On May 31, 2024, I bring an end to 24HourNation and my advocacy work in the nighttime economy.

The 24HourNation website, social media, podcasts, webinar videos, and my participation in nighttime advocacy groups will all fade from view.

Before I peel off this path and disappear into the night, however, I thank all who have been a guest on one of sixty-five Nighttime Economy (née 24 Minutes) podcast episodes and/or a panelist on one of fourteen webinars. And I thank you for following along.

In this short and final Nighttime Economy podcast episode, I summarize the ground we have covered since 24HourNation launched two years ago. I also highlight four nighttime and cultural ecosystem challenges that, if addressed well, could strengthen cities of all sizes, around the world, and around the clock.

Even for this former practicing alcoholic and addict ‒ who has not been clubbing since they stopped playing Donna Summer's "Last Dance" ‒ there are few experiences as invigorating as heading out on foot into all the sights, sounds, and aromas of a city under a moonlit sky. If you come looking for me, that is where you will find me.

Thank you, again.

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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Deny climate change all you want. The reality is that 2023 was the Earth's warmest year since global recordkeeping began in 1850. The ten warmest years in 174 years have all occurred during the last decade.

2024 will likely be hotter.

So, how will shifts in extreme heat affect daytime business operations and what will that do to nocturnal economic activity?

Prepare yourself.

Nighttime transportation. Nighttime policing. Nighttime healthcare. Nighttime hospitality. Nighttime drains on the energy grid. Government and business collaborations. All these and more will change ... will need to change ... due to climate-related business adaptations.

How so? We explore this topic with Sabu Mathai, sustainability research director for the international consultancy Gartner.

GARTNER LINKS

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• LinkedIn
• "Cover of Darkness: Extreme Heat and the Nighttime Economy" by Sabu Mathai and Casey Logan (February 13, 2024)

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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The City of Dallas has joined the ranks of American cities that have embraced the potential for their nighttime and sociable economies.

Dallas’ formalized interest in the nighttime economy began in 2015 with two grassroots political advocacy initiatives which lead to the creation of 24HourDallas, a non-profit organization.

Accelerated by the work of the consultancy, Responsible Hospitality Institute, and cemented by buy-in from city of Dallas elected officials and staff, Dallas reached a new milestone in the fall of 2023 when it approved hiring an individual who is dedicated to serve as the internal specialist for the Texas city’s nighttime ecosystem.

In this episode of Nighttime Economy, the podcast from 24HourNation, we speak with that newly hired expert, Nathan Armstrong, and learn what strides he has already made … and has planned.

CITY OF DALLAS LINKS

Department of Convention and Event Services

• Webpage

Nighttime Economy and Responsible Hospitality

• Webpage

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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This podcast episode is the result of a serendipitous encounter on social media.

I’ll explain once I get underway.

But what caught my attention is a surprising blip of discrimination that has begun to appear on the diverse and inclusive radar of nighttime and cultural economies.

Imagine being an artist and someone looking at you as if you’re too old to be an artist anymore.

In this episode of Nighttime Economy, we speak with high-profile Berlin DJ, Tanith. He will not only school me a bit on techno dance music [chuckle] he will also tell the tale of hearing someone tell him, "You’re the last of the old ones."

Our topic is ageism at night. More specifically, age discrimination in the world of techno music, DJs, and dance culture.

TANITH’S LINKS

• Website
• Threads
• Soundcloud
• Facebook
• Instagram
• Mastodon

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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As you might imagine, there are dozens of consultancies in the world that provide research and counsel in the fields of nighttime, nightlife, and cultural economies.

It used to be that communities would retain these individuals or groups to help assess opportunities, list cultural assets, identify cultural consumer habits, and then recommend strategies on how the community can strengthen their nightlife and nighttime cultural scenes.

That does not seem to be enough anymore.

I mean, why stop there? Why not be a bit more aggressive and help communities plan and add the new cultural assets they need to generate more economic and social value?

We will explain in this episode of Nighttime Economy, as we speak with Jett Glozier, Global Head of Business Development for Sound Diplomacy in the UK.

SOUND DIPLOMACY

• Website
• X
• Instagram
• LinkedIn

MUSIC CITIES EVENTS

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• Instagram
• LinkedIn

DOCUMENT REFERENCED

• A Guide to Managing Your Nighttime Economy, Sound Diplomacy and Andreina Seijas, 2017 [PDF]

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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Something remarkable is underway in the Republic of Ireland. Its government has prioritized and elevated the value of that country’s nighttime economy in enviable ways.

Government leaders have determined that the country’s cities and towns, of all sizes, not to mention Irish culture itself, will benefit from hiring and placing nighttime economy advocates in many of Ireland’s communities.

Imagine your country’s national elected officials doing the same, not just for pandemic recovery, but to help make cities and towns safer, more inclusive, and more cultural and economically vibrant at night.

In this episode of Nighttime Economy, we speak with one of Ireland’s nighttime economy advocates, placed in Louth County, and the city of Drogheda. Meet Mark Davies.

COUNTY LOUTH LINKS

• Website
• X

DOCUMENTS REFERENCED

• Report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce, Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Ireland, 2021 [PDF]
• Citizen Survey Report: Dublin’s Night-Time Economy, Economic Development Office, Dublin City Council, 2023 [PDF]

DROGHEDA COMEDY FESTIVAL

• Website
• Facebook
• Instagram

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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As BT understates on its website, "Data is useful." However, BT's data analytics group goes on to explain that mobile network data provides just the first piece of a puzzle. "We blend data with innovative analytics technology, to give your business measurable insights you can take action on."

The BT Active Intelligence unit takes the location data from more than twenty-four million phones. Ensuring anonymity and aggregation to groups of ten or more individuals, BT overlays the physical movements of people with other data to provide invaluable insights.

Such was the case when BT Active Intelligence began to map out activity in UK’s 24-hour economy. And, never before had they specifically gained insights on UK’s nighttime economy until it conducted analysis that resulted in the report, “Cities After Dark: Shining a Light on the 24-Hour Economy.”

Released Jan. 31, 2024, this new flight of “active intelligence” revealed that UK’s nighttime economy is “about much more than bars, restaurants and clubs. With 8.7 million people working between the hours of 6pm and 6am, it’s an economic powerhouse that creates jobs, drives growth and makes towns and cities more appealing for residents and visitors.”

The global applications for mobility insights and the night are mind-blowing. Hold onto your hats as we speak with Sara Rodriguez Terres in this edition of Nighttime Economy.

BT ACTIVE INTELLIGENCE

• Website

BT ACTIVE INTELLIGENCE CITIES AFTER DARK

• Website

Download the Cities After Dark report [PDF]

Our thanks to Paul Broadhurst, Head of 24-Hour City Policy for the Mayor of London, for connecting 24HourNation with Sara Rodriguez Terres

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

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In this Nighttime Economy episode, our guest is Michael Paul, Managing Partner, Optima Strategy Partners in Atlanta, Georgia.

What makes Michael's story relevant for other nighttime advocates is how his path took him from hospitality industry entrepreneur … to neighborhood leader … to political operative … to municipal employee hired to strengthen Atlanta's nighttime economy (at a time of economic, public health, and political stress) … and then back out again as an entrepreneur, free of the bureaucracies that many find maddening about government.

• What lessons can we learn from Michael’s abbreviated term as Atlanta’s Manager of Nightlife and Culture?
• What is the most important thing anyone can do to create and maintain a well-managed and vibrant nighttime scene?

Find out in this episode of our Nighttime Economy podcast.

OPTIMA STRATEGY PARTNERS

• Website

24HOURNATION
24HourNation provides free webinars, a podcast, and news for nighttime economy supporters. In addition to our Nighttime Economy podcast, please follow us on:

• Threads
• Facebook
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• LinkedIn
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• Reddit