Laura is a freelance event organiser and film programmer who became interested in the politics of the cultural economy after running a small co-operative clubwear business in the late 90s and early 2000s. She is currently a PhD candidate at the SURF Centre, School of the Built Environment, University of Salford Manchester, on the AHRC Cultural Intermediation project. She is researching how universities interact with urban creative economies, with a particular focus on the role of festivals as networks of creating and distributing meaning and value.