Festivals Edinburgh is a strategic umbrella organisation focused on over-arching areas of mutual interest. Its sole focus is to maintain the Festivals’ and the Festival City’s global competitive edge, via major collaborative projects and strategic initiatives.My role as the International Projects Manager is to deliver the International strategy which supports Festivals Edinburgh’s programme development, investment, internationalism and profile building of Edinburgh’s Festivals, informed by the Festivals’ individual and collective creative visions, through:1. Securing programme investment, Expo and other collective approaches 2. Collective cultural diplomacy and partnership building 3. Profile building Key areas of activity include our year-round Cultural Diplomacy work, Momentum (Edinburgh Festivals International Delegate Programme), International Programmes and Management & Leadership.

The British Council is the world’s leading cultural relations organisation and creates opportunities for people in the UK and worldwide to understand each other, to work together and learn from one another. As Arts Manager, my role was to design and successfully deliver a number of impactful projects across targeted arts forms while managing associated partnerships, communications and finances. Key projects delivered: • MOMENTUM 2014, 2015 & 2016 - Edinburgh’s Festivals International Delegate Programme• SHOWCASE SCOTLAND AT CELTIC CONNECTIONS 2015, 2016 & 2017 • NEXO – pan-regional British Council-led project connecting musicians and the music industry in Scotland, Wales and South America. • FRINGE ROADSHOW - facilitated strategic conversations during and after Momentum 2015, which led to the first ever Edinburgh Festival Fringe Roadshow in Latin America (Buenos Aires, October 2015).

While providing this temporary cover, I was responsible for managing a large number of projects across our Arts work in Argentina & Uruguay and building internal and external relationships quickly to support delivery. The purpose of this attachment was to maintain the momentum of our Arts work in those two countries at a critical moment.

As Administrator, I was responsible for supporting the Director’s strategic work as well as Festivals Edinburgh’s office management, supporting the corporate plan review and attending Board meetings for minute taking.

As International Projects Officer, I worked with the Special Projects Manager to develop ambitious Cultural Diplomacy initiatives focusing on the legacy of the Olympic and Paralympic Games opportunities in 2012 and looking ahead to the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, as well as working closely with individual festivals to support international delegations visiting Edinburgh.