JustOne Campaign: We are extending the JustOne Campaign to March 31, 2021.

The annual recruitment campaign gives IAVM’s volunteer leaders the opportunity to recruit one new member. Who makes up the IAVM Leadership? The IAVM Board of Directors, Foundation Board of Trustees, Regents, Governors, Committees and Task Forces spread the word about the value of IAVM membership.

Last year’s JustOne campaign ended on December 31, 2019 and resulted in 95 new members. Your leadership and commitment to IAVM’s growth is evident in the results!

GOAL: We have 298 individuals involved in IAVM’s governance. If all volunteers recruit just one new member, your efforts will give us 100% participation by our leadership in 2020-2021, potentially adding another 298 new members.

Why is this important? In these challenging times, our collective voices make a difference with our advocacy efforts. Also, IAVM’s governance is also working hard to identify the next round of leaders that will propel IAVM into the future, but more importantly, provide you with expanded connections to give you more vibrant experiences and discussions at our schools and conferences, face-to-face and virtually.

REWARD: The Board, Committee, Council, Task Force, Region and individual that refers the most members will be recognized at VC21 in Atlanta, Georgia.

To receive credit for your new member, ask your referral to complete these fields in the online membership application*:

• How did you hear about IAVM – Enter “JustOne” and the committee you want to receive credit; important if you serve on multiple committees
  • Example: JustOne, Membership Committee
• If a person referred you, provide name:
  • Example: Stacey Church, Membership Committee

*The new member will save the one-time initiation fee of $150 if they enter ‘JustOne’ in the promotion code field of the Professional or Allied Membership Applications. This promotion applies to new members only

Questions, contact Member Services at membership@iavm.org; or email either of us at: Gina Brydson, Summer Beday or Robin Covington.

By ISSA and R.V. Baugus

More than 100 new facilities have achieved the gold standard for prepared facilities: GBAC STAR facility accreditation from the Global Biorisk Advisory Council; (GBAC), a Division of ISSA. A number of IAVM member venues are new to the list, which are now recognized for their achievement of the cleaning industry’s only outbreak prevention, response, and recovery accreditation for facilities.

“Cleaning and disinfecting require the right approach to adequately remove soils and prevent the spread of harmful pathogens,” said GBAC Executive Director Patricia Olinger. “The GBAC STAR accreditation program teaches organizations how best to manage cleaning and disinfection in their facilities and offers guidance on important infection prevention strategies like wearing masks, conducting temperature checks, sanitizing hands, and more.”

Expedited in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the GBAC STAR accreditation program helps facilities prepare for, respond to, and recover from biological threats, and biohazard situations. Just six months later, more than 3,500 facilities have committed to the program, which has accredited more than 500 facilities around the world to date with new organizations registering daily. Earlier this week, ISSA and the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) announced a partnership in which IWBI acknowledges GBAC STAR to fulfill the cleaning and sanitization credits within the holistic WELL Health-Safety Rating.

The GBAC STAR Facility Directory keeps track of all completed or in-progress accreditations to help consumers easily find facilities that are committed to a higher standard of cleanliness.

The following new IAVM venues have achieved GBAC STAR accreditation this month:

Arenas

American Airlines Center in Dallas, home to the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks and the NHL’s Dallas Stars
Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., home to the NBA’s Washington Wizards, the NHL’s Washington Capitals, the WNBA’s Washington Mystics, and more
Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisc., home to the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks
TaxSlayer Center in Moline, Ill.

Convention Centers

ASM Global – Reno Sparks Convention Center in Reno, Nev.
Austin Convention Center in Austin, Texas
Floreano Convention Center in Rochester, N.Y.
Kansas City Convention Center in Kansas City, Mo.
Lancaster County Convention Center in Lancaster, Pa.
The Classic Center in Athens, Ga.

Museum

NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C.

“GBAC STAR is designed to accommodate facilities of all different sizes and types so that people can feel confident about cleanliness measures wherever they go,” said ISSA Executive Director John Barrett. “We would like to congratulate this latest round of accredited facilities on their achievement and their ongoing commitment to health and safety.”

Interested in seeking GBAC STAR facility accreditation for your space? Visit gbac.org/star to learn more and apply. To gain access to the advisory council to assist you in the process, IAVM members must enter the code “IAVM2020” when applying!

By R.V. Baugus

IAVM President and CEO Brad Mayne, CVE, took part in a panel at the Events Industry Council’s EIC Advance virtual event that ran from November 18-20. The focus was on advocacy and advancing the event industry, which will be a major catalyst to global economic recovery.

The EIC’s Smart Meetings included Mayne along with Elliott Ferguson, president and CEO of Destination DC, and Sue Sung, senior vice president of corporate strategy with Freeman Company, as they discussed the urgency of getting relief quickly while remaining vigilant after the crisis eventually ends by continuing to tell the impact meeting story.

To see the full article, click here.

By Mabel Hung

Following a series of well attended physical trade and consumer exhibitions in October, another four trade fairs were held successfully at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) during 11-13 November 2020.

They were Restaurant & Bar Hong Kong X Gourmet Asia 2020, Natural & Organic Asia 2020, Build4Asia 2020, and Retail Asia Conference and Expo 2020 organised by Informa Markets, attracting hundreds of exhibitors, and thousands of local trade buyers from food & hospitality, health & wellness, retail, and innovative building technology sectors.

Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management) Limited (HML) has worked closely with the organiser, Informa Markets, to reschedule the four exhibitions impacted by the pandemic and to implement stringent and effective preventive measures to enable face-to-face networking and deal-making opportunities for participants.

Monica Lee-Müller, HML’s Managing Director, is excited about the long-awaited reboot of trade fairs at the HKCEC. “We highly appreciate organisers’ support and confidence in the HML team to open the many trade fairs at the HKCEC even without the participation of overseas exhibitors and buyers under the travel restriction,” she said. “HML is committed to provide our world class services, to create and recreate events, being flexible in scheduling and offering event organisers and attendees a safe, hygienic and comfortable environment to make connection and conduct business. We are excited to see the launch of the bilateral Air Travel Bubble between Singapore and Hong Kong on 22 November, and we hope it will soon be extended to cover Mainland China and other countries to restart the Hong Kong exhibition industry.“

Some 25 exhibitions and other corporate events and banquets have been confirmed at the HKCEC from October to December 2020. With the Hong Kong Government’s Convention and Exhibition Industry Subsidy Scheme, which has just been extended until end of 2021, more exhibitions and international conferences are expected in the coming months.

Mabel Hung is Director – Communications & Sustainability, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

By R.V. Baugus

We have noted before in IAVM News as well as a Venue Professional magazine article by Eden Park’s Nick Sautner about how Australia has opened and welcomed attendance to sporting events. Now, Suncorp Stadium is Brisbane drew an audience of 49,155 for a State of Origin rugby finals match between New South Wales and Queensland, in the process earning the largest attendance in any world sport since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March.

The attendance fell slightly short of Suncorp Stadium’s 52,500 capacity but was enough to eclipse the 46,000 figure that was posted for last month’s Bledisloe Cup rugby union match between New Zealand and Australia at Auckland’s Eden Park.

The first two games were played at Adelaide Oval and Sydney’s ANZ Stadium, which both operated at reduced capacities – 24,218 and 36,212, respectively – in line with COVID-19 restrictions. The third and final contest was won by Queensland, 2014.

The attendance mark was made possible when Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced recently that open-air stadiums with a COVID Safe Plan would be able to operate at full capacity, setting the stage for Suncorp Stadium to welcome almost 50,000 fans for the State of Origin decider.

Precautions were still taken with the grounds to ensure the safety of all fans. Masks were worn unless seated and fans remains within an allocated zone shown on the ticket. Cashless payments only were also in use for food, beverages and merchandise.

The announcement by the Premier will allow all ticketed seated venues across Queensland to raise their capacity from 50 per cent to 100 per cent. Outdoor events can increase attendance from 1,000 to 1,500 with a COVID Safe Event Checklist, with larger events requiring a COVID Safe Plan.