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To have international association meetings looking anything like they did before COVID-19, either of two things must happen: enough host countries push their daily case rate down to nearly zero so overseas delegations become possible, or else science comes to the rescue with a vaccine or treatment(s). From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
The complete global shutdown of in person meetings has meant many are now getting out of the habit. Non-Executive Director with BCD M&E and the Exclusive Collection David Taylor offers an account of his first face-to-face meeting since the imposition of lockdown, which he says (spoiler alert!) “felt good”. From Association Meetings International…
Europe’s largest medical meeting in radiology and radiotechnology, the European Congress of Radiology, was held exclusively online for the first time this year. A record 15,265 delegates from over 130 countries took part, an increase of five percent in delegate numbers from the 2019 edition. From Association Meetings International…
In times like the current pandemic, how can associations begin to plan for the years ahead when decisions they are taking today may no longer be valid even in the very near future? Association not-for-profit AC Forum explains how its members anticipate changes in the sector and in their events. From Boardroom…
Martin Sirk is International Advisor for Iceberg partner GAH (Global Association Hubs). In a sharp reality check for the business events sector, he warns that successful reopening relies on a much wider containment of the pandemic than the industry on its own can ever achieve. The economy and health are not zero-sum trade-offs or parallel-track…
The largest business-to-business, face-to-face exhibition in the US, CES 2021, has moved to being an online, all-digital event. In 2019 CES had 170,000 visitors, 6,000 media, plus 4,000 exhibiting businesses from every corner of the world. The early pivot sent shock waves across an industry already devastated by the pandemic. From UFI…
The UK’s Conservative Party will be hosting its annual conference at Birmingham in 2022, 2024 and 2026. The event has alternated between ICC Birmingham and Manchester Central since 2008. Both used to be Labour heartlands, which shows the legacies that come from targeting a specific destination. From editor’s blog at Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Months now into the COVID-19 pandemic we are awash in sector pronouncements and assertions, even if the route to recovery in this challenging situation remains rather unpredictable. But the recent global manifesto from the Joint Meetings Industry Council is a little different. So says JMIC’s Executive Director Rod Cameron…
In planning a hybrid or digital event, content is key to success. Panelists said as much during the first hybrid webinar of The Hague Convention Bureau. Talking through the viability of such events were a corporate and two association planners, a meeting design expert and a hotel executive. Article includes webinar video. From PCMA…
In the UK many industry associations have produced their own COVID-19 safety guidelines. While a measure showing initiative and real thirst to restart, this has caused confusion among planners over which label to seek out. List compiled before the Government-approved All Secure Standard was launched. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
After months of lockdown, many countries are just now gradually reopening events. This is not just countries that have suppressed the pandemic, but also many where the situation remains uncertain during a second wave of cases. So how do events look in a COVID-19 world? From Rod Kamleshwaran of the Iceberg partner GainingEdge via LinkedIn…
Associations are perfectly placed to reshape the world emerging from lockdown. They are repositories of expertise and best practice. They are trusted curators of information. They connect people all around the world and provide lifelong learning beyond university. But is this an opportunity they will grasp? From Association Meetings International…
COVID-19 has forced a rethinking of travel. Many conferences have been cancelled. Some have gone virtual. This analysis looks at actions that might reduce conference travel emissions by up to 90 percent, including holding a conference biennially in accessible locations, plus having both regional hubs and more virtual events. From Nature…
When ASN (the American Society for Nutrition) decided to switch its live event set for late May in Seattle to all-virtual just sixty days before the meeting, the organising team of ten didn’t know what to expect from the pivot. Nutrition 2020 typically draws 3,500 delegates, but about 30,000 attended the virtual version. From PCMA…
In the rush to pivot strategies for the new normal, it’s easy to lose sight of what matters for an association and its members. Here is a guide to this transformative shift for associations and their congresses, including the delegates, sponsors and technology: the myths, facts and opportunities around virtual events. From MCI…
The webinar that The Iceberg just produced on JMIC’s Manifesto for Economic Recovery Using Business Events contained a section on the document promoting the use of business events as a means of addressing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Fiona Pelham, the CEO of Iceberg partner Positive Impact Events, picks up that baton. COVID-19 has changed the…
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