It’s always better to have organisers talk about their experience in a given destination than just convention bureaus explaining how great it would be for you – and them – if you chose them for their next event. In order for you to get familiar with Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and where its expertise lies, Boardroom asked four planners to explain how the regional convention bureau, Provence Côte d’Azur Events, successfully supported them.
HEALTHCARE
Stéphane Azoulay, Member of the Local Organising Committee, EFMC-ISMC 2022, XXVII International Symposium on Medicinal Chemistry
In September 2022, we will co-organize the 27thInternational Symposium on Medicinal Chemistry in Nice. This biennial event, led by the European Federation for Medicinal Chemistry, welcomes about 1,200 participants from the pharmaceutical industry and academia.
Thanks to high-quality research conducted at the Côte d’Azur University,a centre of excellence according to the state-funded programme IDEX (Initatives d’Excellence), easy accessibility to and from Nice through its international airport, a highly flexible convention centre, and a good image of the city on the international scene, our bid made the difference.
In addition, we benefitted, at a local level, from the support of Nice Convention Bureau and many stakeholders of the whole supply chain. They were very helpful putting the bid together and giving us advice in terms of off-site venues and social events – a real added value. On a regional level, Provence-Côte d’Azur Events acted as a facilitator for us to obtain a letter of support from the President of the South Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, with a financial grant of up to 30,000€ – which of course we highly appreciate for an event of this magnitude.
DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES
Claire De Longeaux, Trustech Director, Cannes
With an in-depth focus on the latest innovations applied to payments and identification, biometrics, blockchain and artificial intelligence, Trustech is the professional event dedicated to digital trust technologies. We have been operating for more than 30 years and settled in Cannes in 2016, where we usually welcome over 120 different nationalities. Trustech is a congress, with 200 international speakers, a trade show, with 300 exhibiting companies, and a networking event attended by more than 11,000 professionals.
In 2017, Trustech benefitted from the support of the Provence-Alpes-Côtes d’Azur region as part of its ‘Attract Congresses & Events’ programme (see sidebar), helping our growth in a field the region has become renowned for. Many Provence-Alpes-Côtes d’Azur-based companies are indeed working in this dynamic sector, starting with the members of the SCS-Global Competitiveness Cluster dedicated to secure communication solutions.
ENERGY
Philippe Olivier, Deputy Secretary General of the ITER Industrial Committee (ITER France Agency)
ITER (‘the way’ in Latin) is one of the most ambitious energy projects in the world today. In southern France, 35 nations are collaborating to build the world’s largest tokamak, a magnetic fusion device that has been designed to prove the feasibility of fusion as a large-scale and carbon-free source of energy.
The 2017 edition of the ITER Business Forum took place at the Palais des Papes in Avignon, with more than 1,000 representatives of 433 companies from 25 countries, including more than 50% foreigners. For three days, delegates were able, to meet, interact and establish contacts while learning about the progress of the ITER programme and upcoming calls for tenders.
This sixth edition of the Forum, which is today the international flagship event of the ITER programme, was organised by the ITER France Agency with the support of the International Organization ITER and its partners from China, Korea, Europe, India, Japan, America and Russia. The financial support of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region was instrumental in making the event a success.
The full version, written by Boardroom Chief Editor Rémi Dévé, is available in the November issue of Boardroom. For more information on the Provence-Alpes-Côtes d’Azur region as a conference destination: l.cassuto@provencecotedazurevents.com / www.provencecotedazurevents.com
Picture: the Ephrussi de Rothschild villa and gardens, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat