The Iceberg loves a movement. Especially a movement that uses business & professional events to drive positive change. But it often requires an evangelical personality, combined with an event, to achieve that change. In Latin America (LATAM), one such character has driven the evolution and development of the Business Events Sector â founder of the…
From Boardroom, by Tommy Goodwin, Executive Vice President, Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance: We live in an increasingly politics-first world. From wars raging in Ukraine and Gaza to recent change elections in the United States and throughout Europe, the political environment grows more uncertain by the day. With trade wars, transatlantic tensions, and further anti-incumbency elections…
From UFI: 2024 will go into the history books as the best year the global exhibition industry has ever recorded, measured by revenuesâtopping out an astonishing comeback after the global pandemic. Investors remain eager to put money into our industryâs core business model of connecting people for trade and innovation, but the future will see…
From IMEX: Destination Canada were the winners of the 2023 IMEX-EIC Innovation in Sustainability Award. Presented during IMEX Frankfurt, the award honors outstanding achievements in sustainable innovation in the business events industry. IMEX Brand Ambassador, Tanja Knecht spoke to Virginie De Visscher, Executive Director Business Events, Destination Canada about their winning project, the Canadian Business…
From Meetings International, by Roger Kellerman: IBTM World 2024 was perhaps one of the best IBTM fairs I have experienced in my 20 years at the show. It surpassed last yearâs success, with over 73,000 pre-scheduled meetings (an increase of over 19 per cent compared to 2023), but these figures should be taken with a…
From UFI: We’re excited to share our interview with The Hon. Steve Dimopoulos, Minister for Environment, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, and Minister for Outdoor Recreation of the State of Victoria, Australia. This conversation offers a blueprint for integrating sustainability with impactful policymaking as Minister Dimopoulos discusses Victoria’s leading strategies to host world-class…
By Sahil Buch, Company Secretary, Dubai Financial Market: As I look back on leading the inaugural BE Ambassadors Programme at the 63rd ICCA Congress in Abu Dhabi, Iâm overwhelmed with pride and gratitude. What began as a vision to involve students in the Business Events industry has evolved into something far more significantâa movement to…
From Skift Meetings | Panos Tzivanidis, Director of Corporate Events and Services for the International Olympic Committee shares lessons learned from the 2024 Paris Games: Skift Meetings had the opportunity to chat with Panos Tzivanidis, the Director of Corporate Events and Services for IOC, the International Olympic Committee. Tzivanidis and his team are responsible for…
By Rod Cameron (pictured above), President, Criterion Communications Inc: There is a lot of satisfaction at seeing the lights going on as a new perspective on an old topic is revealed and illustrated. At the same time it demonstrates why positive change is often so difficult to achieve in many parts of our industry. I…
From Outrage+Optimism Podcast: This week, our hosts talk about whatâs been happening – and not happening – in Rio and Baku. Christiana clarifies the mandate of COPs and advocates for COP processes and presidencies to be separate from national positions and interests while robustly defending multi-lateralism. The hosts discuss how world leaders meeting in Rio…
From Exhibition Showcase: Youâve served as the Executive Director for Conferences and Events at ExCeL London for over 21 years. How have you seen the role of venues like ExCeL evolve in the face of changing event formats, particularly hybrid and virtual events? James Rees: Over the period since I joined Excel London, our everyday…
From Conference & Meetings World: Can business events play a role in helping to tackle global issues like over-tourism? This is one of the topics to be discussed at this monthâs IBTM World Forum for Advocacy, in partnership with The Business of Events. EloĂsa Urrutia (pictured), head of global sustainability, meetings & events at American…
From Smart Meetings: Chantal Sturk-Nadeauâs blond locks are a familiar sight at meetings industry conferences. She served as executive director of business events with Destination Canada for no less than 7 years, with Tourism Winnipeg for 17 years before that and at a production company before that. For her next chapter, she was looking for…
From AMI Magazine, by Holly Patrick: If association meetings can no longer be excluded from the overtourism conversation, what can be done to mitigate their impact on already strained infrastructures and frustrated residents? Overtourism, when tourism exceeds physical, ecological, social, economic, psychological, and political boundaries, has historically been associated with leisure tourists. But as thousands…
By Matthias Schultze, Managing Director, German Convention Bureau: A couple of years back, a figure caught my eye: According to the World Economic Forum, digital solutions, if brought to scale, could reduce global emissions by 20% by 2050 in the three highest-emitting sectors energy, materials and mobility. Applying this to the business events sector, it…
From Destinations International, by Jack Johnson: Destination stewardship is the continuous pursuit of a net positive tourism ecosystem that exists in alignment with shared community values. This means a positive tourism experience for visitors and residents alike. There is a quote that has long been a favorite of mine. “We do not inherit the earth…
From Skift Meetings, by Miguel Neves: The head of the Barcelona Convention Bureau, Christoph Tessmar, was delighted that the city hosted record numbers for PCMAâs Convening EMEA, with 636 in-person attendees. This is a significant increase from last yearâs event in Copenhagen, which attracted 550 and almost triple the attendance of the 2019 PCMA European…
From Forbes: Ask Katarina Thorstensson to define sustainability in tourism, and you might think you’re talking to a character in a Star Wars movie. Sustainability surrounds us, and it binds the galaxy together like the Force â at least her galaxy. Thorstensson, a sustainability strategist for Gothenburg, Sweden, says her city has been working on…
Conferli – The conference matchmaking platformâs latest podcast features Beatriz Ibañez, Impact Specialist at #MEET4IMPACT. In this episode, Beatriz unpacks the critical difference between impact and legacy in the events industry, discussing the concept of legacy washing; barriers to creating true, lasting impact; why focusing on long-term change is essential for meaningful progress. Ready to…
From Meetings International: The President and CEO of Seoul Tourism Organization, Ki Yon Kil, says âAlthough we are successful even now, the MICE industry is still beginning its development in the Republic of Korea. The business event industry in Seoul and South Korea has great potential, so we are developing this potential of the whole…
From Forbes, by Michael Sheldrick: UN Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres framed this week as a pivotal moment to “reboot” multilateralism with the adoption of the Pact for the Future. Described by the UN as âthe culmination of a years-long effort to adapt global cooperation to today’s realities,â the Pactâs real-world impact remains uncertain and open to…
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