Thursday November 29th
DAY03
The next frontier
The meetings industry is one big collaborative engine: services, creativity, experiences, logistics, production… all put together to impact on the attendees and change behaviour. “I love how different people at the show
PHOTO OF THE DAY
come together, the sense of community is very strong and this is so inspiring,” said exhibition director for IBTM World David Thompson. According to a study conducted through MPI’s partnership with the Events Industry Council, our industry makes a direct contribution to the worldwide economy of more than $1,07tn, and $2.5tn if you include the indirect impact, this is no small achievement. Beyond the direct and the
indirect economic impacts, destinations and all industry players are realising the value of meetings can be huge: social and cultural legacy, investment opportunities, professional education and improvement in health. As a result, some DMOs start looking beyond tourism like Auckland, which has a Tourism, Events and Economic Development office. Legacy is especially important as David Noack Pérez from the Madrid Convention Bureau
Go wild in Estonia
Global Air takes flight in Kazakhstan
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explains: “We are working with medical societies which ask us to define a project in which the congress leaves a lasting impact; so we show concrete changes in the way this medical discipline will work better locally after the congress, involving all stakeholders.” He shared how in some medical societies, the destination selection is based more on a legacy than on the technical project.
Continued on page 11
Co-winners of IBTM World Tech Watch Awards bring face recognition to our industry Page 19