Barry Pousman is focused on the future of media, education, and social impact. His most recent project, These Sleepless Nights, is a mixed reality documentary that premiered at the 76th Venice Biennale. Barry is currently a research fellow at Johns Hopkins University’s Immersive Storytelling and Emerging Technologies lab and he works with the Institute for the Future, a not-for-profit think tank to develop and implement digital strategies and content initiatives.
Prior to Institute for the Future, Barry was co-founder and CEO at Variable Labs, an immersive technology lab focused on creating tools for corporate learning and development. Variable Labs’ clients include Google, XPRIZE, Deloitte, Facebook, and other top-tier organizations creating and consulting on Virtual Reality content, platforms, and activations. Barry is formerly a Chief Digital Strategist at the UN where he helped implement effective new media initiatives around the promotion of the Sustainable Development Goals. In his work with the UN, Barry created seminal Virtual Reality films (Clouds Over Sidra, My Mother’s Wing, etc) and viral video campaigns, organized UN General Assembly exhibitions, and facilitated international summits and workshops. His work has created measured real-world impact and has screened at the World Economic Forum at Davos, the White House, Sundance, won the Interactive Award at Sheffield Doc Fest and been written about in The New York Times, Vice, the BBC, and beyond.
Barry was also the Director of Digital Programming at Discovery Communications and a founding member of Discovery VR, where his focus was on science, education and global awareness. He oversaw multiple production teams, four digital video networks, and a handful of podcasts all of which garnered millions of views each week. Barry is a graduate of Emerson College in Boston where he studied Visual Media and was awarded an Alumni Award for his work in digital media. He went on to serve with the U.S. Peace Corps in Senegal, receiving two Fulbright-Hays grants from the U.S. Embassy in Dakar for his documentary work.