The Quebec City Convention Centre has hailed an “outstanding” year in which it hosted 210 events, among them 71 conferences, and over 216,000 delegates. Quebec City Ambassadors, many of whom are research professors at Université Laval, helped land eleven of the eighteen international conferences held at the centre in 2018–2019. From Association Meetings International…
Calgary will be welcoming 5,000 oil and gas professionals when it hosts the World Petroleum Congress in 2023. The city won a vote of the World Petroleum Council in St Petersburg, edging out fellow finalist Baku, by just 21 votes to 20. Calgary stands to earn $65 million from the event. From Association Meetings International…
The Palais des congrès de Montréal has put together a Sustainability Innovation Committee made up of experts from institutions including ten Quebec universities. The group’s purpose will be to facilitate sharing academic research in the field, and to identify research partnership opportunities between the venue and sustainability organisations. From Boardroom…
Five Canadian convention bureaux recently attended London Tech Week’s AI Summit at ExCeL. Their aim was to attract tech-related business events across to their own destinations, along with the inward investment that follows. Among them was Virginie De Visscher, Director of Business Development for Economic Sectors, Business Events Canada (third left). From Association Meetings International…
The Women Deliver conference has just brought 8,000 world leaders, advocates, academics, activists and journalists from over 150 countries into the Vancouver Convention Centre. The meeting aims to influence policy makers and politicians, and to drive investment into the lives of girls and women. Photo: Jon Benjamin Photography. From editor’s blog at Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Elliott L. Ferguson II, President and CEO of Washington DC’s official marketing organisation Destination DC, has been talking “connected capital”, inclusion and positive impact at IMEX in Frankfurt. His themes included which knowledge sectors the district is targeting, the legacies its meetings are leaving in their wake, and issues of diversity. From Boardroom…
This is a unique study of over 200 healthcare professionals (HCPs), from both Europe and the US, across a range of therapy areas. It highlights HCP preferences and shares perceptive experiences of medical congresses – from their decision-making regarding attendance, how they value this type of activity, how they apportion their time on-site and engage…
Martin Sirk is the new International Advisor leading Iceberg partner the Global Association Hubs Partnership. The announcement made at IMEX (pictured) sees the former ICCA CEO steering GAHP into a new era after the retirement of Hervé Bosquet. GAHP is an alliance of four major association clusters: Brussels, Dubai, Singapore and Washington DC. From Meetings International…
As a testament to his pioneering advancement of association meetings industry education and advocacy, new ICCA CEO Senthil Gopinath has been named “Business Events Strategist of the Year” at the 2019 PCMA Visionary Awards in Washington DC. Gopinath previously led ICCA’s Middle East office as Regional Director. From the Event…
The most progressive destinations worldwide are positioning themselves as thought leaders in specific advanced industries to engage meeting and event organizers active in those industries. Rather than selling a city based solely on its infrastructure, access and capacity, destination marketing and management organizations (DMMOs) are also promoting their most significant clusters in STEM sectors to…
Ashfield Meetings & Events has published The Science of Healthcare Congresses, a white paper, which discusses decisions made about meeting attendance. Lack of time was by far the biggest reason healthcare professionals are not attending events. 95 percent of HCPs would consider attending more regional or localised meetings. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Collision 2019 is ostensibly a startup show, with nearly 1,100 fledgling companies, 26,000 attendees, and conference tracks for pitching venture capitalists called “Growth Summit,” “MoneyConf,” and, simply, “PITCH.” But another conference theme quietly linked the VC guys in slick suits, with the fintech startups, AI companies and data scientists: fixing the world. From Digital Trends…
One of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, British-Swedish multinational Astra Zeneca is responsible for research into and manufacture of many cutting-edge medicines. As Catherine Boissier, Associate Professor and Associate Director working as a Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control Project Lead in Gothenburg explains, meetings are a vital tool in that endeavour. From Meetings International…
For destinations with industrial roots that have since evolved into innovation-based economies, showcasing a revamped identity not only helps to correct outdated perceptions but is also key to drawing in the right groups, for instance associations. Former Rust Belt cities Cleveland, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, St. Louis and Cincinnati have all reinvented their economies. From PCMA…
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Melissa Riley serves as the Senior Vice President, Convention Sales and Services at Destination DC (DDC), the official convention and tourism organization for the nation’s capital. A 26-year veteran of the travel and hospitality industry, Riley leads a team of more than 30 who work in concert to generate a positive economic impact for the…
The Palais des congrès de Montréal has announced that it is joining the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As well as making daily efforts to reduce its environmental footprint, the venue has also become one of the first centres in the Americas to say its building will be going carbon neutral. From Boardroom…
Lyn Lewis-Smith, CEO of Business Events Sydney, recently joined a Trans-Tasman Business Circle’s #womenintechontour visiting San Francisco and Silicon Valley to gather intelligence on the skills and talent attraction strategies of US multinational corporations. Global meeting attendees present a ripe opportunity that is currently being overlooked. From Lyn Lewis-Smith via LinkedIn…
As event organisers attract bigger audiences, they can outgrow the centres that once hosted them. But expansion of those venues is a tall order since most involve public funding. Getting buy-in for major investment may mean navigating a complex political maze, wrangling support, and explaining why a centre matters to a city’s economy. From PCMA…
A global initiative to address plastic use at events has just been launched by Iceberg partner Positive Impact, supported by the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau. The campaign is collecting usage data as well as encouraging the switch to alternative materials, and began when the two organisations’ CEOs met at a conference. From PCMA…
Canada’s capital, Ottawa, is to launch a conference ambassador programme. Together Ottawa Tourism, the Shaw Centre (above) and Invest Ottawa will offer bespoke support to local experts becoming “trailblazers” by helping the city to secure major meetings. ThinkOttawa will work with its ambassadors to prepare bid documents and provide support. From Association Meetings International…
Over nine million guests have visited the Vancouver Convention Centre from across the world in its ten year history, generating more than $2.4 billion in direct spend for British Columbia. The events held at the venue include TED conferences, trade shows, corporate meetings, banquets and fundraisers. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
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