Ray Bloom, chairman, IMEX Group, left, and Arnaldo Nardone, president, International Congress and Convention Association, celebrate Puerto Rico's hosting of the 51st ICCA Congress with brightly colored maracas at an IMEX luncheon.
ICCA chose the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music as its charity, raising $13,000 for music programs for underprivileged children. Shown, from left to right, is Liu Ping, author of "My Chinese Dream: From Red Guard to CEO," who donated the proceeds of her book sold during the Congress; Martin Sirk, CEO, ICCA; a representative of the Conservatory; and Bill LaViolette of I&MI Media, who donated proceeds from the annual golf tournament to the charity.
Corbin Ball, CSP, CMP, CEO, Corbin Ball Associates, USA, delivered several sessions about event technology.
Mariano Castex, managing director, MCI, Buenos Aires, Argentina, presented on a panel about ethics in bidding for international events.
Jon Bradshaw, founder and CEO, The Meetology Group, U.K., presented with his colleague, psychologist Jon Sutton, on using evidence-based science to improve the meeting experience.
Eduardo Chaillo, CMO, CMM, regional director USA & Canada, Mexico Tourism Board, reported after his roundtable discussion about trends in the international association meetings industry.
Gregg H. Talley, FASAE, CAE, president and CEO, Talley Management Group, USA, took part in a panel session called "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Working with Association Management Companies."
Christian Mutschlechner, director, Vienna Convention Bureau, presented in a session called "Times of Turbulence Are Always the Best Times...Because Everything Changes."
The ICCA staff, distinctive in their green shirts, enthusiastically welcomed congress participants to San Juan.
James Rees, director of conferences and events, ExCel London, talked about the legacy for cities that host the Olympics or other major events.
Karen Kotowski, CAE, CMP, CEO, Convention Industry Council, USA, at a networking break.
The Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico hosted the opening evening reception, as did Puerto Rican tourism officials, pictured, from left to right: Luis G. Rivera-Marin, executive director, Puerto Rico Tourism Company; Raul Bustamante, chairman of the board of directors, Puerto Rico Convention Bureau; and Neil J. Mullanaphy, acting president & CEO, Puerto Rico Convention Bureau.
ICCA chapters from around the world were pitted against one another in the popular Cat Night, this year sponsored by CAT Publications of the U.K. and Aquasol, a popular Puerto Rican water park. Shown leading the North America team to victory is Eric Chou, Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
"Canada, USA, Mexico" was the chant of the North Americans routing on their team as it competed in—and won—the annual sporting night hosted by CAT Publications of the U.K.
The Netherlands Board of Tourism & Convention was one of four finalists for ICCA's Best Marketing Award 2012, which shines a light on the high levels of creativity and business acumen displayed during destination marketing campaigns throughout the year. Shown is Mr. Holland, The Netherlands' colorful ambassador who visited trade shows and took part in a multitude of media events on behalf of the country throughout the year.
Patrick Delaney, managing director, Ovation Global DMC, Ireland, and host of the Best Marketing Award session where the four contestants showcased their campaigns, does a bit of improvisation with the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre representatives. KL included the colorful sarongs as part of its marketing campaign.
Meet Taiwan's "Shake to Share" meeting-app campaign, which combined the spirit of ancient culture with modern technology to effectively turn delegates into destination promoters, was the winner of the ICCA Best Marketing Award 2012.
In recognition of her outstanding contribution to ICCA and the international meetings industry, Anne Wallin Rødven, convention director at VisitOslo, the Oslo Convention and Visitors Bureau, received the Moises Shuster Award at a gala dinner during the ICCA Congress. She is pictured with ICCA president Arnaldo Nardone.
Martin Kinna, longtime ICCA member when he was an executive with the Barbican Centre in London, was welcomed as an ICCA honorary member. He is the founding director of Friends of Mankind, a nonprofit that helps street children in Asia.
Shanghai representatives presented some of ICCA's members with stuffed bears in a presentation to showcase the city and promote attendance at the next ICCA congress, November 2–6, 2013.
