Home Expert Advice Planning with Purpose: Tips from Destination Canada’s New Study

Planning with Purpose: Tips from Destination Canada’s New Study

May 28, 2025

Destination Canada Business Events’ Legacy & Impact report reveals how to achieve impactful planning.

Meetings can bring lasting “beyond tourism” benefits to local communities, say the latest findings of a multi-year study from Destination Canada released at IMEX Frankfurt—and strategic planning can actively drive these benefits. The Business Events Legacy & Impact Study evaluates the economic, social and environmental impacts of 15 conferences held in Canada between 2018 and 2024, across six key economic sectors: life sciences, natural resources, finance and insurance, advanced manufacturing, agribusiness and digital industries. The goal was to uncover insights and guidance on the type, scale and scope of events that are most likely to act as a catalyst for medium to long-term benefits for local communities. These include novel ideas, research collaborations, new trade deals, investments, policy changes, economic development, social progress and more.

The study identifies four areas of purposeful meeting and event planning to support growth, resilience and competitive advantage:

1. Legacy Drivers. Nine specific activities can be intentionally designed to achieve immediate impact during the event, as well as establishing the conditions for long-term benefits that align with the conference’s overarching objectives. These are knowledge transfer, capacity building, sector innovation, legacy frameworks, diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, showcasing local expertise, sustainable practices, community engagement and advocacy activities. For example, Legacy Frameworks-The Edmonton Declaration, calling for science-based climate policies and greenhouse gas targets for municipalities globally, was created ahead of the CitiesIPCC Cities and Climate Change Science Conference in Edmonton in 2018 and has since been signed by 4,500 North American municipalities.

2. Success Factors. Pre-event activities, government participation, destination marketing organization (DMO) involvement and external activities can all be meeting success factors, says the study. When leveraged effectively, they generate meaningful intellectual, policy and social impacts, ensuring events deliver both immediate and long-term value. An example of successful DMO involvement happened in 2022 when Tourisme Montréal and the Palais des Congrès de Montréal supported the International AIDS Society (IAS) and the local organizing committee in the organization of the 24th International AIDS Conference. They piloted a local social impact strategy to increase the potential for positive event outcomes and were key in convening a local impact task force to support the pre-event collaborations. This facilitated a wide array of community-led awareness efforts surrounding the official event.

3. Profound Outcomes. The most meaningful outcomes of the studied events fell into six categories: social, intellectual, policy, human, financial and cultural. In the intellectual outcome category, The Insects to Feed the World Conference in Québec City in 2022 resulted in the creation of a three-year Research Chair at Université Laval through an official academic-industry partnership, which in turn created the development of graduate courses and multiple research projects in the emerging field of insect production for food.

4. Intentional Planning. Events designed with clear objectives to create tangible outcomes consistently deliver broader and more meaningful results. By defining legacy goals, such as advancing public health agendas, attracting investment, or fostering global collaborations, planners can strategically align activities, stakeholders and messaging to ensure every aspect of the event contributes to its purpose. For instance, pre-event advocacy activities like those before the 5th International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5) in Vancouver in 2023 amplify the event’s relevance, aligning it with public and civil society agendas and strengthening its impact on policy and societal outcomes. At IMPAC5, a pre-event Leadership Forum facilitated discussions on how to synergize efforts to protect oceans.