by Liese Peterson
One of the companies our firm enjoys supporting is a European producer of non-GMO food. I first heard of non-GMO food in Europe, and when I asked someone what it was, I was told what it was not – it was not “Frankenfood,” that being the locals’ term for the type of food the average American eats. (And I confess, I’m guilty as charged.) I knew I was regularly ingesting something called xanthan gum and probably (guiltily) high fructose corn syrup when I wasn’t watching. But “Frankenfood”?
But here’s what non-GMO is. It’s a highly respected food label that means “non-Genetically Modified Organisms.” In other words, no one in a laboratory genetically modified (or worse, concocted) organisms that then made their way into your mouth. It was almost a year or two between the time I first heard the expression “non-GMO” in Europe and when I heard it in the US, perhaps indicating how long it takes for one culture to influence another.
What’s the point?
When the non-GMO organization started a wonderful marketing campaign a while back, their slogan was “Be the Butterfly.” WHAT?!!? I imagined myself in tights and a tutu in a kid’s school pageant (okay, too much information). But the reference actually is to “The Butterfly Effect,” namely that sometimes changes as minuscule as the flapping of a butterfly’s wings can bring about big changes in society, or in this case, impact the food we eat. It’s a subtle yet powerful endorsement of how much change a person could bring about if well-focused and making small, persistent changes. At present, seven US states require genetically engineered foods to be labeled as such. I predict that in 10 years, close to 49 states will require this, with the one exception most likely to be the state I live in (Nevada) whose “anything goes” approach to life will include allowing us to eat “Frankenfood.”
What has any of this to do with our industry, our careers and our personal growth?
First and most obvious, it’s a call to all of us to do what we can in our own industry to help each other and make the world a better place. Eliminate wasteful consumption and polluting materials. Turn the thermostat up or down a couple degrees. Say thank you to each other, even if you don’t know each other by name. Give the beginner a help up the ladder. Find ways to save our clients’ money and treat their brands respectfully.
Second, it’s a great reminder, at a time when one need only link the forecast of upcoming dire food shortages in the world because of some Russian butterflies (well, more like dragonflies) in Ukraine, that we think about our lives and our industry as a global network. We are by no means untouched by what’s happening in Ukraine and we may be considered naïve for not wondering what will happen should something comparable happen in Asia.
Third, and perhaps most unexpectedly, at a time when we’re all so thrilled to be able to hold tradeshows again, promote the benefits of meeting in person. Granted, this can’t mean we all cram back into airports and send carbon dioxide emissions through the roof. But we can, should and must stand by our industry as one where face-to-face interactions hold the whole world together. We learned during the pandemic that for many industries, “no tradeshows = no new customers.” It’s easy to get bogged down in the operating aspects of getting a tradeshow staged and executed, but now, more than ever, we really need to remind people, like your Aunt Phyllis, your weird friend Stanley, and probably at least your congressional representative and senators, that we are the butterflies that help keep the whole engine going.
Speak up. Stand up for your industry. Stand with clients who need the benefits only tradeshows can provide.
Be the butterfly!
Liese Peterson has worked in the international side of the tradeshow industry for more than 20 years, starting with Exhibitgroup/Giltspur and including Contempo Design, Cologne International Trade Fairs, Czarnowski and von Hagen Design. She’s presently CEO of von Hagen’s North American office. Liese has an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Business, and she speaks German and Italian as well as English. She lives with her husband, Don, and their two large dogs in fabulous Pahrump, Nevada.
