Developers at Lancaster University’s Computer Studies department will trial a new app for a next-generation travel information system at the FutureEverything festival in Manchester. Funded by the Technology Strategy Board, the free travel/event app, ‘Our Travel’, has been adapted for FutureEverything to enable festival-goers to interact with communities created for specific events during the four-day festival. They will be able to acquire and share data about venue navigation and travel disruption as well as set up social networking platforms for information about individual events. Now in its seventeenth year, FutureEverything is one of Europe’s largest annual festivals dedicated to developments in digital culture, art, music and ideas.
www.futureeverything.org

The London Philharmonic Orchestra has been selected by the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) to record the national anthems to be used at the 2012 Games. Using 36 musicians, it will take 50 recording hours over 6 days to record the anthems of all 205 participating countries. The arrangements for the anthems will be made by British composer, conductor and cellist Philip Sheppard.

The Cultural Trends conference, which will survey the practice, condition and future of cultural policy-making, has put out a call for papers. Abstracts are invited on the themes of culture and technology, alternative funding mechanisms, and cultural economics including philanthropy, well-being and the Big Society. The deadline for submissions is 27 May. Email Sara Selwood with ‘Cultural Trends Conference’ in the subject line.
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Julie’s Bicycle (JB) claims that the theatre, music and visual arts sectors could save £35m between them if each sector reduced its energy use by 25% over the next four years. The figures are conservative estimates because they are based on today’s energy prices and do not take account of rising costs, but they do cover energy usage for venues, offices, festivals and touring. They are based on data provided by more than 300 companies which have been working with JB on carbon audits and the Industry Green project.
www.juliesbicycle.com

A £200,000 awards scheme has been launched to reward talent and achievement in 11-18 year–olds in the UK. The Ambition AXA Awards will give young people the chance to win personalised mentoring worth up to £40,000, under the headings of arts, enterprise, science, community or sport. AXA UK commissioned an international report, ‘Young People’s Attitudes to Ambition’, which found that while young people in the UK are more ambitious than many of their European counterparts, they need a boost to their self-belief and determination. The deadline for entries is 14 October. The public will then be able to vote online and the winners will be announced on 30 November.
www.ambitionaxaawards.com

Keith Saha has won this year’s £6,000 Theatre Centre Brian Way Award for his play ‘Ghost Boy’, which was commissioned by 20 Stories High in Liverpool. The award celebrates the best new play for young people in the UK, and received an unprecedented number of entries this year. The winner was selected by judges Chris Taylor, Director of New Writing South; Laurence Wilson, winner of TC Brian Way Award 2010; Rachel De-Lahay, writer and winner of Alfred Fagon Award 2010; Susan Elkin, Education & Training Editor at The Stage; and Tony Clark, writer/director.
www.theatre-centre.co.uk