Montréal, Québec: Credit Mathieu Dupuis
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Business events can unleash positive ripple effects that are felt long after they end and delegates return home—from opening the door to transformative collaborations and unlocking investment opportunities, to attracting top-notch talent and spurring innovation.
This potential is more important than ever, as associations increasingly seek to build deeper connections and longer, more powerful meeting legacies for the benefit of the association, the communities where they meet and the overall destination.
Recognizing this potential, in 2022, Destination Canada launched the Legacy & Impact Study, to evaluate the economic, social and environmental impacts of up to 16 international conferences held in Canada between 2018 and 2024.
Early results indicate business events can leave an extraordinary legacy by leveraging four key factors: pre-event activities, government participation, destination marketing organization (DMO) involvement and external collaboration.
Pre-Event Activities
Edmonton, Alberta. Credit: Jeff McDonald
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Pre-event activities like social media campaigns, workshops, advocacy efforts and small pre-conference gatherings play a critical role in making a conference or event successful.
They provide an excellent opportunity to initiate legacy development and enhance awareness and education about the conference's focus, fostering a connection between the event and other stakeholders. This could also include high-level meetings with international and national government officials, potentially influencing policy and cementing relationships.
Example: At the 2019 International Metropolis Conference in Ottawa, a Pre-Conference PhD Seminar Program showcased presentations on Immigration Data, International Student Experience in Canada and Data for Immigration Research.
Government Participation
Government participation could include the announcement of new funding or policies at the event, or the involvement of elected officials in the event itself. Events with government participation tend to yield higher social, political and financial impacts. Such involvement enhances an event's credibility and outreach.
Example: Ahead of the 2018 CitiesIPCC Cities and Climate Change Science Conference in Edmonton, Mayor Don Iveson, convened a Global Mayors Summit to bring together a network of global city mayors and the science community to discuss their unique needs. It resulted in the Edmonton Declaration, a call to action for mayors to take the mantle of leadership on climate change, which was signed by 4,500 North American municipalities.
DMO Involvement
The involvement of Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) or a Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) is crucial but varies widely. DMOs around the world are now exploring an expanded future role related to event legacy.
This could include ensuring the host and client's goals are understood, sourcing events which meet a local community need, agreeing on community legacy goals with stakeholders, supporting the development of a community legacy ecosystem, working closely with clients to develop legacy activities, allocating resources to legacy initiatives in annual budgeting, or helping to plan and manage impact measurement processes.
Example: Ahead of the 2022 International AIDS Conference in Montréal, Tourisme Montréal, with the Palais des Congrès and meeting organizers, launched a significant scholarship program, formed a local impact committee and crafted a social impact strategy.
Montréal, Québec: Credit Mathieu Dupuis
External Collaboration
External collaboration refers to partnerships or involvement with individuals, organizations or entities outside of the core organizing team or group responsible for the event.
This collaboration in planning and implementing legacy initiatives can take various forms and can greatly enhance the success and impact of the event. External collaboration in an event can enrich the experience for attendees, expand the event's network and increase its overall impact and success in generating positive outcomes.
Example: During and after the 2022 Insects to Feed the World Conference in Québec City, Université Laval, industry partners and the destination collaborated to create the Marché des Insectes Comestibles (Eating Insects North), showcasing Québec's insect producers and welcoming 12,000 members of the public.
Cuisine served at the Insects to Feed the World Conference in Québec City, Québec.
Initial Impacts
Government participation, DMO involvement, external collaboration and pre-event activities are key to leaving a lasting event legacy. In the events studied so far, the most prominent impacts fell into three categories:
Policy, Financial and Intellectual. Policy Impact refers to an influence on policymaking, practical decision making or stronger governance. For example, advocacy by local stakeholders involved in the 2022 Insects to Feed the World Conference led to the official recognition of insects as livestock and an agricultural science by Québec’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Financial Impact refers to growth of a sector, increased public funding and budget spend on sector development, or increased spending in destination and local economy. For example, a new $500,000 Legacy Research Grant program, funded by the City of Edmonton and Alberta EcoTrust, was announced at the 2018 CitiesIPCC Cities and Climate Change Science Conference in Edmonton. The research funded helped the City of Edmonton prepare for climate change.
Intellectual Impact refers to public engagement with the local community, knowledge/idea sharing and knowledge transfer or developing new research projects.
For example, a special lecture at MACRO 2022, the 49th World Polymer Congress, in Winnipeg focused on emerging and young researchers, highlighting their work and enabling them to update their knowledge. Also, an Awards Program recognized Canadian talent, put a spotlight on award winners and raised the profile of industry experts.
A positive legacy
Destination Canada is committed to ensuring meetings hosted in Canada—and around the world—leave a positive handprint, rather than a negative footprint. We want to lessen the environmental footprint of events, while boosting their socio-cultural and economic benefits.
Over the next two years, we will continue to share the results of our Legacy & Impact Study, as findings are uncovered—with a final report identifying the key learnings, processes, successes and opportunities arising from the research by 2026. We hope that through sharing these findings and working together, we can empower you to actively create lasting legacies for your business events and conferences—building a regenerative future that leaves a sustainable legacy for people, planet and place.
Get in touch
To learn more about hosting events that leave an extraordinary legacy in Canada, visit businesseventscanada.ca. Alternatively, reach out to Virginie De Visscher, Executive Director, Business Events, Destination Canada at [email protected] or +1 204-802-0920.
