A group of academics from various disciplines will help promote New Zealand's capital city as a place to hold international conferences.
Wellington has launched its Advocate Network, a
pool of local thought leaders and subject experts who aim to help enhance the success of the city's business events bids.
The move foreshadows the opening of Takina, New Zealand's newest conference centre, which is scheduled to open in June 2023 with a maximum capacity of 1,600 people.
The network’s initial membership comprises a mix of
academics representing the local arts, music, engineering, computer science,
and health sectors, as well as national association representatives from the
National Council for Women and Volunteering New Zealand.
Business Events Wellington manager, Irette Ferreira said: “Their
knowledge, work and connections in their respective fields play a crucial role
in securing these international events and creating new opportunities to
represent Wellington globally.
“By formalising our relationship, we aim to recognise the
positive benefits they bring to Wellington’s economy and society through their
conferences and to increase the impact of those events. We also encourage
others to join them and bid for events that will strengthen Wellington.”
Business Events Wellington hopes the launch of the network will increase bookings at Tākina.
“We’ve already got more than 80 conferences on the books at Tākina,
and we’re proactively engaging our local network of experts and thought leaders
to continue building that pipeline of international conferences for New
Zealand’s capital city,” added Ferreira.
One of the Wellington Advocate Network’s inaugural members,
Suzanne Manning, president of the National Council of Women New Zealand, is
working with Business Events Wellington as host of the International Council of
Women’s Executive Committee Meeting and Asia-Pacific Region Council Meeting in
2023. Manning expressed a wish to bring the International Congress of the
International Council of Women to Wellington in the future.
“Bringing the conference to Wellington will allow our
members to connect with the work that our sisters are doing around the world,
and particularly strengthen our connections with Pacific nations. It will
provide opportunities for mutual support and exchange of ideas and solutions to
common problems,” said Manning.
Fellow advocate Brian Diettrich, senior lecturer in
Ethnomusicology at Victoria University of Wellington’s School of Music, is
working with Business Events Wellington to bid for the International Conference
on Traditional Music in 2025.
Diettrich said: “We envision that the 2025 World Conference
will bring together scholars, performers, and students from across our region
and globally in an inclusive and interactive meeting. As only the third time in
Oceania since its inception in 1947, the conference in 2025 offers a chance to
bring together participants in a world-facing event and showcase the best of
New Zealand and Wellington.”
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
