The BE Legacy & Impact Study Boom Begins!

The proliferation of Legacy & Impact Studies of Business Events hit new heights February with the announcement of additional case studies on the way from the BestCities Global Alliance (13) and Christchurch / New Zealand Business Events (60). With those already announced, and in development, by Destination Canada (16), Copenhagen Convention Bureau (6), and VisitBritain Business Events (4), and more to follow from Meet Flanders, over 100 new case study events are set to deliver critical data and storytelling of business & professional events between 2022 and 2027.

Kicking off, in Case Studies below, the World Parkinson’s Coalition Congress in Barcelona 2023 featuring sublime work by the BestCities Global Alliance (who else?), Boardroom Magazine, #Meet4Impact, and even The Iceberg lending its video support, the fast-track to research saturation has seemingly begun. Bravo Eli Pollard (WPC) and Anna Bueno (Barcelona Convention Bureau) – a partnership of impact missionaries!

This is the momentum shift The Iceberg has been waiting for as industry takes control of its changemaking socio-economic impact narrative, backed up with robust evidence-based measurement frameworks, data collection, and research.

In News, RX shares its Roadmap to Net Zero Carbon Events by 2040, JMIC expands, Mobile World Congress rides the AI wave (also in Barcelona), and event:decision launches its new event sustainability tool ‘Impact’.

In Features, BE Sarawak chief executive Amelia Roziman hogs the limelight as Sarawak prepares to host the inaugural ICCA Association Impact Masterclass next month, and the Iceberg Ambassador shares her commitment to aligning event bids to her government KPIs and impact indicators across the 6 priority sectors identified in its 10-Year Development Strategy, using 7 enabling sectors including business events. GainingEdge chairman, Gary Grimmer, adds his complimentary perspective.

Also in Features, ICC Sydney launches its RESPECT Initiative while in News, Melbourne launches its First Peoples Engagement Guide while hosting a record-breaking, and socially rather noisy AIME! Geneva gears up to host GIAF, the final event of the ASSOCIATIONWORLD trilogy of events following the same in Brussels and Washington DC while Iceberg Ambassador Tommy Goodwin of the Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance (ECA) applauds the U.S Federal Government Fight Against Conference Scammers reported in MEETINGSNET.

In Case Studies you’ll find the Eli & Anna Show – a truly beautiful story preparing cities for victims of Parkinson’s disease which is so effective that Vancouver and Philadelphia aren’t even waiting for the Congress to come before enacting city-wide training of their local communities and service providers. Back in Spain, the 29,000 Catalans suffering the disease have much to look forward to as the Parkinson’s Ready Program is extended across Catalunya’s entire four provincial police forces. What a legacy, with #Meet4Impact’s full report imminent!

Still in Case Studies, BestCities Global Alliance shares the legacy of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) held in Melbourne in 2016. What an impact the Alliance is having on shaping the industry narrative – a lesson in collaboration.

But a good narrative needs data and in Research, the heavy lifting is amply supplied by Iceberg Partner, Destinations International’s landmark study, Destination Promotion: An Engine of Economic Development now embracing Destination Promotion as a Catalyst for Community Vitality beyond the visitor economy to include social impact, quality of life for residents, attracting talent, and supporting government services. Tourism Economics, Longwoods International, Clarity of Place, and MMGY prepared this deep-thinking report while ICCA reveals a 60-Year Report on how Association Meetings have transformed through the video prism of industry leaders including partner IMEX chief executive Carina Bauer, the PCMA EMEA Survey concludes the need for collaboration and strategic partnerships, while MMGY return to deliver the GCBs wave IV of ‘Portrait of European Meeting & Convention Travel’, confirming the undeniable return of in-person meetings and Germany’s pivotal position as a European hub. GCB also returns to its Future Meeting Space Megatrends study ‘Business Events in a Transformative Era’ confirming the new megatrend of AI and the significant impact that these technologies will have on the planning and delivery of future meetings within the BE ecosystem. And UFI unveils its 3rd Industry Partner Benchmark Report from JWC.

Never under-estimate the importance of these industry research reports – without them the industry’s value is a purely anecdotal myth when it comes to advocacy! More to come, no doubt from the BE Future Study…

In Opinions, watch ‘Martin Sirk and the Crystal Ball’ from the ESAE-hosted Association Forum at IBTM World, sponsored by I amsterdam. Belinda Moore of SMS double-bills with 14 conversations dominating Association Strategic Planning and what AI can do TODAY! Mark Nevins shares what CEOs are worrying about at the UFI Global CEO Summit while Glasgow continues to pursue sustainability as a core tenet of its urban development featuring Iceberg Ambassador, Aileen Crawford.

These and The Iceberg’s tumultuous collection of industry association partner and publisher news and views, events, and education awaiting in celebration of the month that the industry announced 100 forthcoming legacies of business & professional events.

To all the Iceberg Partners & Ambassadors – we salute you!

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