Dr Emma Delaney from the University of Surrey explains how the “psychic income paradigm”, a concept well established in sports events, offers a credible way to capture the overlooked social and emotional value that is delivered by business events. From Centre for Events & Festivals…
In this episode of The Meeting Room podcast, James Lancaster, Editorial Director at Northstar Meetings Group, and Iceberg Ambassador, discusses the latest implications of Trump travel policies suggesting a silent revolution on the part of event organisers and international visitors is well underway…
Iceberg Ambassadors Melissa Riley and Kai Hattendorf, along with Rodney Cox argue the case for business events as a strategy for accelerated destination development, place leadership, capacity building, and the realisation of broader policy agendas. “Where’s the message,” asks Cox, “to government that if you want to fast-track your city to [becoming] a hub of…
VisitScotland’s Rory Archibald outlines the ambitious thinking behind Scotland’s new business events strategy: deep conversations with association clients to understand what knowledge is being generated and exchanged, long-term data-gathering plan, fast and flexible integration of past mistakes, strong alignment with policy goals for Scotland and its aspirations for citizens’ wellbeing.
Industry leaders gathered in Barcelona during 2025 IBTM World to address key advocacy issues facing the industry, and to identify what collective actions could be taken at high-level and what work needs to be done at the local level where business event impacts are most visible and relevant to policymakers and other place leaders.
Where some destinations see only a glamorous sporting event, Singapore leveraged the most recent edition of its Formula 1 race to host and in some cases to originate and organise 25 strategic international business events. Carrie Kwik, Executive Director, Conventions, Meetings & Incentive Travel, Singapore Exhibition & Convention BureauTM (SECB), explains how Singapore’s advantages as…
For the fourth year in a row, ESAE (European Society of Association Executives) curated and organised IBTM World’s Association Leadership Forum in Barcelona last November. International and European association leaders explored ways to design their meetings strategy in a less transactional way, and instead to use these events to drive forward the Mission and Vision…
Gathering Point’s David Adler explains how media-hosted events became the most lucrative — and least examined — marketplace for public advocacy. And what is true for the USA will almost certainly be the case in other arenas of policymaking influence, from the EU to Asia-Pacific.
From Meetings & Conventions Asia: Thanks to government policy, investment in an excellent events ecosystem and soaring ambition, Dubai is emerging as a global healthcare superstar. Its desire to provide a bridge for international knowledge-sharing is proving irresistible to some of the world’s most important medical events.
The German Trade Show industry contributes around €30bn annually to Germany’s economic output and safeguards at least 280,000 jobs, according to a recent report from the economic research institute Prognos, commissioned by the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA). The study is based on surveys of over 33,700 visitors and 17,700 exhibiting companies…
A cooling labor market is compounding a long-simmering problem. Event professionals are being asked to do more with fewer resources, less institutional support, and, often, less pay. Simultaneously, seasoned professionals are exiting the industry at an accelerating pace. In many cases, they are replaced by less experienced workers, or not replaced at all.
Destinations International’s Jane Cunningham and MMGY NextFactor’s Managing Director Cassandra Gilbertson discuss the ways in which DI’s latest biennial study will shape the policy priorities and primary challenges facing destination organisations worldwide over the coming years. A huge shift in business models and strategic responsibilities has been taking place over the last decade, moving from…
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From The Economist: Had Kamala Harris won on November 5th, Europe would have heaved a huge sigh of relief, turned over, and promptly gone back to sleep. Donald Trump’s first presidency, followed by the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia in February 2022, had served as a pair of noisy wake-up calls, forcing Germany’s chancellor,…
From Skift Meetings: With a Barefoot Business yacht cruise in Croatia and its own Slack channel, Club Ichi might just be the sexiest group to ever hit the meetings industry. But is it – and are other communities like it – a threat to industry associations? Liz Lathan, Nicole Osibodu and Kamryn Bryce started Club…
From M&IT: The IBTM World Forum for Advocacy promises to be a crucial moment for the industry, according to Martin Fullard, director, The Business of Events. In an industry that contributes over US$1.6 trillion to the global economy, the true value of business events extends far beyond the staggering financial statistics. A preview of The…
From GDS-Movement: In mid-October, the historic city of Bruges hosted the second edition of the GDS-Forum & CityDNA Autumn Conference, organised by the Global Destination Sustainability Movement (GDS-Movement) and CityDNA (City Destinations Alliance) in collaboration with Visit Bruges. Held under the theme, “Let Pigs Fly,” the event took on the playful yet ambitious challenge to…
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