Features

What AIPC Bilbao Means for the Future of Association Meetings

Senior executives from the global convention centre-community recently gathered in Bilbao for the AIPC Annual Conference, under the theme “Bridging the Gap: Venues Connecting Human Experience and Innovation.” But beyond the technology on display and the venues discussed, one question dominated: what is a congress now expected to achieve, and for whom? From Boardroom…

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GDS-Forum Szezecin: Maximising the Impact of Collaboration

This year’s GDS-Forum and Impact Day held in Szezecin, Poland, aimed to build the capacity of every delegate to improve the sustainability and event impact strategies in their destinations by tapping into the expertise, experiences and tacit knowledge of their peers. The informal but innovative meeting design elements created new connections, unlocked new insights, and…

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USTA’s Twin Goals: Public Reassurance & Policymaker Persuasion

In this interview at the 2025 IMEX Place Leaders Forum, US Travel Association MD Group Travel Kevin Hinton explains the two critical sides of his job, and how USTA’s efforts in these dimensions interact to support the success of the US business events sector. Before they travel, overseas visitors to the US frequently receive inaccurate…

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Adelaide’s Focus on the Strategic Strengths of Its State Economy

COO of Business Events Adelaide Tony Saulters explains how his bureau focuses on the world-class specialisations in his destination when determining which events to target, assessing their potential importance not just on delegate numbers and expenditure, but on their capacity to drive inward investment and talent acquisition, and the extent to which they can facilitate…

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Conference Attendance Facing Increasing Barriers from Corporate Decision-Makers

Companies are placing conference attendance under a microscope, sending fewer employees than in previous years — or choosing not to send anyone at all. 56% of respondents to GBTA’s recent survey said their organisation has changed its meetings or events strategy in the past three months, with 24% saying they are reducing employee event attendance.

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The Heat is On

Across Europe, conferences and exhibitions help to shape cities, through visitor spend and supporting industrial strategies and economic development. Europe is experiencing a summer of ferocious heat, which scientists predict will become the ‘new normal’. AMI’s writers explore how the events industry is coping, responding, and thinking about the future.

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What Event Profs Should Start Measuring (And What Can Wait)

The process of designing and executing a seamless event is an art, but tracking and analysing all the metrics is definitely a science. The formula for success can vary from group to group, but there are some universal metrics that most planners should focus on — ones that go beyond total attendance and satisfaction scores.

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Prof. Greg Clark: “What Really Matters Is Place Leadership”

Speaking at this year’s Place Leaders Forum at IMEX Frankfurt, future of cities expert Prof. Greg Clark articulates the potential for business events to fulfil a pivotal role within destinations’ strategic thinking, thanks to the emergence of new competitive realities as we enter an era where the Innovation Economy interacts with the Experience Economy. Our…

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Cuts to UK Events Team Criticised as “Utterly Irrational and Entirely Counterproductive”

For years, the UK’s BE sector has been making the same case to government: we are more than tourism. Now, Parliament has said it too. The Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s new report is arguably the strongest political endorsement the sector has received, warning it risks falling behind without Government commitment to funding. From M&IT…

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“Keep It Fun, Keep It Feasible”

In August, the Louder Together “congrestival” will take place in Antwerp, combining a conference and festival where children, young people and teaching artists from around the world convene in a lively mix of theatre festival and scientific conference, with a clear ambition to create societal impact. From Flanders Convention Bureau…

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Copenhagen’s Life Science Meetings Edge

Copenhagen’s life science congresses are being asked to do more than convene international specialists. Through Valuable Meetings⁠, a MeetDenmark⁠ project supported by the Danish Board of Business Development, the city is exploring how congresses can become active platforms for sector development, connecting global associations with Danish research, healthcare, companies and innovation networks. From Boardroom…

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Postcards from the Associations World Congress 2026

Organised by the Association of Association Executives, the Associations World Congress took place in Portugal this year, setting up camp at the Lagoa Congress Centre and the Tivoli Carvoeiro Algarve Resort for three days of debate, collaboration, and an industry doing some serious reckoning with its own future. From Boardroom…

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Legacies of the Data for Good Exchange 2018

The Data for Good Exchange was introduced in 2014 as part of the 20th ACM SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining, and expanded to a standalone event the following year. This year the event tackled issues from gender equality and climate change to human genetics and the US census. Photo: Pablo Angulo Troconis. From…

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Global Business Events Worth $1 Trillion

Business events add more than $1 trillion to the global economy, preliminary results of the Events Industry Council’s first Global Economic Significance of Business Events study show. In 2017, according to the Iceberg partner’s report, business events brought together more than 1.4 billion participants in over 180 countries. From PCMA…

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Yokohama: The 22nd Human Genome Meeting

The 22nd Human Genome Meeting took place at PACIFICO Yokohama this March. Japanese scientists are at the forefront of genome research, including large-scale population sequencing, and much of that innovation and the institutions behind it cluster around the seaport of Yokohama, second-biggest city in Japan. From Boardroom…

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Marseille: Six Sectors Grow Conference Business

Thanks to a whole-city approach in promoting key sectors, the number of conferences staged in Marseille has been steadily growing. The recent World Conservation Congress win says a lot about the city’s presence on the international meetings scene. But six clusters of expertise are also shaping which association conferences Marseille attracts. From Boardroom…

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