The Smart Monday educational day at IMEX America kicked off at full stride on Monday, October 15, with Event Manager Blog Founder & Editor Julius Solaris revving up the crowd with an inspirational address that illustrated the powerful tool for change that meetings and events provide on a global scale.

Cedar Rapids, Iowa’s GO Cedar Rapids CVB ceased operations after incurring $2.3 million in debts from producing the “newbo evolve” festival, according to a report in The Gazette, a local area newspaper.

MGM Resorts International was denied a motion to centralize lawsuits filed by victims of the Route 91 Harvest Festival mass shooting.

Add Honolulu, Maui, Detroit and Oakland, California, to the list of major U.S. meetings destinations where Marriott union workers are striking. According to the UNITE HERE union group, approximately 2,700 of its workers are on strike and picketing in the Hawaiian destinations of Oahu and Maui.

UNITE HERE union members at seven San Francisco hotels and in San Jose go on strike.

Vice President & Chief Content Director Tyler Davidson talks with Omni Hotels & Resorts' Dan Surette, senior vice president of sales and marketing, and Laura Trussel McKoy, creative director and vice president of interior design, about the hard-charging brand's newest developments and design concepts.

Meetings Today Vice President & Chief Content Director Tyler Davidson and Chief Content Engagement Director and speaker Christoph Trappe talk with Christine Ahanotu, booking agent with AE Speakers, about the most critical issues meeting planners need to know before hiring a speaker.

Workers at seven downtown Boston hotels operated by Marriott International went on strike as of 5 a.m. October 3, 2018, with UNITE HERE union members set to expand strikes in other U.S. cities as soon as Thursday, October 4.