Event industry professionals across the globe are being asked for their comments and commitments on how the sector can support UN Sustainable Development Goals. Survey responses will be analysed by Iceberg partner Positive Impact, and those completed before 1st September 2019 will form an “acceleration action” shared with the UN. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Recently getting soaked leaving an exhibition during a downpour, The Iceberg’s curator has already had cause to note events no longer issuing plastic bags at registration, but now handing out cotton totes. But are these actually any kinder to the environment? UK and Danish studies think not. From editor’s blog at Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Glasgow Convention Bureau has reported an almost £1 million boost to the city’s economy after hosting the recent 27th International Input-Output Association Conference. The IIOA meeting was in the UK for the first time and attracted a record number of delegates from nearly fifty countries. Sustainability was critical in its staging. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
UK events budgets have defied the trend of total marketing budgets during the second quarter of 2019, showing solid growth and extending the climb of recent quarters. So says the Q2 2019 IPA Bellwether Report. The rise in events spend contrasts with flatlining marketing overall amid growing political and economic uncertainty. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Iceberg partner European Cities Marketing, in collaboration with TCI Research, has used analysis of over a million social media postings to study the reputation of destinations across Europe. The City Sentiment Index Report reveals the theme of MICE scoring highest intensity in London, and highest positivity in Oslo (pictured). From European Cities Marketing…
Legitimate research meetings are now under threat from “predatory” conferences. These unscholarly events are organised for profit and publish anything sent their way for a fee. One even passed a nuclear physics paper written using iOS autocomplete. Could tracking the meetings as well as the research be the answer? From Paul Killoran via Boardroom…
As Boris Johnson was appointed new Prime Minister of the UK, Events Industry Board Chair Michael Hirst was speaking about Brexit and government involvement in the meetings and events industry. He also discussed how advocacy always has to start over again, engaging with new ministers after Cabinet reshuffle turnover. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
What will the meetings industry look like in 2029? New tech, spiralling travel costs, legislation about the environment and “flight guilt” will transform the sector. The industry will still thrive. The need to “meet” will not go away. But “meeting” will more often be through a screen. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
What’s trending around the globe in the events industry? With the help of its international partners, Maritz Global Events investigated the current state of the field and narrowed down the top five trends affecting the event industry right now. These global experts and local champions from the industry share their take, and provide a diverse…
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…
Any manifestation of political instability can have a devastating effect on a destination’s perceived attractiveness for staging major events. Stuart Bailey, the CEO of a Hong Kong-based exhibition and conference organiser, believes that international impressions of the special administrative region’s recent protests are overblown, and should not deter either business or leisure visitors. From UFI…
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…
The head of tourism association Destinations International says his organisation spends a lot of its energy and resources doing battle with politicians around the world on behalf of members facing financial and legislative challenges. CEO Don Welch was speaking out at IMEX about issues like “over-tourism” and womens’ and LGBTQ rights. From Association Meetings International…
The University of Warwick has won a bid to plan, organise and host the 18th International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists in 2020. Held every three years, ICWES is the world’s largest symposium for women scientists and engineers and will attract to the college about 500 international delegates. From Association Meetings International…
At IMEX Frankfurt last week the usual sector promotion and celebration was clearly on display. Concern about the industry’s future, though, was also common in discussion, particularly on sustainability and the health of group bookings overall. The former has become an area of increasing focus, with the aim of reducing future political risk. From Skift…
An international conference on the buying and selling of endangered animals and plants has been postponed following the Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka. CoP18, or the 18th Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, was to have taken place from May into June in Colombo. From Association Meetings International…
The Easter Sunday bomb attacks carried out in Sri Lanka have “directly implicated” International Congress and Convention Association hotel members, according to ICCA CEO, Sri Lanka-born Senthil Gopinath. As a gesture of solidarity, Gopinath has announced that ICCA will pay its respects to the victims during a chapter meeting at IMEX Frankfurt. From Association Meetings International…
Six bomb attacks on Easter Sunday may have destroyed a decade of economic recovery in Sri Lanka that was largely reliant on tourism. The attacks left 253 people dead (revised Ministry figure), with several hundred injured, at churches and five-star hotels. As a result, venues and inbound DMCs have been deluged with cancellations. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
The recent terror attacks in Sri Lanka have devastated a country enjoying resurgent tourism since the end of civil war a decade ago. It is crucial that the international community, especially in incentive travel, does not abandon the destination. Rajeev Kohli is joint MD of Creative Travel DMC, which has operations in Sri Lanka. From PCMA…
Recently almost sixty incentive travel professionals took planes, trains and automobiles from sixteen countries to Verbier, Switzerland, to attend the inaugural Society of Incentive Travel Excellence’s SITE Incentive Summit Europe. SITE’s Chief Marketing Officer now reports on the four day alpine excursion of connections, education and destination discovery. From SoolNua’s Pádraic Gilligan at Padraicino…
A global initiative to address plastic use at events has just been launched by Iceberg partner Positive Impact, supported by the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau. The campaign is collecting usage data as well as encouraging the switch to alternative materials, and began when the two organisations’ CEOs met at a conference. From PCMA…
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