Sustainable Ideas for the Meeting Destination Leipzig
Numerous partners have pooled their strengths and know-how to make meeting business even more successful
With a sizeable number of large congresses, medical conferences and high-calibre industry meetings, 2018 was one of the most successful business years of Congress Center Leipzig (CCL). A total of 78 events attracted 120,700 participants. The good occupancy of the KONGRESSHALLE am Zoo has contributed to this success as well. There, 59,000 participants attended a total of 95 events.
The event calendar for 2019 again features numerous highlights. Already in February the KONGRESSHALLE was proud to welcome German meetings industry representatives to ‘greenmeetings und events‘, a conference organised by the German Convention Bureau and the EVVC European Association of Event Centres which focused on trends and ideas with regard to sustainable event design. With best practices of sustainability in action, both the City of Leipzig and the KONGRESSHALLE qualified as hosts very well. In the daily business activities of CCL and KONGRESSHALLE – both are locations of Leipziger Messe – quite a number of concrete steps have been taken such as concepts of intelligent mobility for congress delegates, and a consistent socio-economic approach.
Both locations are part of the congress initiative ‘Feel the spirit…do-it-at-leipzig.de‘ which unites more than 50 partners in their efforts to strengthen Leipzig as a meeting destination. Even when a bid to host an event is prepared, they pool their resources, and the consistent cooperation of locations, hotels, partners from the field of logistics and other services has a positive spin-off for the entire destination. Apart from winning new events and providing convincing services, a major objective of this collaborative destination management is to create long-term relationships with event organisers, so that their good experiences make them come back to Leipzig more than once.
Thus, the 2019 calendar of the CCL once again features events which have been relying on this destination before and which have grown since, due to a good cooperation with local partners. Simultaneously with IMEX, the venue will host the 12th consecutive edition of OECD’s International Transport Forum, the world’s most important meeting on global transport policy and development. This will be followed by the German X-Ray Congress which will celebrate its 100th anniversary in Leipzig in 2019. This meeting has been held at CCL since 2016 and will remain there until 2020. Ver.di, too, has been staging their National Trade Union Convention in Leipzig since 2007. The event is held every four years and will return to the CCL in September.
One prevailing meetings industry trend, the juxtaposition of programme content and emotional experience, will be illustrated by the Louis Braille Festival. Germany’s largest festival for the empowerment of blind and visually impaired persons will be held in Leipzig in July, with the KONGRESSHALLE being the main venue. The event will be organised jointly by the German Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired, and the German Central Library for the Blind which will be celebrating its 125th anniversary.
Premiere in March 2020: Locations Central Germany
Even the event calendar for 2020 is starting to fill. One of the events listed for the KONGRESSHALLE is the first ‘Locations Mitteldeutschland‘, scheduled for March 10, 2020. This trade show format has so far existed for the metropolitan regions of Stuttgart, Rhine-Neckar, Rhine-Ruhr, and Rhine-Main. This regional communication platform for the event industry aims to present destinations and locations of one particular German region. In Leipzig, the focus will be on the states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia.
About the CCL and KONGRESSHALLE am Zoo Leipzig
Congress Center Leipzig (CCL) belongs to Leipziger Messe Group of Companies and is part of the Leipzig Trade Fair Exhibition and Convention Centre. It is one of the most modern meeting venues Europe. A special feature of the CCL is customized support for each event, and the complete range of event-related services. Every year, the CCL hosts approximately 100 meetings and conference programs. The flexible concept for the use of space, with 23 independent halls and rooms, exhibition halls that can be integrated as required, and the Glass Hall as an event location, makes it possible to hold events of almost any size and any kind.
Beyond its own venue, the CCL team operates the KONGRESSHALLE am Zoo Leipzig, a modern meeting venue in historical guise. The fine Wilhelminian and Art Nouveau-style edifice in the heart of Leipzig features 15 halls and rooms, several foyers and exhibition space. The CCL and the KONGRESSHALLE am Zoo are members of the 'do-it-at-leipzig.de' campaign, an alliance of meetings industry suppliers in Leipzig who are jointly committed to maintaining highest standards throughout Leipzig as a meeting destination.