News Around Town – September 2020

Member Announcements

Ottawa Tourism has a New Team Member

Ottawa Tourism has been working behind the scenes to support the hotel community and its members during these uncertain times. It continues to monitor the situation regarding COVID-19 and share sources of information about the destination with clients and partners, helping them reschedule their meetings and plan for the future.

Ottawa Tourism welcomes Julie Clement, a new sales manager who joined the Business Events team in February, 2020. As can be appreciated, joining the organization shortly before the pandemic forced industry-wide shutdowns was an added challenge to Clement’s arrival, however she has been working hard behind the scenes getting to know the important planners. She looks forward to connecting even more now as an MPI member. Clement joined the Ottawa Tourism team with a wide range of experience in sales and business development (in the United Kingdom), as well as extensive non-profit, fundraising, and member-based organization work in Ottawa, including with the Nepean Chamber of Commerce, the West Ottawa Board of Trade, the Barrhaven BIA, and the Heart and Stroke Foundation. With her combination of local and international experience, Clement is a great addition to Ottawa Tourisms’ Business Events Team.

Ottawa Tourism

New Business Alert

Congratulations to Martha Tobin on the launch of her new business—Room2Breathe! This female-owned, socially responsible Ottawa company is all about organizing, decluttering, and providing change that you can see in your surroundings. Room2Breathe can provide clarity, vision and strategy while reducing clients’ feelings of being overwhelmed and stressed, thereby helping them make the most out of their time at home. You can reach Tobin by email at martha@room2breathe.ca or by phone at 613-868-5197.

Kudos to Sharon House, owner of Avant-Garde Designs, and Carole Saad, owner of Chic + Swell Event Designers and LouLou Lounge Furniture Rental, who have teamed up to organize pop-up events at a series of exclusive Ottawa locations in an effort to help breathe new life into our struggling events industry. “The last five months have been “extremely stressful” and upsetting, said the women, who had to let staff go and come up with new strategies to stay financially viable during these uncertain times. Throughout it all, they’ve tried hard to stay calm and hopeful.” Read the full article in the Ottawa Business Journal.

Member Survey

Check your email!

MPI Ottawa has sent the link to a short survey right to your inbox! Your membership experience and opinion are important, and the survey should take less than ten (10) minutes to complete. The Chapter is ever evolving during these challenging times and wants to ensure that it is doing its best to help you get the most out of your membership. As a thank you for completing the survey by October 14, you have a chance to win a $25 Starbucks gift card.

Member Survey

Industry News and Updates

New Health and Safety Guide

The Events Industry Council (EIC) has released the Health and Safety for Hotels Accepted Practices Guide. It is the second release of the APEX Covid-19 Business Recovery Task Force. This guide, created in collaboration with several interest groups, covers baseline and enhanced protocols, a curation of hotel practices via a video library, as well as links to a repository of resources by EIC members and key sector-specific guidance.

WEC Scholarship Applications

The MPI Foundation, with support from Encore, is offering two scholarships per Canadian chapter to attend the WEC Digital Experience this November 3-6. These scholarships cover registration to the WEC Digital Experience and are available for both planners and suppliers.

The WEC Digital Experience will be fully live: you will learn, network, and engage like never before with exclusive programming for the online audience. Applications must be submitted by October 5, 2020 and successful applicants will be notified the following week. Send questions by email to mpifoundation@mpi.org. For more details and to apply for a scholarship visit: https://tools.eventpower.com/speaker_management/initiate/20MPI-SCH

WEC

Last Call for Hall of Leaders Nominations

The Events Industry Council has announced a call for nominations for both the Hall of Leaders and two new global awards. The Hall of Leaders is the premier recognition program in the meetings, conventions, exhibitions, hospitality, and travel industry. It serves as a “lifetime achievement award” for industry professionals. The new global awards are open to individuals or organizations (associations, companies, destination organizations, think tanks or foundations) to recognize extraordinary effort in two categories: Social Impact or Adaptation and Innovation.

Nominees need not be members of EIC. Nominations must be submitted through EIC’s online portal by 11:59 pm EDT on Thursday, 1 October 2020. EIC will announce the honorees in November.

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