A multi-year, international study of business events has found a mismatch between how governments value the sector and its broader long-term outcomes, with researchers recommending ways the industry can better document these legacies. The report is a compendium of the Joint Meetings Industry Council Case Studies hosted right here on The Iceberg. From Meetings International…
The £260 million Gateshead Quays will create more than 1,000 new jobs for the UK’s North East. The development, to be completed by 2023, has 6,300 square metres of exhibition space and 2,800 square metres of meeting rooms. There are also hotels, a performance area, and offsite parking. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Iceberg partners AIPC (the International Association of Convention Centres), together with ICCA (the International Congress and Convention Association) and UFI (the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry) have formed an alliance to collaborate on delivering comprehensive benefits to their respective members. Educational content, research, standards and advocacy will be the focus. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Food waste is a major concern for more than six of every ten meeting planners, according to the IACC annual Meeting Room of the Future report 2019. The survey also shows that 44 percent believe ethical operations and sustainable practice will be crucial for venues by 2024. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The Hague is using its role as host of the 2019 European Geothermal Congress to encourage further geothermal deployment across the continent. The destination aims to be carbon-neutral by 2030, and has at least four geothermal heating plants planned. EGC 2019 just took place at the World Forum. From Association Meetings International…
Professor Eileen Murphy, head of Archaeology and Palaeoecology at Queen’s University Belfast, helped secure the European Association of Archaeology’s annual conference for the city in 2022. A Northern Ireland Ambassador, Murphy worked with the convention bureau at Visit Belfast in bidding for the meeting, expected to generate £3.8 million for city coffers. From Association Meetings International…
The Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company has secured a VAT waiver for international organisations that hold events at its UAE venues. The exemption covers exhibitions and conferences not exceeding seven days in length whose owners don’t have a permanent base in the UAE. ADNEC says the move will enhance competitiveness. Photo: Aravind Sivaraj. From Association Meetings International…
Paris, which recently topped ICCA’s City Rankings for international association meetings, will host the European Society for Medical Oncology’s annual congress in 2021. ESMO is holding its first flagship meeting in the city at the Paris Convention Centre and Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. Almost 30,000 cancer specialists are expected. From Association Meetings International…
The Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau has launched a “Meet Special Bonus” to secure more major events. The bonus of THB 50,000 ($1,628) is for planners holding an event with at least 100 international delegates staying for least three nights and using a venue recognised by the Thailand MICE Venue Standard. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Food waste is a universal problem, a lesson in Moroccan manners clearly shows. In the latest Meeting Room of the Future report from IACC, 62 percent of planners consider how a venue manages its waste before booking. 54 percent want to know if it buys from sustainable sources. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
Hamburg Convention Bureau is busy profiling the city as a medical hub. So is the soon-to-reopen CCH – Congress Center Hamburg. Home to internationally renowned doctors and hospitals, over 169,000 people work in Hamburg’s healthcare sector, or one employee in seven. As a result the city is securing one medical congress after another. From Boardroom…
On the occasion of 2019’s Global Exhibitions Day (GED), UFI, the industry’s global association, is launching a new report and online database. These will track initiatives and projects in the global exhibitions business shaped around the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. This resource, a first of its kind, aims to showcase work done…
Unlike anything humanity has experienced before, the current scale, scope and complexity of change is shaking foundations society has accepted as the norm. Five converging megaforces present destinations with both tremendous opportunities and challenges: climate breakdown, ecocide, demographic shift, social change and digitalisation. The meetings and events industry supports 26 million jobs, $1.5 trillion in global…
Austria’s largest congress centre, Austria Center Vienna, has revealed that 2018 was the most successful year in its three-decade history. The venue generated €14.85 million (£13 million) and also welcomed 136,000 international delegates, representing a 29 percent year-on-year increase in visitor numbers. From Association Meetings International…
The Scottish Event Campus has had its most successful year since 2014 and the Commonwealth Games. Trading turnover increased by 21 percent to £35.1 million, and contributed an average of £1.5 million per day to the Glasgow economy in 2018 – 19, a total of £457 million over the year. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The Palais des congrès de Montréal has put together a Sustainability Innovation Committee made up of experts from institutions including ten Quebec universities. The group’s purpose will be to facilitate sharing academic research in the field, and to identify research partnership opportunities between the venue and sustainability organisations. From Boardroom…
ICC Wales has demonstrated a strong commitment to attracting major international association meetings by launching a drive at Swansea University recruiting for its Ambassador Wales Programme. The scheme aims to establish a network of patriotic professionals who will be championing the country as a conference and event destination. From Association Meetings International…
The International Association for Suicide Prevention has selected the Gold Coast to host its 31st World Congress in 2021. The meeting will bring together around 800 mental health professionals, academics, crisis workers, teachers and suicide survivors from around the world. The bid was a collaborative effort with strong local support. From Boardroom…
Professionals from right across the business events industry have been honoured in Frankfurt at the IMEX Gala Dinner. The 2019 JMIC Unity Award went to Joachim König, Director of Hannover Congress Centrum. Emile Coetzee from North-West University in South Africa won the MPI Foundation / Maritz Global Events Student Scholarship Award. From the Event…
A legacy of awareness around visual impairment was created during IMEX in Frankfurt with the holding of a “Dialogue in the Dark” workshop. Hosted by industry association IAPCO, and the business events teams of both Dubai and Melbourne, it all started with a blindfold. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
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