Meetings Today reached out to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) for advice on how meeting and convention organizers should arm themselves with a pre-event checklist to make sure fire safety and adherence to fire codes is paramount.

The personal touch, even with convention-sized groups, is a hallmark of Marriott’s Convention & Resort Network (CRN), which is comprised of 115—and always rapidly growing!—of the world’s largest brand’s biggest group properties. Meetings Today got to sample the CRN touch on a recent familiarization trip to four of its Southern California properties.

Meetings Today checked in with five expert international meeting and event planners to get their golden tips for planning and executing successful meetings abroad.

Learn the A-to-Z of event tech and AV. Tyler Davidson talks with meetings tech and AV expert Jon Trask, who details his Best Practices: Event Tech primer in Meetings Today. Trask will give arm you with the basic information you need to offer a robust AV and tech offering without busting your budget.

World Pork Expo 2019 has been canceled by the National Pork Producers Council due to the spread of African swine fever in China and other parts of Asia.

Tyler Davidson delves into the week's events and Meetings Today coverage, including Joan Eisenstodt's blog on some of the stupid questions planners and suppliers have heard and an interview with a planner of major marijuana industry events.

The Events Industry Council (EIC), the umbrella group representing more than 30 meetings and events industry organizations, appointed a new CEO. Amy Calvert, who currently works as senior vice president of convention sales and services for Visit Baltimore, was announced as the EIC’s new leader. Calvert replaces Karen Kotowski, who resigned from the EIC in January 2019 after 10 years leading the organization.