For decades, the success of conferences and events have been measured in familiar ways. Delegate numbers, hotel nights, economic impact models that capture spend during a single week in a single place. These metrics still matter, but they don’t reflect the full story.
Across the global meetings and incentive industry, expectations are shifting. Governments want to see long-term value and investment. Communities want to feel included and also receive benefits. Associations are increasingly asking how their events can contribute to real progress in the sectors they serve, locally and internationally – while attendees want their participation to have a meaningful impact, too. In this context, the idea of ‘legacy’ has moved from a nice ambition to a strategic requirement.
Canada’s Business Events Legacy and Impact Study was created to answer a simple but challenging question: what is the actual impact after a major business event leaves town?
Prince Edward Island Convention Centre
Measuring what lasts
Led by Destination Canada and delivered in collaboration with research partners #MEET4IMPACT and Gaining Edge, the multi-year study tracks the long-term impacts of international business events hosted in Canada between 2018 and 2025. It examines conferences across six priority economic sectors where Canada has global strengths, including life sciences, natural resources, agribusiness, advanced manufacturing, finance and digital industries.
What sets the study apart is not just its scope, but its approach. Rather than focusing solely on immediate economic return, it evaluates outcomes that emerge months and years after an event concludes. These include social, intellectual, policy, human, cultural and financial outcomes, measured using a standardised Impact Measurement Framework developed by #MEET4IMPACT, that allows findings to be compared across events, sectors and destinations.
Sustainability Roundtable at rooftop garden in Palais des Congrès de Montréal. Credit to Destination Canada
The goal is not to replace traditional metrics, but to broaden the definition of success. As the study makes clear, business events can be catalysts for change, when they are designed with purpose and impact from the outset.
“What makes this study stand out is its scale and its focus on evidence over time,” said Virginie De Visscher, executive director, Business Events, Destination Canada. “It lets us move beyond anecdotes and demonstrate how international business events can support innovation, influence policy development and strengthen community wellbeing.”
What the data is already showing
With Year One and Year Two findings now published, clear patterns are emerging.
Across the 12 international conferences held in Canada from 2018 to 2025 that have been studied, connection and collaboration outcomes appear most frequently, followed closely by intellectual and policy outcomes. Taken together, the findings point to conferences as more than time-bound gatherings. They create the conditions for relationship-building that strengthens professional networks, accelerates knowledge transfer, and can influence public policy and build capacity within host communities.
Incentive Canada Victoria, BC, at Bilston Creek Farm. Credit to Destination Canada
The financial impact is also significant. More than CAD$2bn in public funding commitments and investments have been directly attributed to the events analysed to date. These investments support initiatives ranging from biodiversity conservation and climate adaptation, to public health, sector innovation and Indigenous-led stewardship programmes.
The UN Biodiversity Conference COP15, hosted in Montréal in 2022, offers a powerful example. Beyond the immediate scale of the event, COP15 played a central role in the adoption of the Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework, which commits countries to protecting 30% of land and water by 2030. The conference also catalysed major funding announcements, including hundreds of millions of dollars for Indigenous Guardians programmes and domestic conservation initiatives. These outcomes continue to shape policy and practice well beyond the conference dates.
In a very different sector, the Insects to Feed the World Conference held in Québec City in 2022 demonstrated how targeted events can accelerate emerging industries. Research tracked after the event shows that advocacy and visibility generated by the conference contributed to the Québec government formally recognising insects as livestock and as an agricultural science. This shift unlocked new regulatory support, investment and education pathways, helping to professionalise and scale an emerging agri-food sector.
Eagle Wing Tours – Indigenous Stories – in Victoria, BC.
“These are not abstract benefits,” says Geneviève Leclerc, co-founder & CEO, #MEET4IMPACT. “They are tangible changes to policy, funding and sector development that would not have happened in the same way, or at the same speed, without the event.”
Designing for impact, not just attendance
One of the study’s most important contributions is its focus on how impact is created.
The research identifies nine ‘legacy drivers’, specific activities that can be intentionally built into event design to support long-term outcomes. These range from knowledge transfer and capacity building to showcasing local expertise, embedding sustainable practices and engaging communities before, during and after an event.
Supporting these drivers are four success factors that consistently amplify impact: pre-event activities, active involvement from destination marketing organisations and community leaders, government participation and strong external collaboration.
Pre-event activity stands out as particularly influential. Ahead of COP15, for example, Montréal leaders launched the Tiohtià:ke Pledge, inviting cities worldwide to commit to concrete biodiversity actions. The pledge is now embedded within Canada’s 2030 Nature Strategy, providing an ongoing mechanism for tracking progress and accountability.
Similarly, government participation has proven to be a critical enabler. Events with visible government engagement are more likely to result in policy adoption, sector recognition and funding commitments. The study shows that when governments use events as platforms for announcements, dialogue and collaboration, the impacts extend far beyond the host destination.
Destination Marketing Organisations (DMOs) also play an evolving role. Traditionally focused on bidding and promotion, DMOs in Canada are increasingly acting as convenors, connectors and legacy stewards. Their involvement helps align event goals with local priorities and ensures that relationships built during an event continue to generate value over time.
Cummings School Of Medicine U of C, Calgary. Credit to Destination Canada
Why Canada’s approach resonates globally
While the study focuses on events hosted in Canada, its relevance is international.
The findings reinforce a broader shift within the meetings industry toward purpose-led event design.
Legacy planning is closely aligned with Destination Canada’s Business Events Sustainability Plan and the country’s broader commitment to regenerative tourism.
“Planners are increasingly looking for destinations that share their values and ambitions,” said De Visscher. “This includes encouraging organisers to partner with local businesses, Indigenous knowledge keepers and guides, artisans and community organisations as speakers, suppliers, and experience designers. These choices create real points of connection, and help ensure the benefits of hosting are felt locally, long after an event ends.”
For international planners, this positioning matters. Hosting an event in Canada means working with partners who are prepared to support outcomes, not just logistics.
Looking ahead to IMEX Frankfurt
As the study enters its third year, the focus is shifting from insight to application. Additional events are being analysed, interviews expanded and methodologies refined.
The final, consolidated report, scheduled for release at IMEX Frankfurt in May, will bring together multi-year evidence, expanded case studies and practical guidance for destinations and organisers worldwide. It is designed not as a retrospective, but as a roadmap for the future of business events.
At a time when the industry is redefining its purpose, the message is clear. Business events are more than moments in time. When designed with intention, they can help shape policies, strengthen sectors and leave communities better than they found them.
That is a legacy worth measuring.
