Barry Pousman

Barry Pousman is an award-winning creative producer focused on the future of media, art, education, and social change. Barry is currently the COO and Lead Producer at LightShed.io, an immersive production company unparalleled in the social impact space with clients including Meta, Accenture, Johns Hopkins University, USC Shoah Foundation, Human Rights Watch, and more. Before moving to Seattle, Barry worked with the Institute for the Future (IFTF), the world’s leading strategic foresight think tank to develop and implement digital strategies, content initiatives, and global events. Barry was also co-founder and CEO at Variable Labs, a VC-backed immersive technology lab focused on creating tools for corporate learning and development. Variable Labs’ clients include Google, XPRIZE Foundation, Deloitte, Facebook, AAUW, and other top-tier organizations creating and consulting on Virtual Reality content, platforms, and activations.

Barry is formerly a Digital Strategist at the U.N. where he helped implement effective new media initiatives around the promotion of the Sustainable Development Goals. In his work with the U.N., Barry created seminal Virtual Reality experiences (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 Film Festival, won the Interactive Award at Sheffield Doc Fest, and 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, which garnered millions of views each week. He formed partnerships with NASA on monthly live streams, Vice Media on news breakdowns, and the Office of the White House for national STEM education standards.

Barry graduated from 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 impact films.