“While all our Ambassadors contribute and go above and beyond, there are a few this year that made some truly remarkable contributions to business events and this city that need to be acknowledged,” said Experience Gold Coast acting CEO Rachel Hancock.
Experience Gold Coast is the new amalgamated entity of several of the city’s visitor focussed organisations, including Destination Gold Coast and Business Events Gold Coast.
Six of the ambassadors received awards for their support of business events on the Gold Coast, including Dr Dinesh Palipana OAM, Dr Ezekiel Tan, Professor Emeritus Ljubo Vlacic and Professor Mark von Itzstein AO.
Associate Professor Dr Hal Rice and Associate Professor Dr Laetitia de Villiers, whose work helped bring the 13th Congress of the World Federation of Interventional and Therapeutic Neuroradiology to the Gold Coast in 2015 received a standing ovation for their contribution. The pair were also recognised for how they’ve elevated the Gold Coast’s reputation in the medical world globally.
Head of business events at Experience Gold Coast, Brooke Campbell highlighted the level of commitment required to secure a global conference for the destination – an task that can take a decade.
“That’s commitment for people who are practicing surgeons, executives, business-owners, teachers, entrepreneurs, scientists, and researchers, let alone still having time for their families,” said Campbell.
“These champions in the room last night are critical to winning conferences and this is why we honour all these amazing, committed volunteers.”
Experience Gold Coast has locked in 90 business events up to 2030, collectively worth $174 million to the destination. A further 132 events are in the pipeline, worth another $201 million. Secured wins include the International Communication Association [ICA] Conference in 2024 for 3,000 delegates, with the bid for this event driven by BE Connected Ambassador Professor Terry Flew.
