Fukuoka, the First Japanese City to Join Hybrid City Alliance

Fukuoka has joined co-founders Ottawa, The Hague, Geneva, and Prague, and twelve other cities in the Hybrid City Alliance. The Hybrid City Alliance brings together like-minded destinations to offer a simple, streamlined, transparent and free to access approach to engaging with multiple locations for hybrid and multi-city events.

The other twelve cities are Antwerp, Cannes, Costa Rica, Durban, Edmonton, Lausanne-Montreux, Liverpool, Quito, Seoul, Sydney, Winnipeg, and Zurich, which means there are hybrid hub cities available through the Hybrid City Alliance in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America. Fukuoka is the first Hybrid City Alliance location in Japan.

“Fukuoka Convention & Visitors Bureau is ecstatic to join the like-minded global convention bureaus in the Hybrid City Alliance working toward the resumption of in-person global events,” says Sam Takashima, Executive Director of the Fukuoka Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Together with other members of the Alliance, Fukuoka will offer a simple way to organise multi-city meetings by taking advantage of the global reach of the Alliance and our hybrid-ready venues.”

Fukuoka Convention & Visitors Bureau (FCVB) introduced a two-prong hybrid subsidy system to promote safe events in Fukuoka after having gathered info for meeting planners looking to organise hybrid events (a mix of in-person and virtual content), in October 2020. The high response rate prompted FCVB to continue the programme for the 2021-22 Financial Year.

This subsidy system has ensured venues in Fukuoka have the technology and safety equipment necessary to carry out safe hybrid meetings, as well as helping organisers with the cost of COVID-safe events. So far, 27 venues have been approved for subsidies from FCVB, and are gaining experience by hosting hybrid events which would be a boon to international planners. The subsidy system is just the latest in Fukuoka city’s efforts to support the meetings & events industry, which has led to the opening of 3 new dedicated facilities over the past year, and many more before.