Objective:
At the end of last century, after 25 years of filmmaking, my last film, sponsored by Swissair for its 70th anniversary, was entirely shot and post-produced electronically. For me, this was the clear sign that I had to embark on a journey into this new digital age. So with the global reach that the internet and telephony promised, I began looking for a popular concept, a name or a word that embraced these new technologies.
Impact:
With the New7Wonders campaigns, for the first time in mankind’s history, a global polling/voting was possible and was executed with a popular theme that everyone could easily understand and get excited about. Everyone’s voice on this planet with access to the internet or mobile telephones could be heard and had a say in what monuments should be elected as the New 7 Wonders of the past two thousand years. In addition, the social-economic impact for countries hosting the elected New7Wonders has been tremendous. Governments who heard about this first movement and whose natural sites were nominated for the second campaign requested an analysis of the benefits/impacts should their site get elected. Five international studies concluded that the social-economic impact was in the billions of dollars over a five year period in terms of job creation, advertising, brand and tourism plus-value/income.
Partnerships:
Like anything that one undertakes, partnerships and knowledge exchanges are essential for success. In our case they were with both local and/or national governments, celebrities, NGOs, and the UN Office of Partnerships, which was a great encouragement to pursue our goal of reaching the largest crowd ever all over our planet.
Investments:
My personal goal in life was never to solely make money. Which also meant that I never had a proper business plan. My priority was to develop concepts and visuals that people would find attractive and encouraging enough to want to become a part of the movement. I was always convinced that I would be rewarded if I was successful in doing so… and so it happened. In terms of financing, as some philosophers have predicted, if you fully engage personally without making compromises and with perseverance the universal energies will help to realize the vision. Exactly this happened at all crossroads.
SDG Impact:
The SDG Goal which I am working towards is the promotion of decent work and economic growth, and I am also closely aligned with UNESCO’s mission to preserve and keep monuments accessible for future generations. As my slogan for the first New7Wonders campaign was: “Our past is our future.” Only our history and culture can lead humanity into the future.
Success:
The revival of the 7 Wonders of the World, an ancient Greek concept just like the Olympics, was immediately adopted by the world’s citizens. It hit a very emotional string and fostered a deeper pride of what is the most important element that humanity leaves behind: it’s culture! As a filmmaker I had my eye trained for visual impact. So, to draw attention to the first ever world voting campaign, I produced some spectacular visual feats and events for the TV and print media as they were the main disseminating drivers at the time. I launched New7Wonders with a spectacular amphibious seaplane water landing in the harbor of Sydney just in front of the Sydney Opera House during the 2000 Olympics. This was covered by almost every TV and print media around the world, including China and India who at that time had no or little interest in the Olympics.
Personal Story:
Right from the start of New7Wonders the feedback from citizens from around the world was overwhelming. In the year 2000, no social media networks existed and communication was only possible via email. With up to 17-28,000 emails per day received from literally every corner of the world (225-countries), it surpassed all my expectations and has accumulated over 600 million votes cast so far.
Some examples:
- August H. from SPAIN: 7Wonders, 7reasons to love and believe in our world!
- Jose S. from MEXICO: N7W: the global soul of man (of all races, of all cultures, of all times), shines here!!!
- Vicky Z. from GREECE: Thank you for giving people the right to vote for History! Anny W. from CHINA: N7W is the wealth of all the people in the world.
- Elcio D. from BRAZIL: WOW! That’s the most important and democratic change that I have ever done!
- Cem O. from TURKEY: The Winner is the World!
Looking Ahead:
I am now at a crossroad to either archive New7Wonders historically as the millenniums first ever global vote in the history of mankind or to bring it into the future with young enthusiasts and investors by creating a periodical, dynamic movement like the Olympics or the FIFA World Cup.
Vision for the Future:
There are so many wonders in the world (and many new ones being added) which deserve special care and attention. Eventually, they will also need conservation, so there is practically no limit for campaigning and electing New 7 Wonders in the future. I believe that a new generation of enthusiasts and investors could take the New7Wonders concept into the future to continue to promote and preserve these amazing cultural and historic sites around the world.
The “Vision for the Future” e-book
This article has been published in the “Vision for the Future”. I was invited to contribute to this groundbreaking initiative, an e-book designed to capture and share inspiring success stories from leaders and changemakers around the world, featuring the personal narratives from 25 visionaries who are making a significant impact in their respective fields.
Vision For The Future is an initiative from the Global Partnerships Forum led by the former Executive Director of the UN Office for Partnerships, Amir Dossal, and was launched during the UN General Assembly in 2024, at the United Nations headquarters in New York, with an official distribution to its 193 member states.
Each chapter highlights the objective, impact, partnerships, investments, and personal stories behind these groundbreaking efforts, including how to:
• Inspire Others: Share the wisdom and experiences to motivate and empower others to pursue their dreams and make a larger-scale impact on society.
• Leave a Legacy: Document the journey and contribute to a lasting resource that will ignite a passion for positive change.
• Reach a Wider Audience: The e-book is distributed widely, giving it a platform to share the message with a global audience.
For more information on the Global Partnerships Forum: www.partnerships.org
Download the Vision for the Future e-book here: www.visionforthefuture.ai