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Advisory Board Member

Cultural Olympiad, Vancouver 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games

Robert Kerr is a dynamic, creative arts professional with 25 years experience in organizational development, leadership, event production, and programming. A strategic thinker, community builder, and solution seeker, Robert has a long and successful history of producing, programming, and delivering extraordinary arts and cultural festivals and events through partnership, collaboration, and community engagement.

Robert joined the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) in July 2006 as Program Director, Cultural Olympiad, charged with the task of developing and delivering a comprehensive arts and cultural program for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Encompassing the roles of Producer, Executive and Artistic Director of the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad, Robert led an exceptional programming and production team in producing a three-year series of multi-disciplinary festivals of arts and popular culture. An Olympic and Paralympic arts festival of unprecedented scope and scale Cultural Olympiad 2010 received rave reviews, attracting an audience of over 5.8 million to 1031 performances and 48 exhibitions by national and international artists across the full spectrum of performing, visual, media, and literary arts in 60 venues over 60 days.

Prior to joining VANOC Robert was the founding Executive Director of Coastal Jazz & Blues Society. Established in 1985, Coastal Jazz is a leader in the international arts community, producing and presenting innovative events including the world renowned Vancouver International Jazz Festival. Robert was the founding President of the WESTCAN Jazz Association in 1988, and in 2000 led its transformation into the national jazz service organization Jazz Festivals Canada.

Robert served as a board member of the BC Arts Council from 2002 – 2006, and served 3 terms on the board of Tourism Vancouver, representing Festivals and Events, chairing the Visitor and Member Services Committee, and as a member of the Executive Committee. He was also the western representative on the Executive Committee of the Alliance for Sponsorship Freedom, a nation-wide coalition of arts, sports, and entertainment producers that was active from 1996 - 2000.

Robert's passion for music, radio, and community converge at Vancouver Co-operative Radio where he has been a volunteer producer and co-host of the weekly jazz & improvised music program "A Trane" since 1983.

Improvisation is, simply put, being and living this very moment. No one can hide in music, and improvising in music is to be truly in this very moment and being completely yourself, with all your qualities and faults. It is probably the most honest state for a human being to be in.

– John McLaughlin in an interview with Daniel Fischlin.