This year’s AIPC Annual Conference in Graz Austria will be one of the best ever, with a balance of highly relevant keynotes, perspectives from key client groups, reports on major new AIPC program activities such as the Quality Standards Program and the AIPC Academy and the results of the first AIPC “State of the Industry Survey”.

Under the overall conference theme of “Responding to Global Change”, members will explore how destinations get their image (and how this can be managed), get insights as to how key sectors like the hotel industry are evolving, learn about the needs and expectations of event organizers and find out how the new obsession with global warming is driving the sustainability agenda.

Amongst the presentations will be one by a very unique keynote speaker and discussion leader.

Simon Anholt is the UK-based author of Competitive Identity: the New Brand Management for Nations, Cities and Regions, the standard text on place branding, and founder and publisher of the quarterly Anholt Nation Brands Index, the annual Anholt City Brands Index and Anholt State Brands Index, three major surveys which use a panel of over 5 million people in 35 countries to monitor global perceptions of 38 countries and 60 cities.

Anholt originated the concept of Nation Branding in 1996 and is today regarded as the world’s leading specialist in public diplomacy and brand strategy for countries, cities and regions.

He is a member of the UK government’s Public Diplomacy Board, and has advised the governments of Poland, Croatia, Latvia, Australia, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Jamaica, South Korea, Tanzania, Sweden, Iceland, Botswana, Germany, the Baltic Sea Region, Bhutan, Egypt, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Ecuador, New Zealand, Switzerland and Slovenia.

He also advises organizations ranging from VisitBritain, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Invest in Germany to the Hungarian Tourist Board, the Flanders Tourist Board and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise along with international bodies including the World Travel and Tourism Council, the World Economic Forum, the World Bank, NATO and the United Nations.

He will be providing AIPC delegates with some unique insights into how our respective destinations are positioned in the minds of both visitors and business leaders.

At the same time, he has agreed to lead a discussion as to how centres can meet the challenge of achieving a destination image that appeals to business leaders, event organizers and delegates rather than just leisure visitors.