Hi, my name is Carly Zimmerman, and I’m from the U.S. where I made my home in New Orleans. I work as the Volunteer Manager at Galway International Arts Festival, and this will be my third Festival season in Galway.
I first came to Galway on an internship for my Master’s programme in Arts Administration at the University of New Orleans. I was interested in understanding and supporting arts and culture abroad, and I found a perfect fit with GIAF. Three years later, I’m so happy to be involved with various aspects of the Festival and to make Galway my full-time home.
The summer season gets hectic for us, to be sure, but it’s my favourite time of year. Now that the volunteer application has opened, I get to communicate with arts-loving people from all over the world. Last year, we had over 450 volunteers from 39 different countries and such a diverse palette of backgrounds, interests and experiences. I can’t wait to see who volunteers with us this year – hopefully all of you reading this!
I feel very fortunate to be living and working here at such an exciting time for arts and culture. That Galway has been designated the European Capital of Culture for 2020 is an incredible honour, and I’m excited to see how we as a community leverage that into the future so the world forever thinks of Galway as the vibrant, creative and welcoming city it is.
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