Marjorie Anderson, the Founder of Community by Association, tells the Deep Dive podcast how associations should be addressing DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). After definitive definitions of DEI, the conversation looks at how to be more inclusive at conferences, accommodating those delegates with impaired hearing or mobility, or with neurodiversity or photosensitivity. From Association Meetings International…
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has seen international associations with either Russian or Belarusian members, or exhibitors, or events planned, forced to take hard decisions fast, and hold difficult discussions about ending or suspending long-standing, lucrative collaborations. Ioannis Pallas, the European Society of Association Executives’ Association Manager, offers a guide. From Associations Meetings International…
International Women’s Day, which has now been marked for over a century, offers the opportunity to remember the key conferences and other events that have helped move the needle on women’s rights. The 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women (pictured) in Beijing, China, featured participation by future Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. From PCMA…
Australia’s recent reopening to the world, and the lifting of domestic border closures and restrictions, makes this an important moment in the county’s business events sector. Andrew Hiebl, the CEO of AACB (the Association of Australian Convention Bureaux), discusses the upcoming pipeline plus Tourism Australia’s Business Events Bid Fund. From Association Meetings International…
Over thirty charities have benefited from the materials used at last year’s COP26 as part of the positive legacy of the UK’s largest business event ever, which was held in Glasgow. Identity Group, which delivered the meeting for the UK’s Government and venue SEC, tasked Event Cycle with redistributing materials. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Carola van der Hoeff is the new President of AC Forum (Associations and Conference Forum). In a broad interview on the Deep Dive podcast she discusses restarting association events, changing business models, building back better and organising her first webinar. As well as that, she looks forward to face-to-face IMEX meetings. From Associations Meetings International…
According to Nikki Walker, who is Global Vice President Engagement, Associations and Communities at Iceberg partner MCI, associations are craving to get back to meeting face-to-face, yet prefer to hold a fully virtual substitute rather than hybrid. In this Deep Dive podcast, Walker examines how associations have evolved through COVID. From Associations Meetings International…
“Mini-Grants” for diversity, equity and inclusion are being used by the US Brewers Association to ferment legacy at craft beer sector events. One meeting funded was a 2021 hybrid conference at which local female music producers created beats inspired by different craft beers to attract new consumers. From Associations Now…
The recent BestCities Global Forum explored how legacy-building with every conference can quickly lead to dramatic change. A trio of videos from the Iceberg partner event examines the ESTRO Madrid Project which yielded a €700 million legacy for cancer patients, the new Madrid PLUS tool for creating legacy, and the personal legacy of BestCities’ Jane Cunningham….
Re-imagining the future of events during a global pandemic is one of the industry’s biggest challenges. During the 2020 ICCA Congress, Iceberg partner ICCA delivered the Kaohsiung Protocol as a strategic recovery framework to guide the global meetings and events industry forward. Now, thanks to the guidance and input of its global community, ICCA is…
COVID-19 has accelerated the delivery of events in a digital environment, thus impacting the way participants make the decision to attend and engage in events. Best practices are rapidly changing with few benchmarks to guide success for organisations delivering business events across various factors and formats. PCMA and the AC Forum embarked on a research…
This report does its best to lean on both empirical evidence and highly credible opinion, that give a glimpse into both the immediate and long-term futures the industry faces. It looks at the past to predict the future, but also finds “grass root” trends that may grow to dominate how the sector goes about its…
The Strategic Alliance of the National Convention Bureaux of Europe has published a white paper on The Future Role and Purpose of Convention Bureaux, providing a shared vision of the convention bureau of the future and a visionary roadmap for further developing the role of convention bureaux in the coming decade. Intended as a conversation…
Malaysia’s MyCEB, with help from the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture and the Economic Planning unit, will soon introduce a 3R (Reset, Restart and Responsible) recovery programme for business events. MyCEB will reduce travel costs to Malaysia for international delegates, and provide full COVID-19 insurance and PCR test costs. From TTGmice…
Iceberg partner the IMEX Group has posted new dates for IMEX Frankfurt 2022. Organisers say they are now intending to run their trade show from May 31st to June 2nd and to give the global meetings, incentive travel and events industry a further five weeks to prepare after Omicron chaos. From Conference News…
The crucial role played by meetings in developing economies has been underscored with Business Events Sarawak’s revelation it had secured RM3 billion ($718 million) in business from conferences. Now marking its fifteenth anniversary, the convention bureau also intends deeper societal impact, with half of bid wins to be legacy-driven. From Association Meetings International…
PCMA Editor-in-Chief Michelle Russell drew our attention to this discussion of how the model of scientific conference should be changing in the wake of the pandemic. It contains a fantastic example of serendipitous legacy, a chance meeting at a conference in Puerto Rico leading to some Nobel prize-winning CRISPR gene editing. From Chemistry World…
Fay Sharpe, Founder of the mentorship programme Fast Forward 15, was awarded an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s New Year’s honours for services to mentoring women, gender equality and charity fundraising. Sharpe has also retraced her career on M&IT’s Talks podcast. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
If attendees are missing the chance encounter at virtual events, the lack of “liminal” space in the environment may be the culprit. This can also be missing at in person events. Julius Solaris, VP of Marketing Strategy, Events at event tech company Hopin, gives us a new idea for planned serendipity, “liminality”. From PCMA…
Companies at Convening Leaders’ Tech Village at Caesars Forum were asked to identify what has changed about digital attendee experiences during 2021. The need for quality content with no “fluff” or “friction”, the opportunity for event delegates to socialise, and the chance to reach a global audience were among the key takeaways. From PCMA…
The UK events industry as a whole is a vastly fragmented animal, before the pandemic worth £84 billion to the country every year. This leading article from Martin Fullard is a direct message for the UK’s Government, which calls for the industry now to be shown the respect it deserves. From Conference News…
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