Live Earth

Live Earth is an environmental-awareness and live-entertainment initiative founded by producer Kevin Wall in partnership with former United States Vice President Al Gore. Its central idea was to use the reach and emotional appeal of popular music to make climate and environmental issues accessible to a global audience. Rather than operating primarily as a conventional consumer brand, Live Earth functioned as an event platform and campaign identity attached to large-scale concerts, broadcasts, digital distribution, educational activity, and partnerships with environmental organizations. The initiative's first major program took place on 7 July 2007. Branded Live Earth, the event comprised concerts in eleven locations and featured more than 150 musical acts. Performances were distributed through television, radio, and internet streams, giving the campaign a deliberately international media footprint. The program connected entertainment with a broad climate message and sought to encourage individuals, businesses, governments, and institutions to support practical responses to environmental degradation. Its scale and celebrity participation positioned Live Earth alongside other large public-awareness campaigns that used major cultural events to build attention around global problems. A planned follow-up, Live Earth India, was intended for 7 December 2008 at Mumbai's Andheri Sports Complex. Kevin Wall developed the event after a request from Gore, with the concept centered entirely on India and with planned participation from international and Indian performers and public figures. Announced participants included Jon Bon Jovi, Amitabh Bachchan, Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy, Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, Roger Waters, will.i.am, Hard Kaur, and Anoushka Shankar, as well as figures such as Shekhar Kapur, Rajendra Pachauri, Abhishek Bachchan, and Aishwarya Rai. STAR TV was expected to broadcast the event in Asia and associated markets, while MSN was identified as its global broadband partner. The concert was cancelled after the Mumbai attacks of 26 November 2008. Organizers cited the circumstances surrounding the attacks and expressed solidarity with victims and the people of India. Live Earth's next major public program was the Dow Live Earth Run for Water, held on 18 April 2010. It consisted of coordinated six-kilometre runs and walks staged over a 24-hour period in approximately 200 cities. The distance was selected to represent the average distance that many women and children travel to obtain water. Events combined physical participation with concerts, educational activity, and fundraising intended to focus public attention on water access and the global water crisis. Participating or supporting personalities included Jessica Biel, Alexandra Cousteau, Pete Wentz, Angélique Kidjo, and Jenny Fletcher, while local entertainment was presented in several host cities. The Run for Water also exposed the reputational risks of cause marketing. Dow Chemical's sponsorship attracted criticism from organizations connected with the Bhopal disaster and from other environmental activists. Critics characterized the sponsorship as greenwashing, citing Dow's ownership of Union Carbide, disputes over remediation of the Bhopal site, alleged pollution incidents in the United States, and concerns about the affordability and performance of water-filtration projects associated with the company. Protest actions were planned or held in multiple locations, including New Delhi, while events in Milan were cancelled. Organizers solicited proposals from a network of water-focused nonprofit groups, but the available reference material indicates that only approximately $50,000 was raised and that much of the sponsorship funding went to commercial marketing, public-relations, and event-management providers. The remaining proceeds were directed primarily to the Global Water Challenge. Live Earth's public identity therefore rests on a combination of global entertainment, environmental advocacy, and partnership-driven activism. Its best-known work created unusually large audiences for climate and water messages, but the experience also demonstrated the difficulty of maintaining credibility when environmental campaigns rely on corporate sponsors whose records are contested. The available material does not establish the initiative's current operating structure or whether it continues to organize events under the Live Earth name.

Live Earth emerged in 2007 as a collaboration between entertainment producer Kevin Wall and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore. The initiative was conceived as an event-based environmental campaign: music and mass media would provide the attention and reach needed to communicate the urgency of climate change to audiences in different countries. The model depended on a combination of international performers, local venues, broadcast partners, online distribution, and advocacy messaging rather than on the sale of a conventional branded product. The first Live Earth concert series took place on 7 July 2007. Concerts were staged in eleven locations and involved more than 150 musical acts. The performances were made available through television, radio, and live internet streams, creating one of the campaign's defining characteristics: simultaneous international distribution across traditional and digital media. The event sought to move environmental concern beyond specialist or political audiences by embedding climate messaging in a highly visible entertainment format. Live Earth then pursued an India-focused event. Live Earth India was planned for 7 December 2008 at Mumbai's Andheri Sports Complex, with Kevin Wall managing the project after Gore requested an event centered on India. The proposed lineup mixed international music stars, Indian film and music figures, and environmental or public-interest personalities. Jon Bon Jovi and Amitabh Bachchan were expected to share the stage, with additional planned participation from Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy, Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, Roger Waters, will.i.am, Hard Kaur, Anoushka Shankar, and others. STAR TV was expected to provide regional television distribution, and MSN was named the exclusive global broadband partner. The event was cancelled soon after the Mumbai attacks of 26 November 2008. Organizers said that the decision resulted from circumstances outside their control and used the announcement to express solidarity with victims and the wider Indian public. In 2010 the Live Earth identity was applied to a different format: the Dow Live Earth Run for Water. Held on 18 April, the program consisted of six-kilometre runs and walks conducted in a coordinated 24-hour sequence across approximately 200 cities. The distance was intended to symbolize the daily burden faced by many women and children who travel to obtain water. Alongside the physical events, organizers arranged concerts and educational activities designed to build support for solutions to the global water crisis. Host cities included locations in North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and local performances were part of the program in several markets. The water campaign's corporate sponsorship generated substantial controversy. Dow Chemical was criticized by groups representing survivors and advocates of justice for the Bhopal disaster, with support from Amnesty International and other activists. Critics argued that Dow's sponsorship presented an environmentally positive public image while the company remained associated with Union Carbide and with disputed questions concerning cleanup, pollution, and water-filtration projects. The campaign also faced criticism over the allocation of sponsorship funds. Reference material states that approximately $50,000 was raised, that much of the Dow sponsorship was spent on commercial marketing, public relations, and event-management companies, and that the remaining proceeds were distributed primarily through the Global Water Challenge. Protests were planned or carried out in cities including New Delhi, while events in Milan were cancelled. These disputes became an important part of Live Earth's history because they highlighted the tension between the scale that corporate sponsorship can provide and the credibility challenges that arise when a sponsor's environmental record is contested. The available source material does not establish a clear current headquarters, ownership structure, executive team, or continuing event schedule. Live Earth is best understood historically as an international environmental campaign brand whose most visible activities were the 2007 concert series and the 2010 water-focused participation campaign. Its legacy lies in demonstrating how global entertainment platforms can be used for environmental communication, while also showing the scrutiny faced by campaigns that combine nonprofit objectives with corporate marketing partnerships.

• 2010

  Dow Live Earth Run for Water

  [1]Live Earthen.wikipedia.org

  A coordinated series of six-kilometre runs and walks takes place in approximately 200 cities, accompanied by music and water education.

• 2008

  Live Earth India is cancelled

  [1]Live Earthen.wikipedia.org

  The planned 7 December Mumbai concert is cancelled after the 26 November Mumbai attacks.

• 2007

  Live Earth is founded

  [1]Live Earthen.wikipedia.org

  Producer Kevin Wall establishes the initiative in partnership with Al Gore as an environmental-awareness platform built around entertainment and global media.

• 2007

  First global Live Earth concert series

  [1]Live Earthen.wikipedia.org

  On 7 July, concerts in eleven locations feature more than 150 musical acts and are distributed through television, radio, and internet streams.

A global environmental-awareness platform that combines popular music, celebrity participation, mass events, and media distribution to turn climate and water issues into large-scale public campaigns.

• Global benefit concert series · 2007

  Live Earth 2007

  The original Live Earth program was a worldwide sequence of environmental-awareness concerts held on 7 July 2007. More than 150 musical acts performed across eleven locations. The event's design combined live entertainment with climate messaging and broad media distribution through television, radio, and internet streaming, allowing the campaign to reach audiences well beyond the physical venues.

• Planned environmental concert · 2008

  Live Earth India

  Live Earth India was planned as a Mumbai-based concert focused on the Indian market and scheduled for 7 December 2008. The proposed program included international and Indian performers, public figures, and environmental advocates, with STAR TV and MSN identified as distribution partners. The event was cancelled after the Mumbai attacks of November 2008 and therefore was never delivered in its planned form.

• Mass participation environmental campaign · 2010

  Dow Live Earth Run for Water

  Held on 18 April 2010, the Run for Water organized six-kilometre runs and walks in roughly 200 cities during a 24-hour period. The distance represented the average journey many women and children make to obtain water. Events added concerts and educational activities and sought to raise awareness and support for water-access initiatives.

• 2010

  Criticism of Dow Chemical sponsorship

  Organizations representing Bhopal victims and environmental activists criticized Dow Chemical's sponsorship of the Run for Water. They argued that the company's association with a water and environmental campaign was inconsistent with controversies involving Union Carbide, the Bhopal cleanup, alleged pollution incidents, and disputed water-filtration projects. Critics also questioned whether sponsorship funds primarily supported nonprofit beneficiaries or commercial service providers.

  Source

Read more

• 2010Dow Live Earth Run for Water

  International

  A global 6K run-and-walk campaign connected the physical distance traveled to obtain water with concerts, educational activities, and fundraising for water initiatives.

  Outcome. The event was held in approximately 200 cities, but the campaign faced protests and criticism over its Dow Chemical sponsorship and the allocation of funds.

  Source
• 2007Live Earth 2007

  International

  A synchronized international concert program used music, celebrity participation, and multi-platform broadcasting to increase awareness of climate change and encourage environmental action.

  Outcome. The campaign delivered concerts in eleven locations with more than 150 acts and reached audiences through television, radio, and online streaming.

  Source

• 2010

  Expansion from climate concerts into water-access participation eventsStrategy

  Background

  After the 2007 concert series and the cancelled 2008 India event, the Live Earth identity was applied to a coordinated public campaign about water scarcity.

  Action taken

  Organizers created the Dow Live Earth Run for Water, using six-kilometre runs and walks, concerts, education, and nonprofit partnerships across approximately 200 cities.

  Aftermath

  The format expanded Live Earth's physical participation model but also generated controversy over Dow Chemical's sponsorship and the use of campaign funds.

  Reported funds raised. approximately $50,000 (2010 campaign)

  Source

• 2008

  Cancellation of Live Earth IndiaOther

  Background

  The Mumbai concert was scheduled for 7 December 2008, but the city was attacked on 26 November. The event had been planned with international and Indian performers and major broadcast and online distribution partners.

  Action taken

  Live Earth, Kevin Wall, Al Gore, and Rajendra Pachauri announced that the concert would not proceed, citing circumstances beyond the organizers' control and expressing sympathy for victims and the people of India.

  Aftermath

  The Live Earth concert was not rescheduled in the available reference material. Some performers later participated in separate Mumbai benefit activity connected with the attacks.

  Source

1. 1Live Earthen.wikipedia.org