EU Dialogue: Driving positive change in the Meetings Industry

As part of the Belgian presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Brussels-Capital Region occupies the Belgian seat for tourism. This gives it the legitimacy to play an active role in this area. In this context, the Brussels-Capital Region is keen to highlight the importance of business tourism through the Meetings Industry sector.

To this end, visit.brussels – in collaboration with JMIC (Joint Meeting Industry Council), CityDNA (City Destinations Alliance) and EEIA (European Exhibition Industry Alliance) – is organising an event to bring together European players in the Meetings Industry to discuss the transition of this sector towards one with a positive impact. The aim is to open a dialogue with the European authorities on the importance of this sector for Europe, both economically and socially.

The main theme of the conference is the Meeting Industry with a positive impact. In other words, how this sector can contribute to organising events that highlight the advantages of a destination, its intellectual capital and its infrastructure, while maximising its overall impact towards greater diversity, equality and inclusion, but also towards an industry that is aware of social and environmental issues and is ready to make sustainable changes to the way it operates.

Another objective is to open a dialogue with the European authorities on the importance of this sector for Europe, both economically and socially.

The program will focus on key themes for the Meetings Industry in Europe and its development into a positive-impact sector such as: the importance of professional events for the European Union (in terms of economic impact, innovation, trade, etc.), sustainability, the EU Tourism Pathway, trade policy, etc.

Take part in the dialogue between the Meetings Industry and European policy-makers on how to achieve a positive impact for society and destinations. Registrations: https://www.visit.brussels/en/professionals/Associations/eu-dialogue?Informations=registration

 

Towards thriving territories: the potential of nature-based solutions

This traditional informal event of each Council presidency, co-organised by Brussels Environment at BEL Brussels, Avenue du Port 86C, 1000 Brussels, on April 29 from 6 PM, consists of a round table followed by a reception. It gathers key players in the European decision-making process to take part in in-depth discussions on a topic contributing to defining an holistic approach of climate change and biodiversity challenges.

The theme of this edition, ‘Towards thriving territories: the potential of Nature-based Solutions’, reflects the three priorities of the Belgian Presidency: Adaptation and Resilience, Circular Economy and Just Transition.

The event will kick off with high-level prospective studies that will be presented for the first time. They will feed in the upcoming discussions and will set out the challenges and potential of nature-based solutions, which have been endorsed in numerous European regulations and strategies across sectors beyond the environment, to promote prosperous territories.

The event is jointly organised by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Brussels Environment.

 

Event calendar for April in the Brussels-Capital Region

 

Type of event	Name of event	Start date	End date	Location
Official event	Connecting Europe Days	2/04/2024	5/04/2024	SQUARE
Official event	EU Dialogue: Driving positive change in the meeting industry	16/04/2024	17/04/2024	Sparks
Other	Healthy cities, healthy people: Pathways for clean air in the EU’s urban environments	23/04/2024	23/04/2024	nhow Brussels Bloom Hotel
Official event	Lab focusing on the Urban Agenda for the EU	24/04/2024	24/04/2024	perspective.brussels
Official event	Urban policy expert meeting (UDG)	25/04/2024	25/04/2024	Namur
Official event	Towards thriving territories: the potential of nature-based solutions	29/04/2024	29/04/2024	Auditorium Brussels Environment