Calgary
Calgary is an ideal location due to numerous direct
flights and a commitment to renewable energy
• In 2018, The
Economist
magazine named
Calgary the most
liveable city in North
America, and the
4th most liveable
city in the world
• Calgary has 80
direct flights from
around the world
Below: The Telus
Convention Centre
has over 11,000sqm
of flexible
conference space
Event planner feedback
When Sigma Theta Tau International
(Sigma) was looking for a location to host
it’s 30th International Research Congress
(July 2019) in the North American Region
(the meeting moves annually through
seven global regions), it received quotes
from three Canadian cities and Calgary
checked all the boxes: great international
airport, proximity of the city to the
airport, and safety for attendees.
“The size of the Telus Convention
Centre and its location was the perfect
match for what our attendees look for,”
was the feedback from the Sigma Events
Team.
“Working with Meetings +
Conventions Calgary was great, they
made us feel welcome, and were a
wonderful resource for all the ‘extras’ we
needed from band recommendations to an
offsite social venue. They literally rolled
out the red carpet for our 1,200 attendees
with signage and photos opportunities.
“We saw record tweets using the
#INRC19 to showcase our event and how
attendees were enjoying the city,” the
Sigma organisers added.
Seth Hubbard, Programme Chair for
the 2020 IEEE Photovoltaics Specialists
Conference (PVSC) explains why he
chose Calgary for his association’s 47th
conference, to be held in June of 2020.
“The IEEE PVSC draws experts in
solar cells and solar energy from around
leader in many aspects of agriculture -
from farm production, research and
technology, to innovation.
the globe. Over half our attendance is
from outside North America. Calgary
represented an ideal location due to
numerous direct flights to both Europe
and Asia, as well as Calgary’s
commitment to renewable and green
energy.”
#Fampede
In September 1912, an
American-Canadian cowboy and
promoter Guy Weadic hosted the first
rodeo and festival in Calgary, and both
events merged in 1923 for the Stampede
to become an annual event.
This July, select clients and influencers
joined a recent Stampede Fam in Canada’s
fourth largest city.
There were White Hats aplenty and
the full report can be seen at www.
themiceblog.com
Last-minute draw
2018 IEEE International Conference on
Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing
came to Calgary in April 2018, bringing
2,500 attendees.
“Calgary was chosen over other options
because of the flexibility of the offerings;
the willingness of the city and the CVB to
support last minute needs,” said Jay
Lightfoot, Executive Officer, CMS
Worldwide.
“Since we relocated the conference
approximately six months before the
event, we were concerned about the
possible negative effect on attendance and
the ability to garner local support for the
conference. All of the ‘finalist’ cities had
suitable facilities for the conference.
Initially we anticipated a 20%+ decrease
in attendance due to the last-minute
change, although we ended up being
about +3% versus the last several years.”
Oil and gas, photovoltaics, social work
and Rotary are all clearly promising fields
for conferencing in Calgary, and with
Alberta home to more than a quarter of
Canada’s total farm land, the region is a
Calendar of conference
verticals
Calgary is very strong in the following
vertical markets:
Natural Resources
• The Society of Petroleum Engineers
come to town 30 September – 2
October, 2019
Energy & Renewable Energy/
Green Economy
• The IEEE Photovoltaics Specialist
Conference is taking place in Calgary in
June 2020
Life Sciences
• The International Society of
Biomechanics 2019 Congress and the
Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing
Research Congress were both in Calgary
in recent weeks
Agriculture/Agribusiness
• Calgary will host the Master Brewers
of the Americas Annual Conference in
October 2019
Transportation & Logistics
• Calgary hosts the 2022 International
Winter Roads Congress
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CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD
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