Empowering Communities Through Inclusive Business Events

In 2023, when Destinations International (DI) announced the selection of Tampa Bay as the site of its 2024 Annual Convention, some of the association

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9 Ways Planners can Collaborate With Event Service Profs

Coordinate schedules, confirm site visits, manage budgets, review every layout—it’s a lot. Every detail, every choice, makes an impact.Now, pull it

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5 Ways to Deliver on DEI at Your Next Meeting

Editor’s note: Elliott L. Ferguson, II, president and CEO of Destination DC, is a leading proponent of

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Associations Are Increasingly Emphasizing DEI

Associations are often like a microcosm of larger society.  They have governing bodies, commerce-producing units, educational institutions

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Zoe Moore on Why DEI Is Under Fire in the Meetings Industry and Beyond

Zoe Moore, proprietor of Zoe Moore Consultancy, is

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Why DC Is the Nation’s Capital of DEI Tourism and Events

DEI, or diversity, equity and inclusion, has become an issue of paramount importance in the meetings and events industry and throughout U.S. business

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Event Service Professionals Publish Meetings DEI Guide

The knowledge and duties of event service professionals (ESPs), aka convention service managers, is where the rubber meets the road in the meetings

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8 Objectives to Help Align Your DEI Strategy and Business Needs

The demand for hospitality, events and tourism companies to take accountability for their social footprint is not solely for the benefit of one group

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Philadelphia's Top-Down Focus on DEI Paves the Way Forward for Meetings

In 1987, two African-American directors on the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau (PHLCVB) board, A. Bruce Crawley, a prominent marketing

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The State of DEI in the Meetings Industry and Beyond

Roughly four years ago in the wake of the George Floyd murder, influential African-American leaders in the meetings and hospitality industry took a

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Tourism Diversity Matters’ The Collective Experience Conference Brings DEI Leaders Together

Following a pandemic hiatus, Tourism Diversity Matters’ (TDM) The Collective Experience

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DEI Update: Meetings Diversity Leaders Greg DeShields and Sheila Alexander-Reid Share Their Perspectives

DEI, or diversity, equity and inclusion, is an unstoppable force in the meetings and tourism industry and beyond.Meetings Today touched base with two

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Why Learning Your DEI Certifications Can Promote Supplier Diversity

While summer draws to a close and fall approaches, business leaders continue to combat rapidly changing health concerns, safety issues, economic

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Where Are We Four Years After the Murder of George Floyd? Elliott L. Ferguson II Offers Perspective.

On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on Floyd’s neck even after pleas from the

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Photo of Elliott L. Ferguson II standing in front of a brick wall in a gray blazer.

How the Results of the 2024 Election May Impact Meeting and Event Planners

By the time election day arrives, most are sick of hearing about politics no matter their political leanings.But the policy positions of candidates

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New ESPA President Denise Reid on DEI, New Member Acquisition–and a Show-Stopping 'Ave Maria'

Denise Reid, new president of Event Service Professionals Association (ESPA), shares how event service professionals are on the front line of

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3 California Tourism DEI Leaders Who Are Making a Difference

Always ahead of the curve, California is taking a leading role in promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the tourism and meetings and

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Destination DC's Elliott Ferguson II on the Role of DMOs on DEI

In the run-up to his keynote address at Event Service Professionals Association’s 2023 annual conference, meetings industry leader and DEI champion

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The Difference Between DEI Certifications and Certificates of Completion

One year ago, we started this series of articles for Meetings Today by explaining 

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Kevin Iwamoto: My Journey Advocating for DEI and Belonging

I was recently honored to be recognized by Meetings Today as one of its 20

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