Launched in February, #MEET4IMPACT is creating a framework to support and measure association meetings’ social impacts. In this fifth instalment of our Features series, founder Geneviève Leclerc discusses the one term everyone connects with legacy creation, measurement. Metrics should be a tool for understanding, not an end goal in themselves. From Boardroom…
Adelaide will host the 2023 World Potato Congress, the first time the biennial meeting has been held in Australia. The winning bid was led by the Adelaide Convention Bureau and Potatoes South Australia, which won over the WPC board with the idea of a WPC Trust supporting developing nations R&D. From Association Meetings International…
The Association of Independent Festivals has just returned to the city of Sheffield for its annual Festival Congress. The two-day meeting is claiming to be the first travel carbon neutral events industry conference. Organisers have worked with Energy Revolution to balance emissions with investment in projects creating clean and renewable power. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Business Events Sarawak from Sarawak Convention Bureau has successfully hosted its first TriBE: Innovation Day. It took place at Pullman Hotel, Kuching, where industry partners gathered to celebrate 22 graduates of the TriBE: Innovation Masterclass. The focus on professional development is all part of BESarawak’s “Legacy Impact Programme”. From Boardroom…
Tourism New Zealand has just announced three international meetings whose impacts will be measured to maximise the positive societal impacts that conferences generate for communities. The organisation is working together with Iceberg partner #Meet4Impact, whose Chief Executive Officer is Geneviève Leclerc, on the Enrich New Zealand Conference Impact project. From Boardroom…
Gothenburg has lead Iceberg partner GDS-Index, the Global Destination Sustainability Index, for the fourth year running. The listing ranks sustainability performance in 50 business event destinations. At 58th ICCA Congress in Houston the GDS-Index Awards were announced as well, with Sydney receiving the Innovation trophy. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is to host the 2022 International Congress on Obesity. The winning bid was secured by the Melbourne Convention Bureau, with input also from the Australia & New Zealand Obesity Society and support from Victoria’s State Government and Tourism Australia’s Business Events Bid Fund Programme. From Association Meetings International…
Weeks of anti-government protests in Chile have forced the embattled President Piñera to cancel both this month’s APEC trade summit and COP25 UN climate conference in December. The 2019 Cochrane Colloquium,a major healthcare meeting, was also due to be held in Santiago, but the growing death toll has forced its cancellation. From Association Meetings International…
“The majority of disabled people don’t travel to conferences because they expect their needs will not be met”. So says Alan Broadbent, an accessibility writer and consultant to the events industry. Three examples of inclusivity, a venue (ICC Wales), a meeting (Glasgow’s IASSIDD World Congress) and a city (Dubai), are analysed. From Association Meetings International…
Over 100 association executives from seven African countries have just gathered in the Kenyan capital Nairobi for the inaugural Africa Association Summit (AAS1). The two-day event was run by the African Society of Association Executives, in partnership with the Kenyatta International Convention Centre. AfSAE President Jeffers Miruka reports. From Boardroom…
The trend toward plant-based diets has made headlines recently, and this June the first Plant Based World Conference & Expo launched at the Javits Center in New York City. The inaugural event welcomed 3,737 attendees, including professionals from retail, specialty restaurant and food service, healthcare and distributors. From PCMA…
One of the biggest takeaways from the World Wildlife Fund’s research into ending food waste occurring in commercial kitchens was the need to clearly better communicate with meeting planners about the multiple ways in which they can reduce food waste. So says Monica McBride of WWF, who lists some approaches to follow. From PCMA…
It’s clear that food production and consumption needs to change, and radically, to safeguard the planet and feed a growing population. The best place to start for the business events industry is with food waste, and now the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has been working on food conservation in convention centre kitchens and hotels. From PCMA…
RAI Amsterdam is a venue that considers itself more of a neighbour than a conventional conference centre. It works closely with organisers to limit noise and traffic congestion, and looks for opportunities to give back to its local community. These include encouraging donations to social initiatives, especially of the venue’s own surplus food. From Boardroom…
The British Association for the Study of the Liver has just held its annual meeting at the University of Strathclyde Technology and Innovation Centre. Taking the event outside of conference confines, BASL partnered with the British Liver Trust and Glasgow Convention Bureau to bring a liver health roadshow to the city streets. From Boardroom…
The Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau is implementing four major economic corridor projects, co-hosting and supporting associated meetings as a platform to enhance trade and investment with neighbouring countries. So far four corridor conferences have been set up to gather local entrepreneurs and to promote business ties within the region. From Meetings International…
Food waste isn’t about ignorance, it’s about changing behaviour. Through the prism of our fear of running out, how can we regulate the wasteful habits of the events industry? Beyond Food: Food Wastage and the Fear of Running Out (Lime Venue Portfolio website, registration required) Survey Shows Event Planners Responsible for “Alarming” Food Waste (Association…
Patient involvement in clinical care and research has gained momentum in recent years, firstly because the patient community itself is asking for more active role, but also because patient participation in healthcare systems has been proven to improve treatment outcomes. Scientific associations are also increasingly recognising that patients can contribute to the success of congresses…
The new Paris Convention Centre helped make this year’s edition of the European Society of Cardiology Congress “an exceptional vintage”, according to one of the organisers. The event, which attracted 33,000 delegates, also featured the ESC’s first patient forum, and a joint public awareness campaign, a playful and informative “Heart Village”. From Association Meetings International…
AIM Group International has published a white paper on why organisers should consider the integration of patients in scientific congresses, and how to do so with success. The real life example used is the organiser’s very own World Systemic Sclerosis Congress, run since 2010 and previously featured on The Iceberg. From Boardroom…
CWT Meetings & Events says that sustainability is rising in importance for the industry. The claim comes in its new 2020 Future Trends Report bonus supplement “The Future of Sustainable Events”. As activists are protesting around the world, like Extinction Rebellion in London, companies are taking increasing notice. Photo: Jwslubbock. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
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