Panel Discussion: Mardi Gras Moms and Who Dat Dads: A Discussion on Parenting in New Orleans
The parenting panel at the Rising Tide Conference will discuss issues unique to raising children in the City of New Orleans. Topics will include parental concerns like crime, education, and hurricanes, but will also include hopes for the future of our culture, and what it means to raise the next generation of New Orleanians.
- Keith Spera - writer of the Times-Picayune’s parenting column “The Paternity Test.” Twitter
- Ashley Bond - founder of local online magazine and resource guide NolaParent. Facebook, Twitter
- Andrea Dewenter - local parenting and immersion education blogger at Pistolette.net and NolaFrancaise.com. Facebook, Twitter
Panel Discussion: Community or Commodity?
We've all heard it said that "tourism is the lifeblood of the New Orleans economy." The city is a frequent host to major conventions and high-profile special events and boasts a burgeoning film industry subsidized by a generous state tax credit.
But as the city's economy becomes more and more dependent on the selling of its culture and entertainments, does the commodification of those elements also stifle them? As we focus more and more on selling "what makes New Orleans New Orleans" to visitors, at what point does the culture produced and revered by the city's residents cease to belong to them anymore?
At times it feels like our most beloved public spaces are always up for sale. Jackson Square becomes the site of a private corporate party, the Superdome gets a hood ornament, the city streets are frequently appropriated by film crews, the sidewalks become guerrilla advertising vectors. Residents can be forgiven for wondering whether just going about the business of living their daily lives they might be interfering with the set of a commercial... or maybe an HBO drama. Even the Mayor, at times, doesn't make distinguishing what's real from what's fake any easier.
What, then, are the real costs and benefits of the "cultural economy" in New Orleans?
Moderator: Kalen Wright - Neighborhood activist, writer, frequent contributor to NOLAFemmes.com - Deborah Cotton - Freelance Writer, Videographer Notes From New Orleans, Big Red Cotton's You Tube Channel, contributor atGambit's Blog of New Orleans
- Meg Lousteau - Executive Director Vieux Carre Property Owners, Residents, and Associates Inc. VCPORA.org
- Brian Boyles - Creative Director The People Say Project http://www.thepeoplesayproject.org/
- Alex Rawls - Freelance Writer, MySpiltMilk.com, Offbeat
- Mari Kornhauser - Independent filmmaker, French Quarter resident, advocate for abused pit-bulls. She also is an associate professor teaching screenwriting in the LSU creative writing program and has written for Treme since season two.
Panel Discussion: Take This Job and Love It: Owning Your Own Business in NOLA
The entrepreneurs panel at Rising Tide will feature a frank discussion about what it takes to run a business in the Crescent City. Topics will include finding a space for your business, navigating city hall, and alternative spaces for doing business (craft fairs and the like).
The entrepreneurs panel at Rising Tide will feature a frank discussion about what it takes to run a business in the Crescent City. Topics will include finding a space for your business, navigating city hall, and alternative spaces for doing business (craft fairs and the like).
- Chris Trew - The New Movement Theater, Twitter
- Rhonda Findley - Pop City, Facebook
- Jeremy Miller - Shultzilla, Twitter
