The future of conferences and meetings in the United Nations system

THE FUTURE IS NOW! Event facilitation services - whether conferences or larger meetings like retreats, symposia and dialogue events - are undergoing rapid transformation, driven by the massive scaling of online learning formats, the rollout of Virtual Reality applications and the introduction of holographic projections to provide mixed reality experiences. The future of conferences and meetings is hybrid, combing face-to-face meetings with virtual and online interaction formats and comprising a larger number of touchpoints before, during and after the core event. The future of conferences and meetings will likely see fewer but larger face-to-face events where networking benefits and scale effects potentially outweigh environmental concerns and budget constraints. The future of conferences and meetings could be more diverse and more democratic since technology can lower physical barriers to participation – provided the challenge of digital inclusion can be met. Artificial intelligence will greatly facilitate event logistics like translation services but data privacy and –security throw up new concerns. The International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization has a mandate to facilitate conferences and meetings for ILO constituents and ILO development partners. The Centre has been pushing the digital transformation of its portfolio of event facilitation services for years, and fast-accelerated this transformation process under the impact of COVID 19. OBJECTIVE The overall objective of the event is to contribute towards stronger development partnerships between UN agencies tasked with the facilitation of conferences and meetings. The immediate objective of the symposium is share knowledge among development partners in the UN system about the future of conferences and meeting facilitation, here with focus on (a) trends and priorities; (b) technology supporting hybrid formats; and (c) data-driven services to measure outputs, outcomes and impact along the result chain. AUDIENCE The symposium is directed at staff from UN agencies tasked with the facilitation of conferences and larger meetings, including the design of concepts, the curation of content and the provision of logistical support.