Henley's UK creative industries research showcased at the United Nations
Research from the Centre for Euro-Asian Studies at Henley Business School has earned international recognition after being showcased at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).
Professor Yelena Kalyuzhnova, Director of the Centre for Euro-Asian Studies, was invited to the UNECE on 17-18 February 2026 to showcase a piece of research titled Resilience of the Creative Industries in the UK: Evidence From the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Professor Kalyuzhnova held a series of meetings exploring how the UK evidence on post-pandemic resilience, digital transition and support ecosystems can inform policy and implementation across the UNECE agenda, which she discussed with Katia Adamo (Economic Affairs Officer of the UNECE's Innovative Policies Development Section) and Elizabeth Tuerk (Director of the UNECE's Economic Co-operation and Trade Division).
Christopher Athey, Economic Affairs Officer of the Innovative Policies Development Section at the UNECE, delivered formal testimony on how Professor Kalyuzhnova's research has been translated into practical capacity-building and policy dialogue. He referred to a national seminar in Kyrgyzstan, which trained 168 creative-sector and public-sector representatives, explaining how the evidence base has helped shape UNECE regional discussions and recommendations, including the 2025 Florence round-table process.
This event follows previous collaborations with the UNECE, including the Creative Industries: New Frontiers of Growth policy roundtable in July 2025 and the Shaping the Future: Resilience and Innovation in the UK Creative Economy workshop in December 2024.
Funded by the British Academy, the research has been developed over several years, building on previous explorations of how the creative industries in both Turkey and Kazakhstan have been impacted in the short-term and medium-term by the pandemic.
This work sits within a wider strand of impact activity that faculty within the Centre for Euro-Asian Studies are developing towards a Research Excellence Framework 2029 impact case. Professor Kalyuzhnova has worked closely with Dr Olena Khlystova to bring this to fruition, which will play a vital role in the allocation of around £2 billion per year of public funding for research across UK universities.
The research was co-authored with Dr Olena Khlystova, Lecturer in Management and Organisational Behaviour, and Professor Maksim Belitski, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and published in the Journal of Business Research.
You might also like
Clean Air Day: The planning system is failing London children’s right to clean air
London’s children do not consistently have enough space to play in, air pollution is not always considered a priority in the design of spaces, and their voices are not included, according to new Henley research.
New PM needs self-awareness to deal with the electorate's concerns
Dr Chris Dalton, Associate Professor of Management Learning at Henley Business School, says Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak may well be taking on a poisoned chalice when one of them takes office on Monday.
Racial Justice, Equity and Belonging in Coaching
There is a feeling among practitioners that there is a silence in the coaching profession when it comes to race. Published by Henley Business School, this report discusses the critical self-examination and self-reflection needed to support racial justice.