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The associations sector is vast and diverse, but one community dealing with particular challenges is that of the medical associations. Significant demographic changes are changing how healthcare professionals work and meet together. Ben Hainsworth, Managing Director at EASL (home of hepatology) explains what these are. From Boardroom…
The meetings industry, very used to things “going viral”, is now dealing with a real virus crisis. One of this site’s favourite bloggers has distilled down five suggestions for survival. Stick with the facts. Postpone, don’t cancel. Make use of this “period of reflection”. Be kind. Remember, this too shall pass. From SoolNua’s Pádraic Gilligan at Padraicino…
Public views about COVID-19 have seemed to polarise around either very sensationalist panic or similarly dangerous complacency. Perhaps we should choose to hear neither of these extreme positions. The events industry is going to take a battering from this crisis. The sector should try to accept this. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
Organisers of the 2020 American Physical Society March Meeting opted to cancel their event due to concerns about bringing COVID-19 into Denver. With more than 10,000 attending, some from risk countries, the “gut-wrenching” call was taken “out of an abundance of caution”. But the decision was made less than two days before opening. From PCMA…
Geneviève Leclerc is Chief Executive Officer of #MEET4IMPACT, and the best person to ask the difference between “legacy” and “impact”. This Iceberg partner is now working with Tourism New Zealand on the project “Enrich New Zealand – Conference Impact”. This will measure outcomes of three meetings held over two years. From PCMA…
Action to fight climate change is a growing part of CSR. But companies are starting to align activities around all the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Meetings contribute to quality education, or SDG 4. The industry’s engagement on SDGs has now been surveyed by Fiona Pelham, CEO of Iceberg partner Positive Impact. From PCMA…
Many DMOs (Destination Marketing Organisations) have started to realise the true value of meetings and are tracking the social outcomes they deliver. Some governments include business events as part of policy. Karen Bolinger, Strategic Advisor at Iceberg partner BestCities Global Alliance, talks “beyond tourism” legacies. From City / Nation / Place…
Often legacies we leave behind are not as much under our control as we might like. Stylianos Filopoulos, Board Member of the European Society of Association Executives, argues that association leaders are not the sole drivers of association legacy, but caretakers who protect the vision that inspires and unites members and stakeholders. From Boardroom…
Despite not sending food waste to landfill sites for over a decade now, Olympia London has introduced new measures to make sure excess isn’t created in the first place. The venue has also partnered with the sustainability advocacy group WRAP, which runs the “Guardians of Grub” campaign, to track food waste. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Attendees at the recent UFI Global CEO Summit in Rome were granted a private audience in the Vatican’s Sala Clementina with Pope Francis. His Holiness said that trade fairs and exhibitions were benefitting regional economies while “showcasing to the wider world the rich diversity and beauty of local cultures and ecosystems”. From UFI…
Homeless hackathons, like those being held this year in Edinburgh, Montreal, Barcelona, Dundee and London, are one way for meetings to tackle this pressing social issue. The MD of organiser Gallus Events recently had a personal experience of homelessness outside COP25, the UN Climate Change Conference, in Madrid. From Association Meetings International…
The Iceberg recently published German Convention Bureau MD Matthias Schultze’s views about the multisite BOCOM conference being held this April. As the coronavirus crisis devastates the whole global meetings industry, this borderless communication event’s approach could perhaps not be more timely. From Matthias Schultze via LinkedIn…
As coronavirus isolates China from outside countries, Ping Liu, CEO of destination management company and professional congress organiser China Star, offers cultural views on how her business is approaching cancellations and postponements. Links to Professional Convention Management Association resources on coronavirus. Photo: Painjet. From PCMA…
Both the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild served meatless meals during their award ceremonies this January. Meatless meals were also served up at Convening Leaders in San Francisco, sponsored by Iceberg partner IMEX. There are many good reasons to go meatless, but it’s not always easy getting attendees to stomach the idea. From PCMA…
As global leaders form strategies to contain the spread of coronavirus, so also must event managers and owners. Four distinct requirements are critical to meet. That’s according to Sylvia André, the Vice President for Marketing and Communications at Iceberg partner MCI. The article links to Professional Convention Management Association resources on coronavirus. From PCMA…
“Conference shame” was the term used in a Bloomberg article about the threat to events of “the Greta effect”. So the sector now needs to get its “game face” on. Partners of the Iceberg IMEX, Positive Impact and GDS-Index have already done so. Photo: World Economic Forum / Manuel Lopez. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
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