Festival Networking: A New Resource

As a great many festivals are currently sweeping the UK and indeed the wider world, they offer a lot of networking for young people and for adults, and could be a useful resource for creating new opportunities.

As I had suggested in an article on performing arts networks, the students and Alumni could collaborate both on stage and behind the scenes, to create a lot of good networking opportunities for both:

http://jamesperformingarts.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/arts-networks-one-idea.html

The same goes for all professions. If the students/non-graduates and Alumni work together on the organising committees of each festival, and present their work together out front; then a lot of valuable connections can be made.  Granted there are currently showcases that are organised to do just that,  but I say we should take advantage of the connections the festivals offer, and use them as important social networks; for students, for non-graduates, and for adults.

To establish its networking power, each festival could have a social media network set up on Linkedin, for more formal, long term business. Universities and colleges could make formal arrangements with the organisers, to trial their innovations as part of the festivities, depending on the format in question.

And let's not forget, that an ongoing annual event is an unofficial training school for volunteers. I've known volunteer stagehands, who were trained in lighting and sound, who then built up enough experience to apply for stage lighting companies, and others. So again, formal arrangements could be set up, to assess and grade non-graduates, who have done a lot of volunteer work.

With so many festivals out there, we ought to consider their potential as opportunity providers, and use a lot of the existing arrangements, to create new opportunities for jobs, networking, and new careers.