Biography

Calin Huma was born in Iași, north-eastern Romania, a region of the country known as Moldavia (not to be confused with the neighbouring country of Moldova!), during the brutal communist dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu.

Following high school, and periods of compulsory military service, he began a career in sales before joining Rank Xerox in 1992 as Country Manager for the Republic of Moldova. In 1996 he became European Market Development Manager for a regional airline. During this period of creating connections between east and west he strengthened ties between County Councils under the auspices of the Assembly of the European Regions, a platform that first introduced him to Hampshire.

In 1998 he enrolled at the University of Southampton studying political science at both undergraduate and post-graduate level. Throughout his studies he continued to advise British companies on entering the Romanian and Moldovan markets, also working for a time as a research assistant in the House of Commons.

Married since 1986, his wife, Claudia, and daughter, Ruxandra moved to the UK in 2000. Since joining Calin, Claudia has worked in the NHS where she is now a senior operating theatre nurse. She also completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Health Science and Clinical Practice at the University of Southampton. Ruxandra is similarly accomplished having a Masters degree in pianoforte from Trinity Laban Conservatoire in Greenwich. She now manages the PCOL, Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra of London, also working full-time for an international humanitarian relief charity. In 2003 Calin, Claudia and Ruxandra became naturalised UK citizens whilst retaining their Romanian nationality.

Current Business Activities

Calin is the Chief Executive Officer of INDES, a group of companies operating in the aviation, defence and infrastructure sectors across Central and Eastern Europe, with Romania as a hub and core market. In this capacity he works with companies like Rolls-Royce and Bell Helicopter.

He is also the founder of BRIDGE, a collaborative enterprise bringing together local government, business and universities in Britain and Romania. Its first formal partnership was concluded between Hampshire County Council and Dolj County in South West Romania in 2013. He has since extended that initiative via agreements between Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and several regional equivalents in Romania.

Music

A self-taught pianist and composer – with the help of my fabulous and talented daughter and her musical colleagues – I try to capture the spirit and essence of Romania through music. This found its most substantial expression in the composition Symphony Carpatica, a piece premiered at the Cadogan Hall, London in December 2015. You can view the concert here

Further works, and details of public performances, will appear here.