Biography
Christopher A. Barnes is a Ph.D. candidate and researcher and associate staff member at Edinburgh Napier University, in Edinburgh Scotland.
Christopher holds a Bachelor of Arts with (Honours) degree in Tourism Management (2013) and an MSc master’s degree, in International Festival & Event Management (2021), and graduated with High Distinction attaining the university medal. Prior to returning to academia - Christopher lived around the world and worked extensively in international conferences & events. Christopher's management experience is within international concert arenas and large-scale convention and international conference venues. Christopher has also worked in five-star luxury events in both Belfast and Dublin Ireland, and Edinburgh and Birmingham United Kingdom. Christopher has also lived and worked for a period in Melbourne and Brisbane, Australia.
In early 2022, in collaboration with senior lecturers in collaboration with the British Council and Edinburgh Napier University, Christopher helped create a Sustainability Toolkit for Festivals in Mexico, published online in English and Spanish. From, 2021-2022, Christopher was also involved in the collaboration with Edinburgh Napier University and The British Council in creating five module chapters for starting a festival. These modules were published online via the British Council India website.
In 2023 -2024, Christopher worked alongside Professor Anna Leask and Dr. Louise Todd, as a research assistant, on a project based on the future of Edinburgh Tourism. Christopher has also previously assisted on projects such as Destination Net Zero, alongside Professor Jane Ali-Knight and Dr. Martin Robertson. As of late 2024, Christopher was selected alongside academic staff and students at The Business School to travel to Jakarta, Indonesia as an ambassador for Edinburgh Napier University in collaboration with Binus University in Jakarta, Indonesia in collaboration with The British Council for series of events on sustainable industry development. Alongside PhD Research, Christopher currently teaches a masters module in Business Event Management.
Outside academic pursuits, Christopher has a keen interest in social equality, sustainability and explorative learning of International Cuisines. Christopher's hobbies include Art both Sketching and Painting, Travel Journaling, Languages, Reading, Cooking, Long Distance Running and Horticultural Sustainability. Christopher also holds a passion for all things, Ireland, Italy and Spain - particularly the Galician Region of Spain, where a sizable factor of his PhD research focuses.