A City Where Heritage and Innovation Meet
Guadalajara is a city with centuries of history shaped by Indigenous influence and Spanish legacy, yet it is equally known today as one of Latin America’s most vibrant centres of creativity and technology. This dual identity – birthplace of mariachi and tequila, home to cutting-edge design studios and tech innovators – mirrors the industry’s current shift toward values-driven growth.
Delegates staying at the JW Marriott will find themselves at the crossroads of Guadalajara’s cultural and economic life, with the hotel positioned close to major cultural institutions and the city’s expanding business districts. Often described as Mexico’s Silicon Valley, Guadalajara hosts significant operations for global companies including IBM, Intel, and Oracle, all drawn by the region’s strong engineering and digital-services ecosystem.
This industrial base is reinforced by the University of Guadalajara (UdeG), one of Mexico’s largest public universities and a key source of research partnerships and skilled talent. For associations, this blend of academic strength, corporate innovation and cultural depth creates fertile ground for meaningful legacy work, offering access to local experts, community partners and knowledge networks that extend the value of an event well beyond its programme.
Building on the Legacy of Previous Forums
Since its inception in Dubai in 2016, the Global Forum has been a space for questioning what events can accomplish beyond tourism. Each host city has contributed a new layer to this evolving understanding. Melbourne illustrated in 2024 how sustainability can be embedded directly into the delegate experience – delegates helped offset carbon from the event and supported a food-redistribution charity through Engage for Good. Dublin then carried that momentum forward: under the theme ‘Creative Collaborations: Innovating for Greater Communities’, the 2025 Forum explored how meetings can foster inclusivity, resilience, and social innovation across global associations and their destinations.
The Guadalajara edition extends this trajectory. Rather than presenting sustainability as a standalone theme, the programme examines how it intersects with local culture, creative industries, agriculture, entrepreneurship and community development. In this sense, Guadalajara will explore what meaningful legacy looks like in practice.
Programming that Blends Culture, Purpose and Innovation
The 2026 Global Forum is shaped by the belief that sustainability is strengthened when grounded in an understanding of place. Sessions will examine locally rooted examples, including Guadalajara’s fashion and design sectors, which have increasingly integrated ethical production, circularity and responsible sourcing. The presence of Snapsight and #Meet4Impact will reinforce the importance of data-driven legacy planning, ensuring associations have the tools to measure what matters most: community outcomes, knowledge transfer and social value.
Speakers will bring a balance of entrepreneurial insight, social impact experience and sustainability expertise. Marisa Lazo will reflect on leadership grounded in purpose and human connection, while Pablo Latapí Ortega, named among QUIÉN magazine’s people transforming Mexico, will offer perspective on storytelling, civic engagement and social change.
Milda Salciute of the GDS-Movement will moderate a session exploring how associations can balance rising sustainability expectations with financial realities, examining where sustainable practices add value or reduce costs and why they should be viewed as a strategic investment for long-term resilience.
Linda Garzón Rocha, representing Meet4Impact, will present a case study on Intermoda, Latin America’s leading fashion trade show, showing how the event has embedded sustainability and community impact into its core operations through close collaboration with Expo Guadalajara and local stakeholders. Their combined perspectives will help delegates realise not just how sustainability works, but why it matters.
Cultural Immersion as a Pathway to Understanding
One of the Forum’s defining characteristics is its emphasis on experiencing host cities as partners. Guadalajara’s cultural expression (from mariachi and mixology to Wixárika art traditions and local gastronomy) will frame discussions on identity, collaboration and community engagement. Even the journeys beyond the city, including visits to tequila-producing regions, highlight how heritage industries are adapting to environmental pressures and new economic realities.
As in previous years, sustainability will also be embedded through the Engage for Good initiative, with the 2026 recipient confirmed as the Centro de Formación y Promoción de Danza Clásica Isaac y Esteban Hernández, a non-profit organisation providing classical ballet training to children and young people, particularly those from vulnerable backgrounds. This aspect of the Forum has become a hallmark of BestCities’ approach demonstrating how delegates can create immediate positive impact while gaining insight into local social priorities.
BestCities’ vision is that sustainability becomes a standard upheld collectively across its 13 partner cities. In Guadalajara, that vision will take new shape, offering association leaders inspiration and practical guidance as they rethink what their events can achieve, not only for their members, but for the communities that host them.
If you would like to be part of the 2026 BestCities Global Forum in Guadalajara, you can register your interest here.