YOU’LL NEVER TALK ALONE. JOIN THE ICEBERG MOVEMENT!

Welcome to #117 of Business Events World from The Iceberg as a gruelling final quarter of Business Events Sector events usher an end to a continued post-pandemic rush to, once again, meet face to face.

News is good. Sentiment also – but with geopolitical reservations.

Business Events are being increasingly adopted by governments as tools to realise agendas and strategies across all government departments.

There’s another trend – that immature destinations and regions have cottoned on to the potential for business events beyond the sugar-hit of tourism – notably in Latin America.

In Features, The Iceberg is inviting Ambassadors to join the movement and share the message with policymakers, especially where decisions affecting the license or resources to convene are being made locally.

As The Iceberg Ambassador for The Hill, Tommy Goodwin, says in the video inviting you to join the Movement, “we need an army!”

Also in Features, the latest of mature destinations to pivot beyond tourism comes with news of Ireland’s latest Business Events Strategy – rather encouragingly with the additional tagline of ‘For tourism and beyond’.

The strategy puts all manner of sectoral, inward investment, regional, and social priority impact goals beyond simply the Visitor Economy of events. Paul Mockler, Failte Ireland’s Head of Business Development, shares the inside story.

Also in Features, Deloitte’s findings that 75% of the workforce by 2030 will be from the Millennials and Gen Z put the cat among the pigeons at PCMA’s Convening EMEA in Barcelona where veteran MCI executives found themselves with a target on their backs. See ‘SUCCESSION’ and the real life battle of the generations featuring MCI’s Cerazales & Co.

Where the sentiment for a joyous Noel comes to grinding frostbite is reaction to the re-election of President Donald Trump. E&E News sees Trump cooking up a storm at the American Geophysical Union, PCMA’s ally in the research of climate change. PCMA itself reviews Convene4Climate hot on the heels of Convening EMEA, and Undark questions COP’s ability to create meaningful impact.

The excellent Andrea Doyle at Skift chews over the potential impact that a return to the White House might mean for medical meetings.

She also asks whether convention centres are really worth the public funding they require? Her answer is galvanised in Opinions by the former AIPC executive director, Rod Cameron.

Meetings International grills Antwerp’s Tadeja Pivc Coudyser.

In News a triple review of the ‘Festival in Bruges’ this October where VISITFLANDERS hosted Impact Day revealing a fascinating take on how social entrepreneurs, impact investors, and governments are coalescing to finance impact projects, including events, around a common topic of interest – child disability development, for example.

AC Forum president, Ben Hainsworth was struck by the story of EACD (European Academy for Child Disability) Case Study by BestCities Global Alliance, sponsors of the ICCA Incredible Impact Grant awarded to the organisation for its event held in the same city earlier this year.

The Iceberg dropped into the second edition of the GDS-Forum pursuing solutions for a ‘broken visitor economy’, says founder of the GDS-Movement, Guy Bigwood. And onwards via Flying Pig to the CityDNA Autumn Conference where new President, Barbara Jamison-Woods, is taking the DNA of each member city and seeking to exploit a unique competitive advantage through the filtering of intellectual capital.

Simpleview chief is stunned by the level of collaboration between competitive cities (see video CityDNA: Unlocking the Intellectual Capital of Member Cities).

Also in News, IAEE absorbs the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR), Iceberg Ambassador Tommy Goodwin features yet again as recipient of Lobbyist of the Year on The Hill, Amal Clooney leads a stellar line up for PCMA Convening Leaders in Houston next month, AIME reveals its keynotes for Melbourne the month after, Julius Solaris is becoming a handy source of tips & tricks, this time from a resounding IBTM World, before Kai Hattendorf is turbo charged in covering the recent International MICE Summit (IMS) in Saudi Arabia where even Ireland’s Business Events Funding is dwarfed by comparison!

All the industry heavyweights were in attendance as the Kingdom gears up, tools up, and skills up for an all-out effort to attract the business & professional events that align to its 2030 Vision.

Also in the Gulf, an MOU between the Gulf Organisation for Research & Development (GORD) and Joint Meetings Industry Council (JMIC) confirmed by JMIC President, James Rees, that the organisations are to collaborate around the JMIC-administered Net Zero Carbon Events (NZCE) movement.

In Case Studies, On Your Bike! A ride down memory lane with The European Cyclists Federations’ Velo-city conference. EACD is joined by another BestCities Global Alliance favourite, the International Society for Hip Preservation (ISHA). #Meet4Impact reveals the 61st ICCA Congress impact strategy in Abu Dhabi, and The Business of Events (TBoE) shares the Women into Science and Engineering (WISE) Conference’s words of wisdom from London.

In Research, Destinations International launches its Website Impact Measurement Calculator, Northstar and Cvent continue to use PULSE to inform on planner sentiment, IBTM World reveals its Global Destination Report from SFA-Connect and TBoE at its Forum for Advocacy, and Forbes confirms that the future of business events is assured.

In Opinions, Arnaldo Nardone leads a double bill from the regional blockbuster, FIEXPO, home to the best Politicians Forum witnessed this side of IMEX. A full review of the event is enclosed as LATAM emerges from the shadows of North America as a sweet spot for regional and international association meetings and as ICCA builds strong regional foundations alongside PCMA & IAPCO.

Eduardo Chaillo is on hand to add his interpretation of regional snakes n ladders amid political nuance. Fear not, Eduardo – you’ll never walk alone in a snake pit. Just ask Tommy!

And there he is!

In Opinions, Boardroom Magazine shares Tommy Goodwin, once more, on how associations can manage political risk. Hattendorf departs UFI with 5 Trends to Watch in 2025 plus a Ministerial interview with Victorian State Minister, the Hon. Steve Dimopoulos MP to add to SCEGA’s intervention from ICCA. Another Iceberg Ambassador, Virginie De Visscher, shares the Canadian Business Events Sustainability Plan and her secrets to securing the 2023 IMEX-EIC Innovation in Sustainability Award, Roger Kellerman at Meetings International loses the plot over Sweden’s decision to miss out on IBTM World, Rod Cameron weighs in from the Business Events Forum in Auckland, Exhibition Showcase meets James Rees post-COP, Mike Fletcher meets head of global sustainability, meeting & events at American Express Global Business Travel, Eloisa Urrutia, for Conference & Meetings World (CMW)!

A warm fire, a glass of wine perhaps, while this and a diary full of next year’s events and education, amid this year’s finest of news, views, opinions, publications, and newsletters are our Christmas stocking to you all.

As another Trump administration awaits, we echo The Economist in asking, “What could possibly go wrong?”

Wishing you good tidings and a prosperous, safe, and face to face 2025!

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