Beyond the bright lights and the roar of the crowds, there’s something special brewing inside the melting pot of festival culture. Some say it’s a social revolution. Others look at it as a spiritual awakening of sorts. Whatever it is, brilliant academics are talking about the larger impact festivals have on the world, which we explore in Festie TEDx Talks.

In his TED (not TEDx this time) talk "The Tribes We Lead," Seth Godin – an entrepreneur and blogger who specializes in the marketing of ideas in the digital age – argues the Internet has ended mass marketing and revived a human social unit from the distant past: tribes (something we festies know all about). Founded on shared ideas and values, tribes give ordinary people the power to lead and make big change, which is a big reason festivals are considered on the cutting edge of thought leadership.

It’s natural for humans to find problems and want to fix them. Godin also argues that we’re approaching a day when money and power will no longer determine influence in the world. Instead, the primary driver of social change will be authentic leadership. To do this, Godin says that tribes are everywhere and, thanks to tribes, we have greater power today than we ever have before. A tribe doesn’t even need to be that big – the people in it just need to care. Godin’s talk is a timely reminder that leadership isn’t about selling people on your ideas (ahem, presidential candidates). It’s about finding a group that feels disconnected, but already has an existing passion and yearning. Something festies everywhere know all too well.