Welcome to the Global Campus

World Summit 2017

From 21 to 24 June, 2017 the IFES World Summit will take place in La Grand-Motte, Mont pellier in France. It welcomes the industry with an event you would not expect.

The IFES World Summit is the biggest and most important event that IFES offers to the exhibition and event industry. Simply put, it is also the largest international gathering of service providers for exhibitions and event services. To host the expected 250 participants, a mini university called the “Global Campus” will be created.

On the agenda are prestigious speakers, networking and brainstorming workshops, as well as tours and evenings out in Montpellier and La Grande-Motte. It will serve as an ideal context for learning and interacting with peers, as well as building an international professional network.

A concrete, applicable program

The mini-university has been created with two objectives: to provide the delegates with the keys to growth over the next 12 months, and to help you define your fiveyear strategy.

All workshops and presentations are thus directly linked to the industries business areas and have been created based on expectations expressed by IFES members.

At the first day delegates are invited to participate in a large collaborative workshop that will act as ice-breaker to allow to get to know each other better, and later will allow to examine expectations with regards to the international federation IFES. It will open a discussion how the industry wishes to cooperate more effectively together.

Furthermore, the program activities will focus on five main themes:

Design and new trends in exhibitions and events

Trade shows through exhibitor’s eyes: exhibition halls, why attend trade shows, drawing inspiration from retail to create an immersive environment, and how to measure success at a trade show.

Sustainable development with Romain Ferrari as a speaker and ISO 20121

New product and services Innovations

Development of the EXPO and event industry in PechaKucha style. Key player from different countries are asked to present their facts in figures in a edutaining style.

Among the various locations on the campus, an “around the olive tree” space will be dedicated to national partnerships while the “terrace” will house exhibitors. More free time will be given to members to allow them to interact beyond the roundtables.

A festive and magnificent region to discover

And by the way, there is another good reason to travel to the south of France: Montpellier is one of the most dynamic cities in France. Ranked among the “45 Places to Go” by the New York Times in 2012 and considered to be “the most seductive city in the French south” by The Telegraph, it was also named a primary business destination by the BBC. Although more modern (created in the

1960s), La Grande-Motte also has much to offer.

It is within this idyllic setting that the Summit will have an enchanting evening program. The welcome reception will take place on Wednesday evening at the Belambra poolside with dinner provided by the region’s best caterer. Another evening will be spent at a beach side restaurant, and the gala dinner will take place at a characteristic Montpellier chateau.

Tours of Montpellier and La Grande-Motte have been organized for accompanying guests. And for those who want to stay a little longer: A tour of Montpellier and its surroundings will also be organized on Saturday (optional).

A conference celebrating sustainable development

The 2017 conference will focus three major challenges of sustainable development. Organizers therefore undertake to: Limit the conference’s environmental impact (use of a single venue, ride/travel sharing, prevention of wastage and waste recovery efforts).

Foster regional anchoring (giving preference to local service providers, responsible purchasing). Raise awareness of participants and suppliers on best practices and pass on a legacy for the entire industry (signage, integration of content related to best practices in event services during the conference). The conference is organized by IFES, which has entrusted the planning of the conference to Duo and volunteer members of French Touch and CREALIANS (a member of UNIMEV).

As of the time of this magazine’s printing, sponsorship and exhibition booth opportunities are still available. Please contact us as soon as possible for more information at events@ifesnet.org

MeetMe@ IFESGlobalCampus#

IFES members and industry partner return to the University with 2 objectives: learn and network !

As alumni, delegates will be hosted on the same Campus at the Belambra Resort in La Grande-Motte next to Montpellier (South of France). What you can expect is that we share as much during the meetings as outside the meetings so let’s live together for 3 days !