Research Team
![]() Dr. Roberta Comunian is Reader in Creative Economy at the Department for Culture, Media and Creative Industries at King's College London. She is interested in: relationship between public and private investments in the arts, art and cultural regeneration projects, cultural and creative industries, creativity and competitiveness. She has been Marie Curie Fellow at University of Newcastle (Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies) investigating the relationship between creative industries, cultural policy and public supported art institutions. She has also undertaken research on knowledge transfer and creative industries within an AHRC Impact Fellowship award at the University of Leeds. She has previously researched the role of higher education in the creative economy and has recently explored in various papers the career opportunities and patterns of creative graduates in UK.
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![]() Brian J. Hracs is a lecturer at the School of Geography and Environment at the University of Southampton, UK. He is interested in how digital technologies and global competition are reshaping the marketplace for cultural products and the working lives and spatial dynamics of entrepreneurs and intermediaries in the creative economy. He has published articles about the contemporary music industry, aesthetic labour, cultural intermediaries, the linkages between music and fashion and the factors that motivate 'talent' to move within and between cities. In 2016 he co-edited a book for Routledge entitled ‘The Production and Consumption of Music in the Digital Age.’ Brian is currently conducting research on curation in the music industry and the trans-local nature of cultural scenes.
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Dr Lauren England is Baxter Fellow in Creative Economies at the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design at the University of Dundee (UK). For her PhD at King’s College London she investigated professional development in craft higher education and early-career practice. Lauren is interested in creative enterprise and education with a focus on craft and sustainable development in both global North and global South contexts. She has published research on craft skills evolution, higher education and social enterprises.
Researchers & Collaborators

Damilola Adegoke is a Doctoral Fellow and Research Associate with the African Leadership Centre, King’s College London. His research seeks to explore the roles and place of Big Data in Security Leadership Decision-making in Crisis Situations. He has a BA in Philosophy and a MSc in Sociology of Development from the University of Ibadan. Damilola also holds a MSc in Security, Leadership and Society from King's College London. He was a Peace, Security and Development Fellow at the African Leadership Centre, King's College London. He taught Africa in International Relations and Foreign Policy Analysis at the University of Buea in Cameroon.

Irma Booyens is a Senior Research Specialist in the Economic Planning and Development unit at the Human Sciences Research Council in Cape Town. She holds a PhD in Geography from the University of Johannesburg (2015), and a Masters in Development Studies from the University of the Free State (2008). She is a National Research Foundation rated researcher, also affiliated with the School of Tourism and Hospitality at the University of Johannesburg. Her research interests include local and regional economic development and planning particularly in relation to tourism, innovation and creative industries.

Taylor Brydges is a Postdoc Researcher at Stockholm University and the University of Zurich. Originally from Toronto, Canada, I completed my HBA in Urban Studies (with Minors in Political Science and Sociology) and my MA in Human Geography from the University of Toronto. In September 2017, I completed my PhD in the Dept. of Social and Economic Geography at Uppsala University, Sweden.
My research explores economic competitiveness, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the cultural and creative industries. A dominant theme in my research relates to exploring the contemporary nature of work in the creative economy, and the impact of digital technologies on patterns and spaces of labour & entrepreneurship I am also interested in issues relating to sustainability and the circular economy, with a focus on the fashion industry.
My research explores economic competitiveness, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the cultural and creative industries. A dominant theme in my research relates to exploring the contemporary nature of work in the creative economy, and the impact of digital technologies on patterns and spaces of labour & entrepreneurship I am also interested in issues relating to sustainability and the circular economy, with a focus on the fashion industry.

Charlotte Campbell is a Postgraduate student within Geography and Environment at the University of Southampton. She is currently working on a project that explores the role of local physical anchors in trans-local scenes and ideas, knowledge and practices diffuse across space. Charlotte is also interested in the Creative Economy and process of curation and value creation in particular.