Glasgow’s Conference Ambassador Programme, the first in the UK, has contributed at least £650 million to the city’s economy since it started thirty years ago. The scheme has 1,600 members. 141 events, indeed 35 percent of all meetings held in Glasgow last year, were led by a local conference ambassador. From Association Meetings International…
Almost half of delegates at business events think face-to-face meetings are “critical”, says a new trade show study. The report out from AIME, the Asia Pacific Incentives and Meetings Event set to open in Melbourne, also shows 93 percent of delegates find human interaction and connections “important” during business events. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Dubai Business Events chalked up 301 successful bids for meetings, conferences and incentives in 2019. Set to attract over 150,000 delegates in coming years, the wins will deliver around 620,000 room nights for the emirate. DBE’s Al Safeer Congress Ambassadors Programme grew to 342 active ambassadors in 2019. From Meetings International…
The Joint Meetings Industry Council, which presents The Iceberg, has put out a statement about coronavirus. President Kai Hattendorf said the crisis showed that freedom and will to travel to meetings can be easily affected. But events are also the best way to address such issues. Photo: CDC / Dr Fred Murphy. From Association Meetings International…
An engineer has helped to secure yet another major conference for Auckland, New Zealand. The win is his third in five years. Dr Nirmal Nair of the University of Auckland led a successful bid for TENCON 2021, run by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The meeting should attract 600 delegates. From Association Meetings International…
The Events Industry Council recently held a webinar “Industry Discussion on Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV): Identifying Reliable Sources and Factors for Informed Decision Making”. The conversation centred on how organisers should approach the choices about whether or not to postpone or cancel an event. Photo: Huangdan2060. From PCMA…
Attendees at the recent UFI Global CEO Summit in Rome were granted a private audience in the Vatican’s Sala Clementina with Pope Francis. His Holiness said that trade fairs and exhibitions were benefitting regional economies while “showcasing to the wider world the rich diversity and beauty of local cultures and ecosystems”. From UFI…
Homeless hackathons, like those being held this year in Edinburgh, Montreal, Barcelona, Dundee and London, are one way for meetings to tackle this pressing social issue. The MD of organiser Gallus Events recently had a personal experience of homelessness outside COP25, the UN Climate Change Conference, in Madrid. From Association Meetings International…
The Iceberg recently published German Convention Bureau MD Matthias Schultze’s views about the multisite BOCOM conference being held this April. As the coronavirus crisis devastates the whole global meetings industry, this borderless communication event’s approach could perhaps not be more timely. From Matthias Schultze via LinkedIn…
As coronavirus isolates China from outside countries, Ping Liu, CEO of destination management company and professional congress organiser China Star, offers cultural views on how her business is approaching cancellations and postponements. Links to Professional Convention Management Association resources on coronavirus. Photo: Painjet. From PCMA…
Both the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild served meatless meals during their award ceremonies this January. Meatless meals were also served up at Convening Leaders in San Francisco, sponsored by Iceberg partner IMEX. There are many good reasons to go meatless, but it’s not always easy getting attendees to stomach the idea. From PCMA…
As global leaders form strategies to contain the spread of coronavirus, so also must event managers and owners. Four distinct requirements are critical to meet. That’s according to Sylvia André, the Vice President for Marketing and Communications at Iceberg partner MCI. The article links to Professional Convention Management Association resources on coronavirus. From PCMA…
“Conference shame” was the term used in a Bloomberg article about the threat to events of “the Greta effect”. So the sector now needs to get its “game face” on. Partners of the Iceberg IMEX, Positive Impact and GDS-Index have already done so. Photo: World Economic Forum / Manuel Lopez. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
2020 began with disturbing images of burnt koalas and fears of their “imminent extinction”. Climate change has played a role in the catastrophic and unprecedented early fire season, and the meeting industry can take a lead in tackling this universal issue. Paula Blomster of MPI’s European Advisory Council explains. From Association Meetings International…
The “Incredible Impacts” grants celebrate the “beyond tourism” legacy value of international association meetings and their projects that are delivering positive social impact. A panel of independent judges from the association world determines which meetings have left a proven legacy, and award three grants of $7,500 on behalf of Iceberg partners BestCities Global Alliance and…
Athens boasts an event history that spans 5,000 years. Holding modern meetings across sectors like maritime, sports, architectural design and culture, This is Athens-Convention & Visitors Bureau is now launching its own destination ambassador programme to attract knowledge through international conferences and grow sectors like IT. From Boardroom…
With the WHO declaring coronavirus a public health emergency, and with airlines suspending their flights to China, conference managers are having to cancel, delay or relocate their meetings in the country. One professional congress organiser said his clients were exercising “extreme caution” because of the crisis. From Association Meetings International…
The Palais des congrès de Montréal is joining with local not-for-profit and Iceberg partner #MEET4IMPACT to conduct a major worldwide study running throughout 2020. This will round up promising initiatives that business events can tap into in order to measure their social legacy and impact. From Boardroom…
ExCeL London is partnering with the London Academy of Excellence, a sixth form centre in local Stratford. The venue has contributed to LAE’s Hardship and Opportunities Fund to assist with visits that raise student aspirations. CEO Jeremy Rees called it “part of ExCeL London’s lasting legacy for the local community”. From Boardroom…
Iceberg partner IMEX Group has announced that its fourth annual “Talking Point” will address the power of “Nature” and include IMEX’s largest ever research study. The theme will run for two years not one, with the research being lead by Guy Bigwood, MD of Iceberg partner the Global Destination Sustainability Index. From Meetings International…
Leaders of Australia’s convention bureaux have sought to dampen fears about the recent bushfires and quash what they call the spread of “misinformation”. The Association of Australian Convention Bureaux says organisers and managers of events should be contacting its members for destination-specific information and advice. Photo: Rob Russell. From Association Meetings International…
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