Meeting Professionals Inter-national's 2007 Professional Education Conference-North America will be the first opportunity for many industry professionals to see New Orleans post-Katrina. About 2,500 attendees are expected at the January 20-23 event at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

Wayne M. Sotile, PhD, a clinical psychologist who has counseled more than 7,000 high performers and consulted with 400 leading corporations and healthcare organizations, will keynote Sunday's opening general session, starting earlier than usual to make room for the PEC Expo, which will be held Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.

Elliott Masie, futurist on technology, learning, and people, The Masie Center, will be the featured speaker at the chapter awards luncheon Monday.

Closing out the general session Tuesday afternoon, facilitator Lisa Heft will present a guide to creating a successful OpenSpace meeting. OpenSpace is a concept “that is revolutionizing communication, innovative thinking, and collaboration centered on the ability of people to self-organize around mutual needs and reach new and profound solutions,” according to the program. For more, visit www.mpiweb.org.