In the wake of so many meetings cancelling due to the COVID-19 crisis, and the resultant economic losses, the Founder of The Iceberg James Latham has been discussing how event organisers are reacting, and why the sector could be leading the charge when business does start to return to normal. From Duetto…
The coronavirus crisis is the biggest challenge ever faced by the events industry. Get ready for business as extremely unusual. In an editorial posted before the United Kingdom locked down, one Iceberg partner promised the UK meetings industry “to amplify its voice at every turn”. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Meeting planners should be working with hospitality partners to donate leftover food from events cancelled due to the coronavirus crisis or for any other reason. The non-profit Food Rescue US works in seventeen of the fifty United States, facilitating the logistics of meetings donating their excess food. From PCMA…
Linda Pereira is CEO of the L&I Communications Group. A professional congress organiser firmly based in Portugal but with huge international experience, the “Destination Diva”‘s smile is a familiar sight right across the global meetings industry community. In this Iceberg exclusive video, however, Pereira’s assessment of the damage COVID-19 has now caused the sector is sobering to…
Iceberg partner the IMEX Group has cancelled meetings industry trade show IMEX Frankfurt 2020, due to take place in May. IMEX Chairman Ray Bloom and CEO Carina Bauer released a joint statement revealing the news, in which the pair said the decision had been made with “deep sadness and heavy hearts”. From Association Meetings International…
Toulouse is the fourth French city to join Iceberg partner GDS-Index (the Global Destination Sustainability Index). The Toulouse Convention Bureau intends to use membership to map and showcase its business tourism partners’ initiatives around sustainable development. Bordeaux, Lyon and Nantes have already joined the GDS-Index. From Boardroom…
Iceberg partner M&IT’s 2020 Awards saw over 1,200 event professionals celebrating the industry at Battersea Evolution in London. For the 14th year in a row, Glasgow Convention Bureau was named the UK’s best. The former CAT Media Managing Director Martin Lewis was named “Personality of the Year”. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
What’s the number one challenge facing business events? When this question was posed in November 2019 by Convene as part of its 29th Annual Meetings Market Survey, just a few answers talked about dealing with the unknown. One respondent alone cited the management of risk, and specifically of epidemic risk, as a challenge. 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…
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…
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…
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…
Wellness continues to be a topic highlighted in both professional circles as well as in our personal lives. For this 2020 study, the Incentive Research Foundation explored how wellness is specifically represented in incentive travel programmes as well as in general meeting types. Of the individuals surveyed for this report, 68 percent noted that wellness…
You are what you eat! But food isn’t just about physical health, it’s about mental health as well. So, in an industry where mental health is increasingly being scrutinised, how can food control mood? Beyond Food: Food and Mental Health (Lime Venue Portfolio website, registration required) Top Five Tips to Munch Your Way to Good…
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