In the Name of Water
By Jessica Pilot
Guy Laliberté, founder of Cirque du Soleil, will be celebrating his company’s 25 years of success when he becomes “the first clown in space” as he blasts off from Earth on Sept. 30th aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft heading to the International Space Station.
It is estimated that he is paying 35 million dollars for the opportunity that most could not even dream of – the chance to travel and live in space for a few days.
Laliberté — whose name in English is coincidentally “Freedom” — will embark to the International Space Station on October 6th onboard Soyuz TM-16, and will likely be among the last private visitors to orbit space now that NASA has announced plans to retire its shuttle program.
The Quebec billionaire revealed details of his mission via webcast: “This artistic mission permits me to raise awareness of water issues. I imagine my mission to use artistic form to evoke and touch people. I imagine my mission as a poetic tale that could last even after I touch back on Earth.”
He is referring to his concerns about the world’s water supply, the purpose of this mission, and will spread information about our planet’s water-related issues while in space. In 2007, Laliberté, founded a charitable organization called ONE DROP with the goal to expand access to clean water in communities with little to no access. He has vowed to provide $100 million over the next 25 years to cover the operating costs for improving access to water, ensure food security and promote gender equality within these communities by integrating the use of the circus arts to promote education.
One of Soleil’s most popular shows, “O”, a pun on the French word for water (eau), features acrobats, scuba divers, clowns and synchronised swimmers trained by Olympic gold-medallist Sylvie Frechette. Laliberte’’s passion for ensuring equal and clean access to water is evident in “O”–they went as far as to install a seven layer filtration system for the water used in the show.
Laliberté’s artistic success and the ensuing social circles that now orbit around him, have garnered him support from celebrities and public figures who will be featured in a two-hour global webcast on Oct. 9th, highlighting water conservation, with personalities ranging from Al Gore to U2 making guest appearances from 14 cities on Earth.
Throughout his expedition aboard the International Space Station, Guy will present videos and photographs that will be integrated with the events taking place in each of the 14 cities. These images will leverage his exceptional point of view of the earth, and he will share his impressions with audiences in each city.
He described the expedition as a “poetic mission.” Written by internationally celebrated author Yann Marte, the poem will be delivered piece by piece, unfolding simultaneously in Montreal, Moscow, Santa Monica, New York City, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Marrakech, Sydney, Tokyo, Tampa, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Paris, London and the International Space Station.
Over twenty artists including U2, Shakira and Peter Gabriel as well as Canadian environmentalist David Suzuki, composer Simon Carpentier, and Indian singer A. R Rahman will all partake on behalf of ONE DROP, paying tribute to the vitally important natural resource by reading parts of the poem and performing.
Laliberté explains, “During the past 25 years, my travels on earth have allowed me to meet extraordinary people: artists, leaders and friends,” continues Laliberté, “I am deeply touched that they have accepted to contribute their voices, their talent and their creativity to my artistic project. They have done so because they share my concerns about water and my belief that through art and emotion we can convey a universal message.”
While most celebrity’s charity efforts are inevitably lauded by the tabloids, it’s important to recognize their meaningful philanthropic gesture, stardom aside, and their ability to illuminate a cause that might normally remain in the dark. Hollywood celebrities have become key players on deeply political issues, publicly spending their celebrity capital on the causes they support.
The late Farah Fawcett was an important female icon for her acting work as well as her renowned humanitarian work. George Clooney and Darfur, Bono and foreign aid, Angelina Jolie’s contributions as goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency – all of this pairings are well known, and have generated plenty of attention for the plight of refugees around the world.
And the late Paul Newman who built Newman’s Own, which donated more than two hundred million dollars to help impoverished children, was once quoted in an interview about his charity saying, “It’s the act in itself that is the important thing, not seeking out the motivation for it. You’re not doing anything special by putting money aside for those who need it. This is an essential component of being a human being.”
Perhaps American celebrity worship has an optical explanation— the brightness of the stars can often turn the whole world blind.
In 2004, Time Magazine listed Laliberté as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, and rightfully so. Laliberte lives life to the fullest, but his desire and efforts to bring change on a realistic level is honorable.
Laliberté was born into a large middle-income family in Quebec City, and earned a minimal income as a street performer with an accordion on the streets of Montreal. After high school he hitchhiked across Europe, where he befriended jugglers and stilt walkers and learned the art of fire-breathing.
By 1984 he had persuaded the Quebec government to give him $1 million to stage a street show for Canada’s 450th anniversary celebration which was a success, and generated a profit of $40,000 despite the complications: “The tent fell down the first day. We had problems getting people into the shows. It was only with the courage and arrogance of youth that we survived.”
What began as a small collaborative group of 20 street performers, Cirque de Soleil soon expanded and revitalized the circus industry worldwide. Today, there are more than 4,000 employees with 20 shows attracting over 15 million spectators. With acrobats, live live music and dance, the show is recognized for its blend of eccentric performance art and has branded itself as a cultural phenomenon.
Equally impressive, his foundation ONE DROP has already began digging up water wells in Nicaragua and Honduras for as little as $2,000 per well. In the next five years, if all goes right, they will eventually provide more than 17 million wells.
“With the creation of ONE DROP, we want to mobilize people everywhere in the world to find sustainable solutions to the problem of access to water, and to adopt better practices for the use of this precious resource.”
Access to water is one of the planet’s most pressing issues. Over a billion people do not have access to water in sufficient quantity or adequate quality. Almost half of the world’s population drinks untreated water.
In the nonprofit sector there are the bright lights of the celebrity philanthropist and there are the men and women on the ground, at the grassroots level doing the work. The relationship, however, is symbiotic. The volunteers, NGO reps, and aid workers need the light of the celebrity to garner more attention for their cause. More attention often means, more citizen concern, more funding, more helping hands to dig into the work.
If you ever find yourself questioning the credibility of a celebrity’s humanitarian mission, ask yourself, “How much am I personally contributing to a cause?” Guy Laliberté has clearly taken on a noble task and will shine a light from space on perhaps the world’s biggest problem.