Skift Take
The national conversation around the need for more diversity and inclusivity in the technology and advanced industry sectors is moving to the forefront in the meetings industry, as more organizations realize the value of inclusivity to drive success on a global stage.
The Future of Meetings & Events
Inclusivity and diversity were the two big themes at the 31st annual South By Southwest Conference in Austin last week.
I spent a good chunk of my time at Washington, D.C.'s pop-up WeDC House, because I felt that the collaboration there between Mayor Muriel Bowser, the city's economic development and destination marketing organizations, and the local business and cultural communities was setting a new benchmark for positioning a city as a collective innovation ecosystem.
The vision for that was rooted in D.C.'s new "Inclusive Innovation" marketing and economic development strategy, designed to lead the national conversation around the need for more racial and gender diversity and inclusivity in tech. Also interesting, it was the first time I heard a convention bureau in the U.S. say that it wanted to position its city's competitive advantage in the meetings industry squarely on top of its tech sector and other advanced industries.
The meetings and events strategy is outlined in the new Destination DC report: “Innovation Capital: Meetings & Conventions in a Tech Hub.”
More than a few people at the WeDC House used the analogy that diversity is about being asked to the dance, and inclusivity is about actually dancing. I expect we'll
