For the first time, the two international associations of DMOs set up a collaboration agreement to work together on education.
European Cities Marketing (ECM), the network of leading Tourist Offices and Conventions Bureaus in Europe, and Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI), the global trade association for official destination marketing organizations, announced an agreement to collaborate on strategic educational initiatives.
This new collaborative agreement will open new opportunities for both organizations and their members, who share a common goal of promoting economic growth to destinations through travel and tourism. “Our relationship with DMAI is one of great professionalism. We are very proud of this new milestone and want to congratulate DMAI on its achievements and valuable contribution to the international Meetings Industry as a whole”, said Ignasi de Delas, President of ECM.
As part of the initial agreement, DMAI will promote the ECM Summer School program to its membership as the unconditional event to learn about the Meetings Industry and contribute programming to educate European destinations on trends in the North American market. The aim of the ECM Summer School is to provide incisive insight into the structure and functioning of the Meetings Industry, bringing delegates face to face with leading industry practitioners.
“As first step of our collaboration, we are delighted to include the American perspective in the programme of ECM Summer School; this broadens the perspectives offered to the students and outlines ECM development in the Meeting Industry worldwide” added Heike Mahmoud, director Conventions visitBerlin, Berlin Conventions Office and ECM Vice-President for the Meetings Industry.
Christine “Shimo” Shimasaki, Managing Director of empowerMINT and Event Impact Calculator at DMAI, will join the ECM Summer School faculty. The 2015 Summer School program will take place August 22-26 in Vienna, Austria.
“It is an honor to be a member of the faculty at this prestigious event,” said Shimasaki. “I believe this is the first step in a larger partnership between our two organizations.”
Europe is a major player in the international association meetings market. The top six cities in the world for international association meetings are in Europe, as are 15 of the top 20, according to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).
“The rise in globalization means that industries around the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, and the travel and tourism industry is leading the way,” said Michael Gehrisch, President & CEO of DMAI. “Because of this, it is important for associations such as DMAI and ECM to work together to educate our members on the trends in international markets, and share a common message in promoting the value of our industry to the global economy.”
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