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Addressing the Sustainability Question for Australia

Interim CEO of Destination Gold Coast in Australia and speaking at AIME 2023 in Melbourne, Karen Bolinger explains that Brisbane’s winning bid for the 2032 Olympics needs to leverage the opportunity to shine a light on the Gold Coast’s assets in the Allied Health Services, Education, Creative Film, and Business sectors using key ambassadors to…

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Embracing Health, Well-Being, and Sustainability in Business Events

By Pamela Wilton, Global Business Development at Destination Canada: As we navigate climate change, diversity and inclusion, and health and well-being, these themes have become increasingly intertwined with all aspects of our lives. Personally, I have been fortunate to delve deeper into these topics from the perspective of business events…

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Was the UN Water Conference a Watershed Moment?

In a time when over two billion people do not have access to clean drinking water and more than 700 children under the age of five die every day due to unsafe water, a more water-secure world should take center stage in all discussions aimed at our global future. From inkstickmedia.com…

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What the Events Industry is Doing to Achieve Net Zero by 2050

Alexander Alles, Executive Director, Joint Meetings Industry Council, and Iceberg Ambassador, talks to Trade Show News Network, in the lead up to Earth Day 2023, about Net Zero Carbon Events (NZCE), an initiative to connect the events industry globally to the rapidly growing movement toward net zero by 2050. From Trade Show News Network…

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Why Isn’t Sustainability as Important in the U.S. as in Europe?

Meetings Today interviewed James Rees, executive director, conference and events, ExCel London and former president of the International Congress and Convention Association, about the Net Zero Carbon Events initiative and other major sustainability efforts underway in Europe and North America. Listen to the Meetings Today Podcast…

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It’s Time for Associations to Own Their Conference Footprint

Associations are, ultimately, responsible for the carbon emissions produced by their meetings. Yet, when it comes to doing something about them, too many focus almost entirely on the supply chain – relying on host cities, venues, caterers etc. to provide evidence of how they are reducing their emissions. By James Lancaster, from Association Meetings International…

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Thoughts on a Social License for Tourism, Engagement & Alignment

Around the world, there’s a new course to be plotted as destination organizations look inward at stakeholders and residents and begin to address the organizational changes needed to facilitate that shift: marketing must have a local voice, budgets need to address a wider scope of projects throughout the community with diverse partners… From Simpleview…

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‘We Can’t Ignore the Science’

Earlier this year, PCMA announced a collaboration with the American Geophysical Union to further its action on climate change at events. Shawna McKinley, AMI expert contributor, asks Lauren Parr, Senior Vice President of Meetings and Learning at AGU how the union approaches this intention at its own events. From Association Meetings International…

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Taking The Lead on Destinations’ Social and Economic Development

Events have the power to build inclusive communities and better places to live, highlighting the extent to which meetings and conferences can contribute to a destination’s societal impact. This was one theme explored in a webinar hosted by GDS-Index, a sustainability benchmarking and improvement programme for destinations around the world. From Meetings & Conventions Asia…

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Facing Up to the Climate Challenge

Sustainability and climate scientist professor Kimberly Nicholas sums up the climate challenge concisely, stressing: “It’s warming. It’s us. We’re sure. It’s bad. We can fix it.” But what role do associations play? How is it us? And how can we fix it? From Association Meetings International…

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Kai Hattendorf: 2023’s Five International Trends to Watch

The CEO of Iceberg partner UFI, Kai Hattendorf (pictured right!) has been looking into his crystal ball yet again as the year ends. With the pandemic lingering in some territories, Russia’s war in Ukraine, inflation skyrocketing and the climate crisis, what are the key trends to see business events through 2023? From Exhibition News…

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Copenhagen Legacy Lab: Leading Global Legacy Creation

Copenhagen Convention Bureau launched the Copenhagen Legacy Lab in 2019 to bridge international congresses held in Copenhagen with the local public, business and science communities. This Iceberg partner lets global associations both to achieve their objectives and solve societal challenges through events, and it aims to create the world’s leading hub for legacy. From Meetings International…

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DI’s Jane Cunningham Talks Legacy and Net Zero Carbon Events

Jane Cunningham has worked for hotels, a convention centre, a DMO (destination marketing organisation) and a PCO (professional conference organiser). She has also worked for two Iceberg partners, BestCities Global Alliance and Destinations International. Here she offers her thinking on legacy and Net Zero Carbon Events. From Meetings International…

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How an Association Put Sustainability in Its RfP With GDS-Index

How does a desire to minimise the environmental impact of events fit into a traditional RfP (Request for Proposal)? This was the question asked by Guidelines International Network when sourcing a place to hold its international conference in 2023. The starting point was with Global Destination Sustainability Index, an Iceberg partner. From Association Meetings International…

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Book Extract: “Business Event Legacies” by Goodfellow

Last year Goodfellow Publishers released “Business Event Legacies: Global industry case studies”, from Carmel Foley, Deborah Edwards and Karin Weber. Previous work by Foley and Edwards includes the first JMIC Case Study published here on The Iceberg, and this book cites all of those studies. Here the volume’s content is outlined. From Meetings International…

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