Festivals and Edutainment

"Whilst the conceptualisation of edutainment is not new, it is wonderful to see this unique edited text bringing together interconnected concepts such as planning, engagement, and the event experience giving readers a much deeper understanding into how edutainment can be applied in a multidisciplinary way to improve sustainability, create equity, and move EDI agendas forward, upon which the future of humanity depends."

-Dr Allan Jepson, Hertfordshire Business School.

"Festivals and Edutainment is a vital addition to existing knowledge on Events Management theory and practice. It is your one stop shop for examining the theoretical and practical nuances of Education and Entertainment in the Festival typology of events. The blend of industry and research insights means the text lends itself to industry practitioners as well as taught units aligned to Events and Arts Management"

-Dr. Miriam Firth, School of Environment, Education and Development, Manchester Institute of Education.

"Decades, if not centuries later, we are still – only now – starting to understand the transformational power of events on the people that organize and experience them. We must do more to analyze how events move us, change us, and generate positive social change. By "we" I mean… everyone! Everyone involved in the conception, planning, delivery, and the long-tail legacies that events bequeath. That’s why this book, focused on "edutainment", is special; a series of well-written and interesting cases that help to explicate these complex processes, applicable to all event stakeholders, from academics to practitioners"

-Dr. Mike Duignan, Rosen College of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida.

‘This pioneering volume provides a novel approach to the understudied theme of edutainment in events. It assembles a curated collection of contributions with a wide range of perspectives and incorporating different research methodologies. Important contemporary issues such as sustainability and equality are examined, and visitor and resident perspectives, edutainment experiences and emotions are highlighted. It therefore represents an important source book on edutainment in events for researchers and students.’

-Professor Greg Richards, Tilburg School of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Tilburg University.

‘This book is the first to unpack the role of edutainment in festival experiences globally. While much festival research has focused on the operational elements of festival management, the concept of edutainment has received much less attention. Using a series of case studies of diverse festivals from around the world, the book examines how edutainment festival experiences are planned to engage audiences and how audiences experience edutainment. The case studies also explore how edutainment fosters co-creation leading to more inclusive and sustainable festivals. This text will be invaluable reading for advanced students of events and festivals as well as tourism and leisure students more broadly as well as festival practitioners.’

-Professor Kirsten Holmes, School of Management and Marketing, Curtin University.