Advocacy

New Study To Measure Business Events Impacts Destination Canada Business Events (DCBE) has commissioned a legacy impact study for Canada’s business events industry. “There's no denying the powerful tourism benefits that business events bring to a destination — but their impact extends well beyond that. For instance, [events] can open the door to transformative collaborations, unlock trade and investment opportunities, spur innovation and attract top-notch talent from around the world,” DCBE said in a statement. “While there's plenty of anecdotal evidence on this, we’ve lacked concrete data to prove the long-term outcomes [...]

Federal Supports Still Needed By Hardest-Hit Businesses Meetings Mean Business Canada is gratified that the federal government, in the 2022 Budget released April 7, acknowledges the visitor economy as “a key economic driver and job creator” while also recognizing the devastating effects that the pandemic has had on the tourism industry as a whole. Meetings Mean Business Canada wishes to clarify any misconceptions around a statement made in the budget document that “Canada’s high vaccination rate and the lifting of travel restrictions are providing important relief as the sector begins to turn the corner.” Canada’s visitor economy, [...]

Global Meetings Industry Day 2022 #TimeToMeet Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID) is an annual event recognizing the meetings and business events industry’s role as a catalyst for business collaboration, new investment and the creation of permanent, high-value jobs. This year we’re celebrating Global Meetings Industry Day a bit differently. Instead of holding our own event, we’re supporting YOUR GMID 2022 programs with a suite of educational and promotional materials: Advocacy Video: We’re creating a new video to spotlight the latest research, our industry’s readiness to get back to business and a call for continued support [...]

Advocacy Achievements During 2021, Canada’s meetings and business events industry rallied to advocate on behalf of its hardest hit businesses and to kickstart recovery. Here are some of the year’s key advocacy achievements: Bill C-2 provides important visitor economy recovery programs and supports, including: > Tourism & Hospitality Recovery Program > Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program > Canada Recovery Hiring Program Federal Representation: The Trudeau government appointed Randy Boissonnault as both Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, a acknowledgement of the tourism industry’s important contribution to Canada’s economy. Border Reopening: Canada reopened its [...]

2022 Will Be A Pivotal Year For Canada’s Business Events Industry MMBC’s active leadership and united voice with our coalition partners over the past 12 months resulted in important industry-specific federal support, including tailored programs within Bill C-2. Nevertheless, our industry began 2022 with new pandemic-related shutdowns and restrictions, placing our hardest-hit businesses in jeopardy. Our advocacy work is more important than ever! We need your input to prioritize the key issues and concerns we will communicate to elected officials and decision makers at all levels of government over the next several months. Please take [...]

MMBC Elects Board of Directors and Appoints Executive Team for 2022 and 2023 During its recent annual general meeting, Meetings Mean Business Canada (MMBC) welcomed an updated Board of Directors and Executive Team for 2022 and 2023. As Canada’s meetings and business events industry moves forward, MMBC’s advocacy efforts will benefit immensely from the decades of executive experience offered by the leadership team and newly convened board. Two-year terms for Board members as well as the Executive Team began immediately following MMBC’s annual general meeting, held in Ottawa on November 29, 2021.  Laura Pallotta takes on [...]

Meetings Mean Business Canada Applauds Targeted COVID-19 Support Measures The federal Liberals have made good on an election promise to support Canada’s visitor economy with new government measures specifically targeting our hardest-hit businesses and designed to boost job creation and stimulate economic recovery. “Canada’s visitor economy is facing a tough winter after travel and mass gathering restrictions hampered our businesses through most of 2021,” says Meetings Mean Business Canada chair, Clark Grue. “As a member and supporter of the Coalition of Hardest Hit Businesses, Meetings Mean Business Canada has worked tirelessly alongside our [...]