I have been busy this year on a number of projects and events. I thought I would write a quick blog post as today marks a milestone on this blog. It is three years since I set up this blog and my Twitter account.

This year has been quieter on the blogging front but those who follow on Twitter definitely know that I have been out and about! I've been focusing more on my MixCloud DJ mixes this year because, as many know, Drum'n'Bass and Dubstep are smashing it up at the moment (especially with DJ Fresh's Louder getting to number 1!).

During this year, we have witnessed regime changes in the Middle East and riots here in the UK. Social Media played a part in these events and it is now safe to say that Social Media has firmly established itself globally and become mainstream.

Companies now favour putting links to their Facebook and Twitter than bog-standard links to a static website. In the midst of an economic crisis Social Media continues to grow and flourish encouraging people across to collaborate.

In the last year or so I have several ups and downs. Unfortunately, I have encountered some quite 'motivated' haters around and about. My message to them is that NiteGlow has always been about shining bright and carrying on in the face of these challenges. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger they say!

Having said that there has definitely been more ups and than downs. I am continuing to meet and work with some excellent and inspirational people. For instance the TEDxBristol event last month was a landmark event in Bristol and it was great to be involved in the Social Media, PR and event organisation.

In the coming year, I want to give this blog a revamp so expect some changes! I will also be getting involved in more local events and community projects. There will be more DJ Mixes going up on my MixCloud page as well new tunes on the SoundCloud page.

In short plenty more to come so roll on next year! Remember you can always catch me on Twitter!

It's been a long road since I first became one of the TEDxBristol team a couple of months back. We have been through the many twists and turns that are part and parcel of organising an event like this.

If you haven't heard about TEDxBristol please see previous post or head to the website or Facebook page (what rock have you been living under?!). The main event at the M-Shed is sold out but the event will be live-screened on the website as well as live-blogged.

This week we are also announcing our partnership with BBC Anchor Partnership. The Anchor Partnership was developed to build on the world class content created in Bristol through innovation projects,community engagement and bringing together cutting edge skills and thinking –and has supported a range of events in the city over the past 2 years.

As mentioned in the previous post we have some top-class speakers in TEDxBristol. Since the last post many more speakers have been announced so please check out the updated list. In addition to the speakers we have some interesting performances from Atto Mul and Imogen Heap.

Imogen Heap is a four-time Grammy nominated multi-instrumentalist who began writing music by her 13th birthday (and broke America by her 28th). She has been described as an innovative singer-songwriter with a quirky and inspirational character a tech savvy musician with an eccentric sense of style and uniquely graceful music. Check out the video below for her song 'Lifeline':

Thursday's event at the M-Shed should be definitely one to remember. I'd like to give a shout out to the rest of the team, sponsors, and, of course, anyone else who is supporting TEDxBristol.

A month or so back I had a chat with Karl Hakeem Belizaire, Director of nonprofit organisation Mowgli. He mentioned to me that he was organising a TED event in Bristol and was on the hunt for someone to help with the Social Media and promotions side of it.

Being a big fan of TED events and passionate about local issues it was a no-brainer for me and I told Karl I would offer my support. I was the latest addition to TedxBristol team which was growing in size (more information on the team to follow). Since that initial conversation the pace has really picked up. Everyone who I have talked to has been really positive about the event which very encouraging.

For those that are not so familiar TED Events are conferences that bring together speakers and experts from different fields (see TED website for details).

The TEDxBristol event is on the theme of 'the world around us' with special focus on creativity, innovation and sustainability. From compelling speakers to music acts; we are certainly enthusiastic that this will be a unique experience in Bristol.

The event will be held in the newly-opened M-Shed on the 8th September 2011. The confirmed speaker line-up is diverse as you can see below:


- Daniel Efergan & Gavin Strange, a creative combo working in the digital depths of Aardman Animations, strive to create fun through building games, nurturing communities and telling stories. Aardman Digital was recently awarded a BAFTA for the Wallace & Gromit’s World of Invention website in the 2011 British Academy Television Awards.

- Richard Noble specialises in developing high risk ventures. Project Director of the BLOODHOUND Project, the engineering adventure for the 21st century, pushing the limits and inspiring young engineers and scientists with an incredible car capable of 1,000mph".

- Arthur Potts Dawson is a talented chef, restauranteur, cookery writer and social entrepreneur. His newest business venture, The People’s Supermarket, opened in June 2010 and is a not-for-profit co-operative social enterprise. Jamie Oliver recently described Arthur as “the original green chef”.

- Dr Marie-Annick Gournet is a Principal Lecturer in Intercultural Communication and Director of Widening Participation. The main interest is in the notion of identity, its basis and its relationship to culture. I am particularly interested in exploring the ideas of positive diversity and the impact- Tony Bury has spent the past three decades founding and running start up companies across the world. Philanthropist and serial entrepreneur, Tony is founder and trustee of Bristol based international charity the Mowgli Foundation, providing mentors who inspire, support and empower entrepreneurs in achieving their business and personal potential.

- Wendy Stephenson is a renewable energy engineer with 15 years experience in the environment and climate change sector. CEO of Converging World, a UK based charity that aims to address issues arising from social inequality, creating mechanisms which link communities in the developed and developing world.Only one hundred people will be able to share the #TEDxBristol experience. Register your interest by the 28th July.

I will make further announcements on this blog but for more information check out the main website (which went live today) and the TEDxBristol Twitter.

Last Wednesday 18th May I attended an information day on employment for people with Autism and Aspergers Syndrome. I have blogged several times about the difficulties faced by people on the Autistic Spectrum so thought it would be good share some thoughts about this event.

It was organised by Diana Elliot, Branch Officer, NAS Avon Branch. She did an excellent job especially as she and her team raised the funds for the event themselves so they could make the tickets free.

The moment I entered the event I know there was something different about it. Often people with Aspergers Syndrome and Autism feel very isolated and alone. This event was special because it brought people on the spectrum, support workers, employment advisers, medical professionals and employers together.

The event featured speakers from many different background discussing various employment options and issues.

The issues that were raised, however, were nothing new. The NAS did a survey of 16 people with Aspergers Syndrome between the ages of 21-54 and found only 2 of them were in full-time employment. People with this condition find it more difficult dealing with interviews and work environments because they communicate differently. They also often have a high sensitivity to light or sound which can make open-plan offices difficult to work. They find office politics confusing to navigate too.

Under the Disability Discrimination Act employers are required to make reasonable adjustments to the workplace to accommodate the difficulties faced. While some have taken this on or others still fail to fulfill this requirement. They often will find other 'convenient' reasons as to why the person is not suited to the a job to cover their backs. This makes a discrimination very difficult to prove if it occurred.

However, this is only one side of the story. The speakers at the event all underlined the fact that people with Autism/Aspergers Syndrome have a vast amount of potential and value to offer. Anne O'Bryan (speaker with expertise in supported employment) pointed out that that many of the aspects that some employers find 'annoying' are actually strengths when looked at from a different perspective.

For instance people with Autism/Aspergers Syndrome need fixed routines and structures. This is ideal for roles that require a process to be repeated over and over again in the same way. Also people on the spectrum can spot potential problems that other people may miss as well as coming up with solutions to them. This is a classic situation where employers misunderstand and think the person is just being awkward.

Some other positive traits employers should consider are punctuality, dedication, loyalty and attention-to-detail. People on the spectrum are often very passionate and focused on certain areas. If these are aligned with their career then it surely the start of something successful.

What people with Autism/Aspergers Syndrome want is to be valued for their skills and be given the chance develop a career like everyone else. All to often employers place hurdles in the way of this mostly due to lack of understanding. This was a common theme that I got from the event.

All-told the event looks to be the start of brighter things for people with Autism and Aspergers Syndrome in Bristol area (and hopefully elsewhere). However, there is still a long way to go....

Gone are the days when social networking was just sitting at a computer sending messages. As we move into a real-time environment online communities are soon becoming real-world communities.

This has been quite clearly brought home to me when attending a regular social media event in Bristol called Brrism. What interested me about the event is that it is all organised through social media and is all about social media. I have met some very interesting people there and had some great discussions. What I realised is that coming from an Online PR/Social Media work environment I had a certain way that I viewed and used social media both for myself and my clients. I soon realised that that my methods for using social media were not the only ones. Customisability means everyone uses social media to meet their own specific needs and hence they have completely different perceptions of it.

However, one common theme that keeps coming up is the concept of sharing ideas and community. It is interesting to see how Brrism has developed since its inception last year. There is still a long way to go and I often feel that we are like kids again trying to establish ourselves in a group. New community formation takes time and I know there will be more challenges along the way.

Social media has also been powerful tool for charities. Since the Haiti earthquake charities have successfully utilised social media in getting messages out and forming supportive online communities.

I have mentioned Twestival on this blog before in reference to this as it is an excellent example. Following a successful event last year there is an event on 25 March 2010. The Twestival event will be is global affair where events are to take place in big cities around the world. This year it will be in aid of Concern which is looking to rebuild the education infrastructure in Haiti.

The entire event is organised using social media (namely Twitter) and online communities. It has created real-world impact though these channels.

It is obvious to me that charities are an area where the community and sharing ethos of social media can really come into its element.


If you are in the Bristol area definitely check out Bristwestival which is Bristol's offering. It features live music, a raffle, goodie bags and other wonderful things all in aid of charity. It takes place on 25 March at the Tunnels and tickets cost £5. See below for more details and book tickets here.

The New Year has brought the UK a flurry of snow which has yet again brought everything to a standstill! At the moment I am blogging to you from a snow bunker on the east of Bristol UK and the only communication with outside world is the internet - namely Twitter and this blog.

I have made sure I have enough food and beer to last me another 72 hours. After then I don't know what I will do! AHHH, Outside everything is cold and white!

Anyway I wanted to share with you some snow photos from around Bristol courtesy of my Twitter followers.

Queen Square, Bristol by @SallyanneHowell


A snow-woman by @lisariemers


Blizzard in BS5 by @Souterain

These have really brightened my day in the snow bunker. Keep the communications running. It is all we can do for now!

Everyone else was doing it so I thought I would too! Here is a blog post featuring some 'snow photos' from around Bristol. Seems that this was probably the best use of my time as just about everything ceased to function in Bristol today. I have to say that I am surprised how white frozen water could have such an impact up and down the country. Life still goes on even when it is snowing! What must people from Scandanavia, Russia and other cold countries think of us Brits?! Anyway enjoy the photos... :-)




A winter urban scene taken at 3.00 in the morning!













Just outside Bristol after getting caught in a blizzard.













View of the Avon Gorge and the Bristol Suspension bridge












The obligatory 'large snow ball' photo!