Award winning journalist Peter Harris joins Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity as Director of Communications

BANFF, AB, April 5, 2018 – Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity is thrilled to announce the appointment of Peter Harris as Director of Communications effective Monday, April 9, 2018. Harris is a nationally recognized producer, journalist, and digital storyteller with more than 15 years experience with Canada’s top media organizations including the CBC, Global National, CTV National News, and TVOntario. 

Harris built his career by discovering great stories throughout Canada and around the world — and sharing those stories in unique ways through digital platforms, social media, the web, podcasting, and broadcasting. As the leader of an innovative team, he allowed the CBC to engage with  audiences in new ways, something he plans to do as he joins Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity during its 85th anniversary year. 

“Banff Centre is proud of the work it has done in the digital space,” said Janice Price, President and CEO of Banff Centre. “Our social media sites are amongst the strongest arts sites in Canada, where we profile artists through digital storytelling. We want to strengthen that legacy with Peter’s gift as a digital communicator.”

“Banff Centre is Canada’s largest post-graduate arts training institute and one of the largest in the world,” said Rosemary Thompson, VP of Marketing, Communications, and Board Relations. “Our goal is to build a strong voice for the arts in Western Canada, and to partner with media organizations across the country to share the work of Canadian artists with the entire country. Peter Harris will help us achieve that goal.” 

At the CBC’s Parliamentary Bureau based in Ottawa, Harris was Executive Producer of the two-hour daily live political broadcast Power & Politics and produced several live breaking news specials and events. His six years as a reporter with Global National and as a field producer for CTV put him on the front lines for major news stories including federal elections, world events such as the G7 and Hurricane Katrina, and on the ground covering the conflict in Afghanistan. Harris has worked as an independent filmmaker profiling nationally recognized artists, and played a pivotal role in launching a very successful podcast for Sirius XM satellite radio during the last federal election.

Originally from Ontario, Harris moved west in 2016 with his partner Jessica Aldred and their two young children to be closer to extended family and the mountains. He is bilingual. 

"This is a dream job that brings together my love of storytelling, the arts, not to mention skiing and mountain culture. If I can tap into a small percentage of the passion found at Banff Centre and bring it to more Albertans, Canadians, and an international audience, I am confident that I can help this exceptional team put the Banff Centre on the map,” said Harris.

Harris joins Banff Centre as it celebrates 85 years as Canada’s leading post graduate arts and leadership training institution with a diverse and exciting range of 125 performances planned this summer. Events include the groundbreaking opera Orphée+ by Banff Centre, Opera Columbus and Toronto’s Against the Grain Theatre; The Hamlet Complex by internationally acclaimed choreographer Alan Lucien Øyen; outdoor concerts featuring some of Canada’s greatest singer songwriters including Blue Rodeo, A Tribe Called Red, Jens Lindemann, and The Sheepdogs; and, the Banff Centre International String Quartet Festival. Banff Centre offers over 120 training programs, 300 events, and 500 conferences every year.

For more information, visit banffcentre.ca/events 

About Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity: Founded in 1933, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity is a learning organization built upon an extraordinary legacy of excellence in artistic and creative development. What started as a single course in drama has grown to become the global organization leading in arts, culture, and creativity across dozens of disciplines. From our home in the stunning Canadian Rocky Mountains, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity aims to inspire everyone who attends our campus – artists, leaders, and thinkers – to unleash their creative potential and realize their unique contribution to society through cross-disciplinary learning opportunities, world-class performances, and public outreach. In 2018, Banff Centre celebrates 85 years of creative practice.