“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. When the US Supreme Court recently upheld Trump Travel Ban III, Vancouver quickly tweeted out a welcome mat. But here’s a tale of two cities, New York and San Francisco, that insist the US is still open for business. From PCMA Convene…
Recently Successful Meetings sent out a survey to its readership about their international events. While most planners responding thought the number they held in 2018 would stay the same, almost a third said it would increase, and only six percent decrease. Cost, travel time and language barrier are still the top challenges. From Successful Meetings…
Both the Global Business Travel Association and Association of Corporate Travel Executives Global have expressed strong concerns about the US Supreme Court’s upholding of the third Trump travel ban on visitors from several mostly Muslim countries. By 5 to 4 the court rejected a challenge around discrimination and exceeding authority. Photo: Joe Ravi. From Meetings & Conventions…
Meetings Professionals International’s World Education Congress has just concluded in Indianapolis, having welcomed around 2,200 attendees. Since WEC 2017 MPI had totally reimagined the event, and the 2018 running was certainly eventful, even to the extent of a Sudanese-Australian speaker being unable to attend because of a US visa waiver refusal. From Meetings & Conventions…
Although it may seem dramatic, the eruption of Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano has had little effect on meetings or incentives, the Big Island’s hotels and resorts being on the other side of the island. Meet Hawaii has said that there’s no need to change plans to visit the archipelago’s islands. Photo: Brocken Inaglory. From Successful Meetings…
Nine industry organisations, including partners of The Iceberg, have formed a coalition to combat sexual harassment. The partnership includes the American Society of Association Executives, the Events Industry Council, the IMEX Group, the Joint Meetings Industry Council, Meeting Professionals International, the Professional Convention Management Association, and the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence. From Meetings & Conventions…
The last minute cancellation of an academic conference in 2012 due to an approaching hurricane caused a sizeable decline in collaboration and research, a study from the University of Kent has shown. Two days before the American Political Science Association Annual Meeting was due to begin in New Orleans, Hurricane Isaac forced cancellation. From Meetpie.com…
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo may have met North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, but we now know that President Trump’s face-to-face with the Supreme Leader on June 12th won’t take place. Before it was officially cancelled, one Iceberg partner pondered the pressures for organisers of such meetings. From editor’s blog at Meetpie.com…
Istanbul’s standing as a destination for international association meetings is in tatters, with ICCA’s city rankings suggesting that its popularity for conferences has collapsed. For years the city proudly occupied a top ten position. Because of terrorism and other political turmoil, it dropped first to 39th place, and this year to 133rd. From Association Meetings International…
In 2016 Turkey’s largest city Istanbul claimed eighth spot in ICCA’s much-trumpeted city rankings. Today it is in 133rd place. Over the past 24 months the city has suffered deadly terrorist attacks, a failed coup, and a series of purges against its citizens, including teachers, journalists and lawyers. From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
Even before the leaders of North and South Korea shook hands over the Demilitarized Zone border, plans were already being made for a possible meeting between Kim Jong-un and US President Trump. Is this political coup the legacy of an event: the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang? From editor’s blog at Association Meetings International…
Proposed Trump administration legislation, if approved next month, will require most US visa applicants to relinquish all their social media identities from the previous five years. Convention bureaux across the country have already reacted, but what will the move mean for visiting international delegates? From editor’s blog at Assocation Meetings International…
As the last athlete leaves the Commonwealth Games Village, work will begin on transforming it into the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct. The new district is near two hospitals and a university, and the Games’ real legacy could be one of the most advanced health and knowledge innovation hubs in the Asia-Pacific. From CIM News Magazine…
Convention bureaux in the US have responded to proposals by the Trump administration that would require most visa applicants to submit details of their social media accounts. Under strict new vetting procedures, details of accounts held in the last five years on sites like Twitter and Facebook would be required. From Meetpie.com…
The organiser of the UK Rail Industry Awards has apologised after the ceremony featured a mock terror assault. The awards at Battersea Evolution were being held on the first anniversary of the Westminster Bridge attack. As well as the spoof terror stunt, complaints were also made about language and humour used during the event. From Meetpie.com…
The financial services event Sibos is heading back to Sydney in October and already looking to create new legacies in the destination (see JMIC Case Studies). Organisers SWIFT have launched the 2018 SWIFT Institute Challenge, which tasks Australian students with devising new ways of protecting personal information in an open banking environment. From CIM News Magazine…
Cape Town is to bid for more incentive travel business over the next twelve months, as it sends out the message that the region is still open for business. The city is currently suffering one of the worst droughts in its history, and could actually even run out of water. From Meetpie.com…
Puerto Rico has worked hard to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Maria last year. But its comeback is far from over. In January, the governor submitted a troubling forecast: an eleven percent contraction for the economy and an eight percent population drop for next year. Can business events ensure a brighter future? From PCMA…
Most meetings and events organisations aren’t meeting minimum standards of risk-managment protocols for attendees. That’s according to a survey conducted by iJET International and GoldSpring Consulting. The report, “Achilles Heel: Meetings & Events Risk Managment Lags Corporate Travel Programs,” is based on responses from more than 400 planners and decision makers. From Meetings & Conventions…
In November the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) welcomed a record number of delegates to its 56th annual congress. Almost 1,300 members, including more than 40 association executives, travelled to Prague for four days of education, chapter meetings and networking. During the event, the inaugural winners of the “Incredible Impacts” grants supported by both…
The business events industry is changing faster than perhaps ever before. Each year we see new and exciting developments brought about by rapid evolution of technology, growing understanding of how business events can create value, and changing priorities and expectations of host organisations and their delegates. So what’s next? From Lyn Lewis-Smith via LinkedIn…
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