The International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) has announced a collaboration with The Business of Events to introduce the Global Advocacy Alliance.
Scheduled to run during the ICCA Plenary at IMEX Frankfurt, 13 May 2024, this initiative will convene 200 industry leaders to foster dialogue and share best practices in advocating for the event sector to governmental bodies at local, regional, and national levels.
Supported by Gevme, the session will feature insights from industry leaders from politics, destinations, consortiums, convention bureaus, and venues.
The ICCA Global Advocacy Alliance aims to equip participants with practical knowledge and tools to effectively champion the interests of the event sector, thereby facilitating its growth and recognition. Through a comprehensive approach, the alliance will address key areas including:
The culmination of this initiative will be a comprehensive toolkit designed to aid stakeholders in advocating effectively to governments.
"The Global Advocacy Alliance is a key part of ICCA's commitment to advocacy," said ICCA CEO Senthil Gopinath. "We're thrilled to be able to offer members the opportunity to learn how to more effectively communicate with key stakeholders to advocate for their respective sectors to governments and policymakers. By advocating for the best interests of our industry, we contribute to the collective growth and upward trajectory of our community as a whole."
Martin Fullard, Director of The Business of Events, who will be chairing the event, remarked, “Advocacy is one of the biggest challenges our industry faces and is globally recognised as imperative. The idea behind this event is to bring together industry leaders to share best practices and create a toolkit for everyone involved to utilise in their advocacy efforts.
“Through this new advocacy alliance, we aim to empower convention bureaus and other stakeholders with the templates and tools they need to effectively engage with policymakers.”
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