Gary Kerr
gary kerr

Dr Gary Kerr JP BSc (Hons) MSc (Med Sci) PhD PhD MBA CMBE FRSA FHEA

Associate Professor

Biography

Dr Gary Kerr is Associate Professor in Festival & Event Management within the Tourism & Languages Subject Group of Edinburgh Napier University Business School. Gary is an enthusiastic teacher, researcher, trainer and practitioner in the festival and events industry.


RESEARCH
- With two PhDs - one in biological sciences and another in critical event studies with science communication - Gary is an experienced researcher with expertise in qualitative, quantitative and mixed method approaches
- Principal Investigator of a multidisciplinary research team (including a colleague from the School of Health & Social Care) who are researching how festivals, events, visitor attractions and cultural venues can become more accessible for people living with dementia
- In Gary’s second PhD, he interviewed over 30 science festival directors to examine the business and management dimensions of science festivals, using approaches from critical event studies and science communication theory: the first study of its kind to examine science festivals from a critical events perspective
- Undertakes pedagogical research on the use of social media within higher education to facilitate and support student learning and engagement
- Formerly a Visiting Research Fellow at the African Centre for Technology Studies (Nairobi, Kenya), where he researched social and cultural dimensions within the business value chain of a new sustainable cooking technology (supported by Global Development Academy)


COMMERCIAL TRAINING
- Design and deliver bespoke international festival management, science communication and public engagement training courses for a number of diverse clients across academia, business and charity sectors
- Project Lead/Principal Investigator on various contracts awarded by the British Council to deliver ‘Festival Academies’ in the United Arab Emirates and the Sultanate of Oman
- Project Lead/Principal Investigator of the India Festival Academy (online) delivered in partnership with the British Council (beginners, intermediate, and advanced level), generating significant commerical income
- Line Manager to 3 Associate Staff Members who help deliver commercial activity (Festival Academies)
- Delivered a festival management course at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague
- With colleagues, designed and delivered a festival management summer school for students from Edith Cowan University in Australia
- Delivered science communication training in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- Visit over 20 universities each year across the United Arab Emirates to train students on science communication, presenting and festival skills
- Academic skills trainer on social media and digital skills for researchers, communication skills and presenting skills


PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
- Actively a practitioner within festival and events industry: generating commercial income; enhancing the curriculum; creating practice-based volunteering and employment opportunities for students
- Retains and develops practical skills through undertaking roles in industry such as Venue Manager, Event Manager, Staff Manager, Production Coordinator and Creative Producer
- Evidence of bringing practical experience into the classroom and enhancing curricula, bridging theory with practice and enhancing engagement with employers and industry through creating guest lectures with industry partners

Recent examples of professional practice roles:
- External Evaluator, Cheltenham Festivals
- Guest Curator of the GCHQ CyberZone at Cheltenham Science Festival
- Content Quality Controller, Innovator Festival, UAE
- Stage Manager, Olympic & Paralympic Homecoming Parade, Manchester
- Local Content Producer and Manager, Abu Dhabi Science Festival


LEARNING & TEACHING
- Certified Management & Business Educator
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- Awarded Postgraduate Certificate in Learning, Teaching and Assessment Practice (PGCert LTAP)
- External Examiner at Manchester Metropolitan University
- Personal Development Tutor to two colleagues undertaking PGCert LTAP
- Personal Development Tutor to 106 undergraduate students
- Year 2 Tutor for Tourism, Hospitality, Festival & Event Management suite of programmes
- Academic Tutor to students on Work-Based Learning (placement)
- Facilitator and Academic Tutor on the Employability Skills Programme
- Module Leader of ‘Planning & Public Policy for Festival and Events’ (Level 9) delivered in Edinburgh and to transnational education partners in Hong Kong and Singapore
- Module Leader of ‘Business Skills for Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management’ (Level 11)
- Contribute to teaching on the following modules ‘Business of Festivals and Events’ (Level 7); ‘Festival & Event Design and Delivery’ (Level 8); ‘Event Management’ (Level 8); and ‘Contemporary Issues in Festival & Event Management’ (Level 11).
- Dissertation supervisor to students at Levels 10 and 11 (Honours year and Masters level)
- Formerly Module Leader (parental cover) for ‘Festival & Event Impacts and Sustainability (Level 10) and for ‘International Festival & Event Environments’ (Level 10)


PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
- Chair of the Working Group for Public Engagement Journal Club at the Scottish Public Engagement Network (ScotPEN)
- Member of the Public Engagement Advisory Group at the Royal Society of Edinburgh
- Internal Public Engagement Funding to run an event for people living with dementia to discuss research on festivals, events and accessibility
- Panel discussions at various festivals
- Creative Producer of festival and events, working with academics to engage festival and event attendees with their research
- Deliver training courses on public engagement to external partners


POLICY ENGAGEMENT
- Academic Framework Member - providing Covid-19 ad-hoc research and consultancy - to Scottish Parliament
- Steering Group Member of the Scottish Parliament's Citizen's Assembly on Covid-19
- Member of the Panel of Experts on Science Communication at the European Parliament
- Authored article for Union of Concerned Scientists (USA) on how academics can engage effectively with policymakers in light of Covid-19
- Authored two research reports for the Scottish Parliament


INTERNAL ENGAGEMENT
- Co-Lead of the University Armed Forces Network
- Deputy Convenor of the Business School Research & Integrity Committee
- Marketing and Student Recruitment Lead for Tourism & Languages Subject Group
- Member of the University Researcher Development Concordat Steering Group



EXTERNAL APPOINTMENTS
- Chair of the Board of Trustees at Sonic Bothy - an inclusive music organisation for musicians with and without additional learning needs to explore, compose and perform contemporary music
- Director of Newmilns Snow and Sports Complex
- Member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh's Young Academy of Scotland
- Member of the Global Young Academy

Research Groups

News

Events

Esteem

Conference Organising Activity

  • Session Chair "Dementia Research: Social and Biological", Dementia Conference, University of Salford
  • Session Chair "Prince, Gender and Sexuality", Purple Reign Conference, MediaCityUK

 

Editorial Activity

  • Senior Advisor (Business Strategy), Journal of Science Policy & Governance
  • Review Editor (Sport, Leisure and Tourism), Frontiers in Sports and Active Living
  • Chief Operations and International Officer, Journal of Science Policy & Governance
  • Director of Operations and International Outreach, Journal of Science Policy & Governance
  • Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Science Policy & Governance
  • Associate Editor, Journal of Science Policy and Governance

 

Fellowships and Awards

  • British Council Cultural Relations Collection Essay Prize for 2020
  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
  • Member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh's Young Academy of Scotland
  • Winner of Researcher Development Video Competition, University of Salford
  • Winner of 3MT (3-minute thesis) competition, University of Salford
  • Competitor and Ceremonal Mayor's Representative of the City of Salford, European Doctoral Olympic Games, Clermont-Ferrand, France
  • Fellowship of the Ettore Majorana Centre and Foundation for Scientific Culture, Italy
  • Winner of Best Presentation Prize - Salford Postgraduate Annual Research Conference
  • Winner of Best Poster Prize, Graduate School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh
  • Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts
  • RCUK-funded Science Policy Fellowship for policy engagement at the Scottish Parliament
  • Winner of the Best Doctoral Student Presentation Prize, British Meiosis Conference, Leicester

 

Grant Funding Panel Member

  • External Panel Member - National Events Programme, EventScotland

 

Media Activity

  • School of News Ltd Training Course "Media for Academics" at MediaCityUK
  • Guest Presenter, BBC Radio Coventry & Warwickshire Sunday Science Show

 

Non-executive Directorship

  • Governor, Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust
  • Governor, Northern Care Alliance NHS Group

 

Public/Community Engagement

  • MC/Host, BBC The Clangers, BlueDot Festival 2016
  • Show at the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 2016
  • Show at the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas, Edinburgh Festival Fringe

 

Visiting Positions

  • Judge for 3MT (3-minute thesis) competition, Universitiy of Edinburgh
  • Judge for 3MT (3-minute thesis) competition, University of Salford
  • Visiting Professorial Teaching Fellowship, University of Warwick
  • Judge for National Debating Matters Competition (Secondary Schools)
  • Guest Lecturer, Duncan Guthrie Institute, University of Glasgow

 

Date


28 results

“Be the change” — how Cheltenham Science Festival used a central theme to centre social change within the festival

Journal Article
Kerr, G., Whittle, E., & Navin, M. (2022)
“Be the change” — how Cheltenham Science Festival used a central theme to centre social change within the festival. Journal of Science Communication, 21(06), Article R07
‘Be the change’ (BTC) was the theme for Cheltenham Science Festival. BTC set out to empower audiences as individuals and as a collective to enact positive change across a wide...

Sustainability Toolkit for Festival Managers

Other
Barnes, C., Moore, T., Kerr, G., & Ali-Knight, J. (2022)
Sustainability Toolkit for Festival Managers
This toolkit emerged as part of the Cultura Circular (Circular Culture) programme, a British Council initiative in Mexico focused on promoting a culture of sustainability in t...

Levelling the playing field: lessons from sport on re-framing science engagement as a benefit to the individual

Journal Article
Keith, L., & Kerr, G. (2022)
Levelling the playing field: lessons from sport on re-framing science engagement as a benefit to the individual. Journal of Science Communication, 21(4), Article A03. https://doi.org/10.22323/2.21040203
The workforces of the Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) industries suffer from skills gaps and lack diversity. Science engagement activities e.g. science f...

"The Arcade" at Cheltenham Science Festival (Curator)

Exhibition / Performance
Kerr, G. (2022)
"The Arcade" at Cheltenham Science Festival (Curator). [Exhibition]. Exhibited at Cheltenham Science Festival, Imperial Gardens, Cheltenham. 7 June 2022 - 12 June 2022. (Unpublished
The game is on – get set for an awesome adventure in The Arcade and put your skills to the test in a series of fun, creative and cryptic challenges. Can you make, break and cr...

Covid & Innovation within Edinburgh's Festivals: Post-Covid-19 Recovery, Innovation & Technology

Report
Stewart, H., Ali-Knight, J., Kerr, G., & Holmes, K. (2022)
Covid & Innovation within Edinburgh's Festivals: Post-Covid-19 Recovery, Innovation & Technology. Edinburgh Napier University
The COVID-19 pandemic created a global hiatus for events and festivals. The requirement for whole countries to stay at home and avoid contact with other people led to numerous...

Unlock & Revive: The ingredients needed to deliver accessible online cultural and heritage events that bring positive benefits to people living with dementia

Report
Stewart, H., Smith, S., Baxter, R., Ali-Knight, J., & Kerr, G. (2022)
Unlock & Revive: The ingredients needed to deliver accessible online cultural and heritage events that bring positive benefits to people living with dementia. Edinburgh: Edinburgh Napier University
Unlock & Revive is a multi-disciplinary action-research project that involves multiple partners. It is a highly collaborative project aimed at supporting the wellbeing of peop...

The ‘Senses Framework’: A relationship-centred approach to co-producing dementia events in order to allow people to live well after a dementia diagnosis

Journal Article
Stewart, H., Ali-Knight, J., Stephen, S., & Kerr, G. (2022)
The ‘Senses Framework’: A relationship-centred approach to co-producing dementia events in order to allow people to live well after a dementia diagnosis. Event Management, 26(1), 157-175. https://doi.org/10.3727/152599521X16192004803683
Dementia is a progressive disorder that affects how the brain works, and in particular the ability to remember, think and reason. It affects speech, mood, mobility, behavior a...

FameLab, cultural relations and 'going virtual' at the time of a pandemic

Report
Kerr, G. (2021)
FameLab, cultural relations and 'going virtual' at the time of a pandemic. London: British Council
EDITOR'S NOTES This contribution by Gary Kerr, taking the example of one of the British Council’s flagship partnership programmes – FameLab – covers the notion and nature of s...

Scottish Parliament Citizens’ Panel on COVID-19

Report
Citizens’ Panel Steering Group, . (2021)
Scottish Parliament Citizens’ Panel on COVID-19. https://archive2021.parliament.scot/20210218CVDCitizensPanelReportFinal.pdf: Scottish Parliament
This Citizens’ Panel was commissioned by the Scottish Parliament’s COVID-19 Committee. Its findings will support the COVID-19 Committee’s work to scrutinise the Scottish Gover...

Four shades of science festival: a qualitative study exploring the business and management dimensions of science festivals in the United Kingdom

Thesis
Kerr, G. Four shades of science festival: a qualitative study exploring the business and management dimensions of science festivals in the United Kingdom. (Thesis)
University of Salford. Retrieved from http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/2725841
Science festivals are a global cultural phenomenon with at least 60 such festivals taking place across the UK every year. Science festivals fulfil a unique function within civ...

Current Post Grad projects