Karsh Kale, Talvin Singh, Feliz Laband) • Radium at DR P2 on 17th of November (realaudio: dreamy film music which you have never heard before.) • Radium at DR P2 on 6th of December (realaudio: Youssou N'Dour, Radar, Sorten Muld) • Radium at DR P2 on 21st of December (realaudio: Panjabi MC, hitlists around the globe, Viviane N'Dour) • Travels: Cannes (Midem), London, Senegal, Nice, Thailand (Koh Pha Ngan), Ibiza, North-Norway (Andenes in Nordland). 2001 : Debut as lounge-DJ at the Roskilde Festival. July: Layout of newspaper for Crossing Borders (Palestina/Israel/Jordan journalist project). December: • 'Music Of Another World' – theme in 'Nordic Sounds', a magazine published by the Nordic Council of Ministers. • Travels: Cannes (Midem), Norway, Nice. 2000 : Among many other things, deeply involved in the Images of the World festival which took place in August-September. • Travels: London, New York, Egypt (Sinai). 1999 : April: Coordinating editor ("Jourhavende") at DR P3. • Travels: Cannes (Midem), Berlin, London, Nice, Cologne, London, Nice, Lausanne. 1998 : May: Appointed by the Danish Foreign Ministry to be member of the executive committee of the Danish Center for Culture & Development for a three year period (in 2001 prolonged with another three years). August: P3 music editor November: Assisting in the organising of the conference "Communicating Cultural Africa". December 22: Nightradio host debut at P3. • Travels: Cannes and Stockholm (Womex).  1996:Teaching Internet and HTML at Borups Højskole. In February, employed as a leader of the music scheduling project at the Danish Broadcasting Corporation and taking part in making the World Music programme at P3. Once in a while touring with a slide show about African music, or as a DJ at parties Initiator and webmaster of the home pages such as • Djembe Magazine as well as • Images of Africa Festival and • Cross Culture Network. Constructor and designer of home pages for the • World Music programme at P3, • the first home page of DR P4, • the jazz band Loreleï Quintet, • Pernilla Caroubi Quintet, • the book Among Danish Jews, • the firm Netservice, • the Homolulu Hotel, • a low-carbohydrate diet archive (which has had millions of visitors) • Levende Musik i Skolen, • Wamdè, • Freelance Europe, • Michael Mogensen Fotografisk Galleri, • Multi Fotoarkiv, • Nielsens Bryg & Drik, • Numen Music Center, • Tchando.com, • What's Wrong • Spejlteltet and many more...   I was born in Risskov, north of the second largest city in Denmark, Århus. This was in 1962, at 5 pm.This photo of my sister and I (it's me on the right) playing in the garden, is from the summer of 1975. Since then, I've never really stopped playing - as a freelance musician, as an Internet freak, layouter, writer - and so on. Among some of the things that have taken up my time over the years could be mentioned a production of... 80 jingles, a 24-page pamphlet and 12 minutes PR video for Regionalen, the National Broadcasting Corporation in Næstved. 97 jingles for Østjyllands Radio, the National Broadcasting Corporation in Århus. Music for the film "Now - An Instant On Earth" and the national TV2 production "Wu Quang" about two new species recently discovered in the jungle of Vietnam, presented by National Geographic worldwide. Music making in the 1990ies Several hundred full length radio programmes, not to mention the programme "Verdensmusik" (Global Beat) on the radio channel P3, at that time the most popular pop music radio channel in Denmark. Articles in newspapers and magazines about Ghanaian music and culture, Internet, adult high schools (folkehøjskoler) in Africa, human rights in Africa, African music, salsa dance, genetic research, among others. Over the years, piles of reports and articles, radio interviews and features, interviews for two tv programmes (on the Nigerian musician Femi Anikulapo Kuti and on a Ghanaian music center project named Agoro), as wells as four slide shows from all together 13 journeys to Africa, totaling more than three years   in 19 different countries on the continent - most of the journeys together with freelance photographer Linda Horowitz - an activity which in 1992 was the starting point for establishing the magazine Djembe - today the only magazine in Scandinavia on African & Latin American culture as well as world music.Layouted more than 35 paper-issues of this Djembe Magazine – as well as innumerous pamphlets, posters and CD-covers.
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Some of the titles I have had or could put on my business card are (in alphabetical order): Blogger, Coach, Consultant, Director, Executive Committee Member, DJ, Editor-in-Chief, Human Rights Activist, Journalist, Lecturer, Jury Member, Managing Director, Moderator, Musician, Photographer, Producer, Radio Presenter, Speaker, Teacher, Tv-producer, Web Editor, Web Designer... and then I've probably even forgotten a few. In other words: I work with communication. Titles mean nothing. What is important is that the things we spend our time on are things that make common sense in the world we live in – while we continuously keep learning and looking for new and better ways to do things. I enjoy being able to share what I pick up along the way with other people. In a sense, one could say that I have turned precisely that into my livelihood: to share knowledge and visions – old wisdom as well as and fresh ideas, using spoken word (in my local community) as well as the Internet (connecting with the rest of the world) as my two primary work platforms. I a strong believer of a ‘middle-path’ philosophy. I aim at keeping things simple. Over-information is a plague of our time. At the same time, I am always curious – a bit of an explorer, eager to cross new borders and enter unknown territory, seeking different ways of doing things, without fear. Challenging limits of what others say is possible. To play, to dream... and at times remembering to actually live out some of those dreams as well. I aim to maintain transparency, accountability and sustainability in all processes of what I do. Below you will find some information about how my over 50 years on this planet have passed – in reverse chronological order. There is a Danish version of this list which is longer and more detailed. |
