Convening EMEA by PCMA
Join Tia Daniels and the majority of our BestCities Global Alliance partner cities at Convening EMEA, PCMA EMEA’s flagship event, where the business events industry gathers for a transformative 3-day program.
Convening EMEA, is happening on September 20 to 22 in Copenhagen. The event is expected to bring in over 450 leaders from over 40 countries from the business events industry.
Convening EMEA provides a platform where business events leaders can share knowledge and best practices, build their professional networks, and find more ways to grow and thrive in the business.
This year, BestCities is a strategic partner. As such, you may contact Tia for more information on how to receive a free registration through our Hosted Buyer Programme.
Global Forum Melbourne
Join the BestCities Global Alliance in Melbourne, Australia, as we bring together industry leaders, international associations, and partner destinations.
In a special move, we’re hosting the next Global Forum in January 2024, coinciding with the Australian Open tennis tournament. Extend your stay to enjoy the matches and take advantage of Melbourne’s vibrant events calendar, curated by BestCities and the Melbourne Convention Bureau to elevate your conference experience.
Global Forum Melbourne will delve into the power of in-person meetings, fostering meaningful connections and purpose for planners, associations, and delegates.
Get ready for engaging workshops, insightful presentations, and immersive experiences across Melbourne, showcasing the value of face-to-face learning and collaboration. Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a transformative event!
Stay tuned for further announcements.
Changes to Incredible Impacts Programme
Together with ICCA, we have unveiled changes to our Incredible Impacts Programme: a program that celebrates the profound “beyond tourism” value of international association meetings, providing a global platform for impactful events and recognizing their contributions with a significant cash reward.
The biggest change is in the reward: starting this year, the Incredible Impacts Programme will present a single association with a grant of $20,000, marking a change from previous years when three grants of $7,500 were awarded.
The new selection process involves finalists presenting at the #ICCACongress, where attendees can vote for the winner.
Additionally, a $5,000 seed grant is available for associations establishing new legacy programs.
These updates reflect a commitment to advancing impact in the meetings industry and creating a better future. Stay tuned for more updates on this game-changing programme!
Click here for more information about the changes.
BestCities Welcomes Loren Christie as New Managing Director
Join us in extending a warm welcome to Loren Christie, our new Managing Director here at BestCities Global Alliance.
His impressive background in travel, tourism, and broadcast television and his passion for legacy and inclusion make him the perfect fit for this role. As he takes the reins from Lesley Williams, we’re excited to witness his leadership in action.
Loren will guide our operations, emphasizing our commitment to legacy and sustainability and driving the global impact of meetings and events. Together with our team, board of directors, and member destinations, we’re poised for even greater success in the future.
Updates from our partner cities
July and the following months continue to be eventful for our partner cities as we all continue to make a mark in the global MICE industry. Here’s a round-up of what’s happening in our partner cities.
Berlin
World Health Summit 2023
Once again, the World Health Summit (WHS) will be held in Berlin from 15 to 17 October 2023. An estimated 2.000 high-ranking participants from academia, politics, the private sector and civil society are gathering at JW Marriott Hotel Berlin. Under the theme “Building a Resilient Future: Strengthening Health Systems for All”, the WHS 2023 aims to foster collaboration, innovation, and knowledge exchange to tackle the pressing challenges in global health. Three of the central topics are going to be – Learning from COVID-19 for Future Pandemic Prevention, Recommitting to universal Health coverage and Sustainable Health for People and Planet.
WeAreDevelopers World Congress in Berlin
At the end of July, the WeAreDevelopers World Congress will take place in Berlin. The WAD is an annual event that focuses on promoting technology, innovation and development. The aim is to create a platform where professionals and experts can share their knowledge, experiences and new perspectives. The conference also addresses topics such as diversity and inclusion in the tech industry, developer education and training, and ethical and social aspects of technology.
Gerry Schneider, the organizer of the WAD, on why they chose Berlin as the venue:
“Berlin has become one of the leading technology hubs in Europe and is home to numerous innovative startups, tech companies and research institutes. Furthermore, Berlin is known for its open and creative atmosphere. The WeAreDevelopers World Congress emphasizes innovation and approaches to creative solutions, therefore Berlin offers the perfect setting for this open and experimental way of thinking.”
If you need assistance in planning an event or convention, please contact the Berlin team at [email protected]
Copenhagen
World of Coffee 2024
Copenhagen has been chosen as the next host of the World of Coffee 2024, an event by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) that coffee lovers all over the globe look forward to every year. It is set to happen on June 27 to 29 next year at the Bella Center.
Included in the program of events is the much-anticipated World Coffee Championships 2024, which features World Coffee in Good Spirits, World Latte Art and the World Coffee Roasting Championships.
World Congress of Architects in Copenhagen
Meanwhile, the International Union of Architects UIA will be holding the World Congress of Architects in Copenhagen from July 2 to 6. The whole city will be a vibrant stage of events and invitations to celebrate sustainable urban development – culminating in the World Congress at Bella Center in July.
Kicking off the event is the DAC Architecture Run happening on July 2, where participants will be running through some of the architectural gems in the city.
Best Overseas Convention Bureau
Finally, the Copenhagen Convention Bureau has been shortlisted as a finalist in the ‘Best Overseas Convention Bureau’ category at the 2023 M&IT Magazine Awards, along with other amazing convention bureaus.
“Our team has worked very hard, and to see their efforts being recognised with this nomination is great! A big thank you also to our UK clients who’ve voted for us.”
The M&IT Industry Awards recognise and reward excellence and are the result of voting by UK-based event organizers and the readers of Meetings & Incentive Travel magazine.
The winner will be announced on 15 September.
Singapore
Top rankings for Singapore
Singapore continues to soar as they rank 1st in ICCA’s list of Asia-Pacific Top Meeting Cities for 2022, with 101 meetings hosted all in all. Singapore also tops the Top 25 Meeting Destinations in APAC by cvent.com.
World Congress of Dermatology
As for Singapore’s event calendar, the 25th World Congress of Dermatology will be happening on July 3 to 8 at the Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre. The first of its kind in Southeast Asia, the event is expected to gather over 10,000 delegates from over 130 countries. The extensive programme will also include over 200 symposiums, 15 keynote talks, as well as an array of expert forums.
Event Planner’s Guide
With Singapore’s continued success in the MICE industry, the tourism board has teamed up with Conference & Incentive Travel (C&IT) to come up with a comprehensive event planner’s guide. The guide serves as a tool to help make event planning more efficient, with its detailed list of hotels, venues, restaurants, potential activities, and more.
Madrid
Madrid Fam Tours
June was an eventful month for Madrid, starting off with the Israeli Familiarity Tour where 11 major Israeli companies engaged in security, defense, tech and other industries made their rounds of some of the highlights around the city.
These familiarity tours, otherwise known as “fam tours”, aim to promote Madrid as a great MICE destination regardless of the industry.
The Amway Incentive Group also graced the city with their presence from June 7 to 12 as part of the Amway China Diamond Invitational Seminar. Over 600 Chinese delegates attended and enjoyed not just their planned programme, but the sights around the city as well.
Madrid Agency Forum
Meanwhile, the Madrid Agency Forum was held on June 11 to 14. It was the perfect opportunity to showcase the city’s top destinations as hosted buyers from Denmark, Germany, Finland, Holland, Italy, Norway, Sweden and the UK came to visit.
Cape Town
Annual Meeting for the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 2026
The 34th Annual Meeting & Exhibition of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM 2026) will take place 9-14 May 2026 in Cape Town and is expected to draw 4200 delegates to the city.
World Avocado Congress 2027
The World Avocado Congress is the premium event for the global avocado community. The Congress is only held every four years and represents an extraordinary opportunity for the avocado industry to come together, to share, to collaborate and to collectively influence positive growth of the whole sector. The congress will see 2000 delegates heading to Cape Town in 2027.
15th World Congress for Neurorehabilitation 2028
The World Congress for Neurorehabilitation brings together over 2000 experts from around the world. The Congress programme encompasses plenary lectures, symposia, oral communications, posters, teaching courses, industry sessions.
Melbourne
A busy period for international business development
The Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB) is continuing to receive a lot of short lead incentive business from Southeast Asia, including the largest Corporate Incentive delegation from India, Herbalife, arriving late November 2023.
To capitalise on this interest, the MCB team is off to the Australia Marketplace India 2023 in July.
The event is an opportunity for representatives from the Australian tourism industry to establish and maintain business relationships with key qualified travel agencies and tour operators from India. It includes two and a half days of pre-scheduled appointments between buyers and sellers as well as networking opportunities.
In June, MCB supported the Women Deliver 2023 Oceanic Pacific Regional Convening Event. Held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre and supported by the Victorian and Commonwealth governments, the event brought together grassroots advocates, women’s rights organisations and sector partners from across the Pacific.
The Melbourne convening event provided an opportunity for regional gender equality priorities to be identified, and to build momentum towards and prepare to represent those priorities on the global stage at Women Deliver 2023 – one of the largest Gender Equality conferences in the world.
MCB CEO Julia Swanson and MCB team members together with the Victorian Government Minister for Women are on their way to Women Deliver 2023 in Rwanda shortly, where the Oceanic Pacific Regional Convening Partner for Women Deliver 2023 will have a booth.
The MCB UK team also had a presence at the June World Chambers Congress in Geneva, for an official handover ceremony in readiness for Melbourne to host the next World Chambers Congress in 2025.
Strong pipeline of business events until 2028
MCB’s pipeline of business events for Melbourne is strong, with 147 international and national business events confirmed from now until 2028. The pipeline is worth more than $821 million in economic contribution to the state and is expected to fill over 441,000 room nights — enough to fill the city 18 times over.
Club Melbourne Ambassador awards
Nine Club Melbourne Ambassadors were awarded in June for their successful efforts in bringing international conferences to Melbourne.
Since the program was established in 2005, Club Melbourne Ambassadors, together with MCB, have been central to attracting more than 160 events to Melbourne. These events have brought tens of thousands of visitors to the city with a combined benefit of more than $1 billion to Victoria’s economy.
The Club Melbourne program includes over 80 Ambassadors who are business and community leaders in a range of disciplines including science, medicine, agriculture and technology.
Owned and led by Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) with support and collaboration from MCB and the Victorian State Government, the success of Club Melbourne is reflective of an overall Team Melbourne approach that is a genuine, collaborative effort between MCB, MCEC, State and Local Governments, strengthened by the intellectual capacity of our world-renowned Ambassadors.
Melbourne third most livable city in the world
Melbourne has taken top spot as the most livable city in Australia, and third globally, according to the Global Livability Index 2023.
When you host your event in Melbourne you’ll experience our diverse melting pot of cultures, rich cultural heritage and world class arts, sporting and culinary scene. You’ll also have access to our globally recognised knowledge community including education, healthcare, and sustainable living initiatives just to name a few. Melbourne is a place that’s progressive, inclusive and unassuming.
Dubai
Dubai continues to attract more business as they win two important bids for events happening in 2024. These wins include the 2024 World Library and Information Congress by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), and the Critical Communications World 2024 by the Professional Communication Corporation (Nedaa).
The thriving MICE industry in Dubai has paved the way to an even bigger economic impact, with events held at the Dubai World Trade Centre bringing in a whopping AED 13Bn in 2022 alone. 57% of this was retained within the local economy. This further cements Dubai as a global mega-event hub.
Of course, Dubai banks on their continued success to further improve their already impressive facilities and capabilities. His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Dubai Future Foundation and the Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai recently launched the Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence in an effort to accelerate AI adoption in government as well as in other key sectors.
Dublin
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) recently concluded the 152nd Slots Conference, which happened at The Convention Centre Dublin from June 13 to 15. With over 1,200 attendees, the event gives the global airline community the opportunity to optimize existing processes and systems, and expand their networks.
Meanwhile, the NewsXChange International Journalism Conference happened from June 19 to 20 and brought in over 700 delegates from all over the world. The 2-day event was organized by C21’s News Agenda and featured renowned keynote speakers like Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Noel Curran.
The new Dublin Royal Convention Centre was also officially opened in June, which opens up more opportunities to host more MICE events in the city. Found right next to the Radisson Blu Royal Dublin hotel, the convention centre can accommodate up to 800 plenary attendees and up to 550 people for gala dining events.
Vancouver
Vancouver has won the bid to host The International Nut & Dried Fruit Council (INC) World Nut & Dried Fruit Congress happening on May 8 to 10, 2024. This annual event is expected to bring in over 1,100 professionals in the nut and dried food sector and presents the perfect opportunity for delegates to showcase their products and their craft.
Tokyo
Insights into Tokyo’s Flourishing Business Events Industry
The Director of Sales of business events at the Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau, Kana Nomoto, gives a few words on the latest sustainable initiatives, new steps in utilizing technology, and the support TCVB currently offers to organizers planning to hold their events in the world’s most vibrant city.
Click here to read the interview.
The 11th International Conference on Surface Plasmon Photonics Comes to Tokyo in 2025
Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau (TCVB) is delighted to announce that Tokyo has placed the winning bid to host the 11th International Conference on Surface Plasmon Photonics (SPP11) on May 19-23, 2025. SPP11 will be held in Tokyo for the first time and is estimated to attract 600 participants, including 500 overseas scientists from more than 15 countries.
