Business and Events Academy Creator Nadia Rubtsova once worked for the European Health Management Association. Back in 2019, the scientific conference of EHMA was taking place in Espoo, Finland. After a year of hard work, the organiser’s guiding Northern stars for the meeting’s three days and 350 delegates were legacy, community and impact. From Boardroom…
The intersecting crises of the pandemic, climate change and increasing inequality are compelling associations to repurpose and serve not just their members but society itself as well. This includes making commitments about sustainability, ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and the UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). From Boardroom…
Darwin in Australia’s Northern Territory will host from 800 to 1,200 international delegates for the World Conference on Ecological Restoration in 2023. The meeeting, secured by NT Business Events, the Darwin Convention Centre and the Society of Ecological Restoration Australia, will leave an important legacy across the world’s damaged ecosystems. From AMI Intellectual Capitals..
Iceberg partner UFI, global association of the exhibition industry, has released a new report on the status of sustainability in the exhibition industry, including results from surveys conducted by UFI research partner Explori. Even though the COVID-19 pandemic has severely hit the economy, the fundamentals remain, and sustainability is a strong priority for exhibitions and…
The pandemic offers an opportunity for the business events industry to reinvent itself, according to a recently published white paper jointly presented by PCMA, Singapore Exhibition and Convention Bureau, Singapore Tourism Board, and Iceberg partner UFI, global association of the exhibition industry. But the paper, Reimagining Business Events Through COVID-19 and Beyond doesn’t make light of…
World of Concrete 2021 from June 7th to 10th attracted over 58,000 registered professionals and hosted more than 1,564 leading industry suppliers across more than 746,000 net square feet of exhibit space at the Las Vegas Convention Center, according to lasvegashowto.com. Other estimates put that number closer to 30,000, but one thing is true. With…
In a surprise move, just days before PCMA invited the business events community to participate in its May COVID-19 Recovery Dashboard, the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that fully vaccinated individuals no longer had to wear masks outdoors and indoors, except in hospitals, on public transit and other specified places. CDC’s latest…
It has been revealed that COP26 President Alok Sharma has taken flights to 30 countries over the last seven months. The UK government minister running the UN’s climate change conference in Glasgow has been accused of hypocrisy, racking up tens of thousands of air miles in quick succession. From Association Meetings International…
Event sustainability group isla has launched proseed, billed as the first universal framework for delivering sustainable meetings. Launched in September 2020 in response to the climate crisis, isla’s twelve founding members have since grown to over 75, with a mix of brands, agencies, venues and event suppliers. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Much is said about serendipity at events. A recent gathering of the Membership Committee for the African Society of Association Executives, attended by Gary Grimmer of Iceberg partner GainingEdge, saw a chance encounter develop into a legacy collaboration helping Girl Guides to learn beekeeping. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
The event sector is being urged to take more and earlier action over climate change, in advance of this November’s COP26 conference at Glasgow’s SEC. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, UK government and SME Climate Hub were part of the special event at which the call was made. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
In April’s survey against March’s, much of the sector is experiencing a sense of languish. In the month between the two, vaccinations in the US (where the majority of survey respondents live) have averaged around three million shots a day, certainly the country’s best chance of recovery. Yet seven percent fewer planner respondents reported feeling hopeful…
To mark Global Meetings Industry Day, Iceberg partner BestCities Global Alliance and the International Association of Professional Congress Organisers (IAPCO) have joined together to help associations articulate their new hybrid congress guidelines. In the wake of the pandemic, associations must rethink the design and delivery of events to make sure they can bring together international…
Between February and March, a flurry of news articles predicted a huge surge in leisure travel, sometimes referred to as “revenge travel”, as people celebrate the end of the pandemic, make up for lost time and splurge after the stress of living through COVID. Airlines have reported substantial jumps in air travel demand during March…
Last September, the “Incredible Impacts” programme run collaboratively by Iceberg partners ICCA and BestCities Global Alliance selected three winning associations for the meeting legacy projects they submitted. Each of the three had shown a dedication to creating legacies that went far beyond the conference walls. The three winners were: Ecocity Builders and the BCIT Ecocity…
A slightly higher percentage of planners and suppliers described feeling exhausted and burned out in the February Dashboard survey than in January’s survey, but that can probably be chalked up to yet another month of enduring the COVID crisis. It’s coming up on a year now since the lockdowns began. Some especially harsh winter weather…
This autumn the Global Forum of Iceberg partner BestCities Global Alliance returns in Madrid. Other major congresses are also heading to the Spanish capital, including World Blindness Summit, the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology and the Spanish Society of Stomatological Prosthesis. All are committed to leaving legacies. From BestCities Global Alliance…
US distribution of the vaccine in the weeks that followed initial rollout was anything but smooth, with vaccine shortages around the world, confusion around US distribution plans that vary state by state and challenges with registration systems. Those frustrating realities dampened the hopes of participants (491 planners and 219 suppliers) in this latest survey, conducted…
According to the COVID-19 Recovery Dashboard conducted between December 14th and 17th, eleven percent more suppliers and planners checked off “hopeful” when asked how they were feeling, nearly half of suppliers (49 percent) and 54 percent of planners. Planners in particular have come a long way since October when the were first asked to share…
An “ambitious” plan to create a carbon reduction target for the business events sector has been presented, with the intention of launching during COP26. Positive Impact Events, an Iceberg partner, is hoping to raise £30,000 for the project, to be delivered under UN Framework Convention on Climate Change auspices. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
To prevent catastrophic warming, humanity must get its act together. More and more industry sectors are committing to carbon reduction, but what about the agencies, PCOs and commercial event producers? Fiona Pelham, the CEO of Iceberg partner Positive Impact Events, feels a voice at the table is crucial. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
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