Iceberg partner UFI has released the first economic impact assessment on global exhibitions and trade shows of COVID-19. At least €23 billion ($26.3 billion) total worth of contracts have not concluded with shows not taking place as planned. The industry’s economic output in total is down €14.4 billion ($16.5 billion). From UFI…
A major meeting of accountants and lawyers about to have taken place in Cape Town has been cancelled amid fears of COVID-19. Organiser INSOL International, a federation of smaller associations, was expecting up to 1,000 delegates, and the decision to cancel could cause the organisation “significant hardship” with refunds. From Association Meetings International…
The decision to cancel a conference in Denver over COVID-19 fears has left some of its more than 10,000 delegates perplexed and angry. The 55,000-member American Physical Society, a professional association for physicists, cancelled its largest meeting of the year less than 48 hours before it was due to open. From Association Meetings International…
The 13th International Conference on Advanced Technologies and Treatments for Diabetes has just been held in Madrid, Spain. Despite massive event cancellations due to the COVID-19 crisis, the meeting brought together more than 3,800 healthcare professionals from 81 countries, start-ups and investors, reaching a new delegate record. From Boardroom…
Iceberg partner IMEX has just taken the “devastating decision” to cancel IMEX Frankfurt. Citing the danger of the German health ministry forcing a last minute shutdown very close to the trade show’s opening this May, the meetings industry stalwart has just given the sector a textbook lesson in how to make a difficult call. From PCMA…
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…
GESS Dubai is a global exhibition showcasing educational products, plus a CPD accredited conference. Held at the end of February, the 13th edition of the show was to feature a Chinese pavilion with 30 companies confirmed as exhibiting. Ten, plus one more international exhibitor, cancelled participation because of the COVID-19 crisis. From UFI…
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…
Julia Sonnemann, PR Manager for ITB Berlin, was all smiles during a press conference on February 19th. On February 28th, days before its opening, the travel and tourism trade fair was forced to cancel because it couldn’t meet local health authority requirements on COVID-19. Sonnemann now picks through the difficult decisions that were faced. From EventMB…
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…
Associations sit right at the heart of the legacy debate in business events. During the recent Dubai Association Conference, sessions focused on both the societal legacies they can leave and the strategies necessary to leave them. The emirate itself is a major hub for the sector, having set up the Dubai Association Centre in 2014….
The purpose of this document is to outline key planning considerations for organisers of mass gatherings in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak. It should be read in conjunction with the World Health Organization’s Public Health for Mass Gatherings: Key Considerations, which provides general advice on the public health aspects of mass gathering events. It…
ITB Berlin, the international travel and tourism trade fair, has been cancelled just days before opening over fears of spreading COVID-19. The health authority of the Berlin district was requiring all delegates to prove they were not from a risk area and had not been in contact with anyone who is. From International Flight Network…
The Geneva International Motor Show has been cancelled days before opening after the Swiss government put an immediate ban on events involving more than 1,000 people to halt the spread of the new coronavirus. Planners called it a case of force majeure, or unpredictable circumstances that obviate liabilities in contracts. From Meetings & Conventions…
Singapore’s meetings industry has been badly hit by the coronavirus outbreak, with a string of significant association events withdrawing from the city as a result to mitigate their risk. The Association of Corporate Counsel, The International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition and also Alzheimers Disease International have all cancelled or postponed. From Association Meetings International…
Hundreds of attendees at a London conference have been emailed by health officials after a delegate was diagnosed as having COVID-19. The patient, who has not been identified, had attended the UK Bus Summit at the QEII Centre. The email warned delegates with a fever or cough to self-isolate and seek advice. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
What next? The question is haunting meeting and event planners as the COVID-19 shows its contempt for national borders. There’s now grim fascination in seeing organisations responding quite differently to the unfolding crisis, and what this then says about our attitude to “known unknowns”. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
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…
Global Pet Expo, run by APPA (the American Pet Products Association), is taking place at Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center, despite bans preventing nearly 150 Chinese exhibitors from now entering the US. Andrew Darmohraj, APPA’s Executive Vice President and COO, has been “navigating the uncharted territory” COVID-19 presents. From PCMA…
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