Photo courtesy Discover Puerto Rico. 

Global meeting and event professionals, advocates and supporters will unite on April 4 to draw attention to the strength of an industry that pours $2.53 trillion into the world’s economy.

Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID), spearheaded by the Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC), is a worldwide celebration designed to show the impact that the meeting industry has on businesses, jobs and the economy. 

“GMID helps raise awareness of the industry’s value all over the world,” says Trina Camacho-London, co-chair of MMBC and vice president of global group sales at Hyatt Hotels Corp. “It also helps promote involvement in MMBC from our global partners.”

The coalition is comprised of about 60 member associations and groups who have united to support the meeting, trade show, incentive travel, exhibition, conference and convention industries.

GMID, which evolved as a global event in 2016, began as National Meetings Industry Day in Canada and grew into North American Meetings Industry Day in 2015.

From education sessions, public rallies, press conferences and meetings with local government leaders to turning city skylines blue, the message is focused on showing that face-to-face meetings and events generate jobs, business and economic growth.

Last year, there were more than 200 events on six continents, and organizers expect a stronger showing this year. Meeting Professionals International plans a 12-hour virtual broadcast in which many of its chapters and industry associations will participate.

One place where GMID will have a special meaning is San Juan, Puerto Rico, which has had a remarkable recovery from the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria in September 2017. A year ago, there was no GMID event, but this year Discover Puerto Rico, the island’s destination marketing organization, has reason to celebrate.

“Last year, Global Meetings Industry Day was the closure of Meet Puerto Rico and so it was bit of a melancholy feeling since the [Discover Puerto Rico destination marketing organization] hadn’t opened yet,” says Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico. “This will be our first real true Global Meetings Industry Day, so the timing is perfect.”

The Puerto Rico event will include highlights on GMID and updates on the sales and marketing initiatives designed to help bring meetings back to the island.

“Puerto Rico is not just open for business, but we’re ready and eager to welcome visitors back,” Dean says. “We’re thriving in this recovery and setting a pace for recovery that will be a model for future destinations that have to contend with what Puerto Rico had to come through.

"The leisure side has come back far more quickly than most imagined. We know [meeting] planners have a challenging role and it is critically important that we need to show the pace of recovery, the new and refurbished products that are coming, but also the unique experiences that Puerto Rico has to offer that many people just don’t realize.”

That’s one example of the success stories that many industry professionals will be sharing on Thursday.

“We made a concerted effort last year to create deeper, more sustained engagement among those who influence the meetings economy,” says Julie Coker Graham, MMBC co-chair and president and CEO of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau. “To do this, we introduced a new advocacy strategy and tailored our communications to the motivations of our target audiences, including decision makers outside of our industry in business and government.”

Along with MPI, other industry groups who will participate on Thursday include the Events Industry Council (EIC), the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE), the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE), COCAL (a Latin American meetings and events association), the Society of Independent Show Organizers (SISO), the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), Association Forum (AF), Destinations International (DI) and the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA).

To learn more about MPI’s live stream event, go to https://www.mpiweb.org/events/gmid. To learn more about GMID and to find events, go to http://www.meetingsmeanbusiness.com/gmid.