Last Month in Cannes

31.07.2026 by Leave a Comment

Photo by Freddie Oomkens of the Carlton Hotel, Cannes, June 2026, with sunlight bouncing off the famous, cake-like facade and yellow awnings, with dark clouds and palms above and to the side

Last month I was in Cannes, but not for the films, nor the Cannes Lions (folks were Shaping the Digital Infrastructure of the Future, but I wasn’t shaping it with them).

It may sound valedictory, but that could be the last time I ever see it the way I used to. Cannes itself is different now, even if its creamy and pastel facades, Provencal light, sudden storms, swifts, and blazing sunsets are all still there.

But what comes next isn’t valedictory, it’s a poem, it’s on my writer’s blog, and I’ll be happy if you read it.

It’s a world away from the strategic visions of the future I used to shape myself. Yet the distance in the poem isn’t dismissive or contemptuous: I’ve been there (and part of me always will be).

And that world of the poem—beauty, image and power, glamour and influence, and their costs, mundane horrors beneath a mondaine surface, is the world of The Trashman, the new neo-noir Freddie Omm thriller.

Cannes, plus ça change, is still a great place for finding the things that will last, as well as the ones you won’t be seeing again.

Last Month in Cannes—read the full poem here.

The Trashman—pre-order the thriller here. 

Photo by Freddie Oomkens of sunset over Cannes, Provence, in June 2026

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Sicilian Haiku – Migrant Shadows, by Freddie Omm

30.07.2024 by

Sicilian Haiku – Migrant Shadows is published by Mad Bear Books.; ebooks and print books can be ordered here.

A collection of poems, mostly haiku, to be read separately or as one narrative, the book weaves through mythical and modern Sicily, with the timeless global theme of migrants at its heart.

Powerful and passionate, the book evokes the atmosphere and experience of modern Sicily, at the frontline of the unfolding migrancy crisis, and dives into the parallels with ancient mythology, recent events and literature.

Profits will go to SOS Mediterranee to support refugees.

For those interested in reviewing the book, interviewing Freddie Omm, or other enquiries, please contact publicist Ben Cameron on (+44) (0) 7903 951 957.

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Exclusive NFTs (of the book and related artworks) will be marketed soon, in such a way as to give everyone the opportunity to own and participate in the project and to contribute to helping migrants.

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More about Sicilian Haiku – Migrant Shadows: Written mostly in haiku chains, its narrative shape is not unlike that of a novel, and it can be read like one. The poems fuse modern and mythological stories, probing a world of fractured selves, memes and monsters. A passionate call to action, the book probes our private and public odysseys, how we share and define ourselves, how we give value to our own lives, the lives of others, and our planet. Set in Sicily, it’s a mix of many stories—migrants meet tourists, junkies and cannibals, while gods and goddesses mate with mortals, and it’s hard to separate consumers from the consumed. Photographs of Sicily by Freddie Oomkens intersperse the text and visually highlight its themes.

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Sicilian Haiku – Migrant Shadows is the first in an extended series of multi-genre books, The Dark Gospel. The next–a thriller, The Trashman – will be published in 2025.

Filed Under: activism, activist poetry, ArtTech, equality, FinArt, freddie oomkens, literary activism, social justice, sustainability, thought leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

feeding the future

31.03.2023 by
agritech and precision farming are the future of sustainable agriculture. photo by freddie oomkens

photo by freddie oomkens, nordrhein-westfalen, germany

As global population rises to over 10 billion in the coming decades, current agricultural practices will not cover our growing need for food.

AgriTech and precision farming will enable us to feed the future, because they revolutionise food production in sustainable ways.

In practical terms, precision farming is a range of high-tech software and hardware which is now affordable for the average farmer. It effectively upgrades farming equipment, including ordinary tractors, to give satellite guidance, using a receiver and an app, with accuracy to the nearest couple of centimetres.

That means farmers require less fuel, fertiliser, seed and effort to get higher yields.

The extra efficiency makes farms more sustainable and profitable.

Given the huge role played by government legislation and subsidies in farming today, the switch to sustainable farming can only be accelerated with national and international commitment, lawmaking and subsidies.

Role of communications

Awareness of all this is globally high, and support for sustainability is strong in principle, although this is easily undermined when the perceived cost in the present outweighs future benefits. As such, the economic argument is central to the case for farming sustainability, to help:

  • Persuade governments and international bodies to commit to globally sustainable farming, specifically, to promote and subsidise precision farming solutions;
  • Persuade farmers to switch to more sustainable modes of production, by showing farmers that practical precision farming is affordably available to them, and that an investment in precision farming pays back within a season or two;
  • Persuade global citizens that the switch to sustainable farming is both necessary and desirable.

In my role as Global Head of Marketing, Communications and Content at FieldBee/eFarmer, I have been progressing this case in more detailed and practical ways, working with others to grow a more sustainable future together.

Agri-tech farming can transform almost any old tractor into a high-tech, satellite-guided precision machine.

 

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