Events, Organisations & Operators,

David Ruetz, long-standing show director, passes the torch to Deborah Rothe for this year’s ITB in Berlin
Deborah Rothe follows in the footsteps of David Ruetz as exhibition director of ITB Berlin, the World’s Leading Travel Trade Show. In December 2022, Ruetz became senior vice president of Travel + Logistics at Messe Berlin, in which role he oversees the ILA Berlin Airshow as well as the global ITB brand family, along with its strategic development.As with immediate effect Deborah Rothe (31) is taking over as exhibition director and project manager of ITB Berlin. The event will take place live in Berlin from 7 to 9 March 2023 as an exclusive B2B event. She replaces David Ruetz (54), who as head of ITB Berlin took over the World’s Leading Travel Trade Show in 2002. He was instrumental in building the global brand that is ITB and also contributed significantly to establishing ITB Asia in Singapore and ITB China in Shanghai. He also identified the potential of the Indian travel market and supported developing ITB India which, after two virtual editions, this year will for the first time be taking place as an in-person event in Mumbai and will further strengthen ITB’s position as a global marketplace for the travel industry.
Rothe has been employed at Messe Berlin since 2011 and joined ITB Berlin in 2014. From August 2019, as head of Business Development & Sales, her focus was on developing ITB Berlin and marketing exhibitor and visitor business for the World’s Leading Travel Trade Show. She was also instrumental in driving the B2B networking event series TRVLX by ITB in European markets, which in future will continue to be an established part of the ITB portfolio.
“With Deborah Rothe, I am delighted to be appointing an experienced colleague for this important task at ITB Berlin. With her long years of experience at ITB Berlin, not only does she know the event extremely well, she also has in-depth industry knowledge”, said David Ruetz, senior vice president, Messe Berlin.
“As exhibitor director of the World’s Largest Tourism Trade Show, I look forward to the tasks and challenges ahead. Together with our global ITB brand family and ITB Berlin we provide an impetus for many areas of the travel and tourism industry. That is why new concepts, innovation and ongoing development are essential. I look forward to driving this effort with the team“, said Deborah Rothe, exhibition director, ITB Berlin.

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The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) is pleased to announce its Board of Directors’ newly re-elected Directors-at-large, who will officially begin their second two-year term at the close of ASTA’s Global Convention in San Francisco in August 2022. There were three open Director-at-large seats this year.
The following are the newly re-elected national Directors-at-large:
Marc Casto, President Leisure Americas, Flight Centre Travel Group
Jackie Friedman, President, Nexion Travel Group
Tiffany Hines, President & CEO, Global Escapes, Inc.
The other at-Large Directors returning to the board for 2022-2023 term are as follows: 
Kelly Bergin, President, Duglin Travel Group
Roger Block, President, Travel Leaders Network
Kareem George, President, Culture Traveler, LLC
Vanessa McGovern, Co-Founder & Chief Sales Officer, Gifted Travel Network
Patricia Thorington, Manager, Plaza Travel
Appointed or Elected by Committee
The following Board seats are either appointed or voted on by a subset of ASTA membership:  ADVERTISEMENT >CAC Chair – Michael Dixon – returning to the Board as the CAC Chair and will sit on the Executive Committee for one more year.
CAC Vice Chair – Kathy Bedell – returning to the Board as the CAC Vice Chair for one more year.
Small Business Network Director – Rhonda Shumway – serving the second year of her first term.
Consortium Director – John Werner, MAST Travel Network, will take the place of Helen Enriquez, representing Ensemble, on the ASTA Board of Directors.
Elected Regional Director – Southeast – Eddie Woodham – elected to a second term.
Returning Regional Director – North Central – Deb Belchak – serving the second year of her first term.
Returning Regional Director – Northwest – Lynda Phillippi – serving the second year of her first term.
Looking ahead, in 2023, five At-Large seats, one Small Business Director seat and two Regional Director seats on the Board of Directors will be open. 

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ABTA has launched its events programme for autumn 2022-summer 2023 offering a host of high-quality, professional training events and conferences for businesses of all sizes, designed to keep the travel industry up-to-date on important, business critical issues.
As the industry continues to rebuild from the pandemic and tackles new issues never faced before, ABTA is keen to provide a brand-new line up of events for this new era of travel.
Taking on board the feedback from our Members, a significant part of the programme is focused on in-depth training events from high calibre specialists and industry experts.
Attendees can expect advice and guidance in a diverse mix of areas including customer service, social media and marketing, finance, travel law and regulations. The training that is being introduced is suitable for new recruits as well as those returning to the sector and includes: 
CRM and Data Management Strategies for Travel – 13 September 2022Introduction to Travel – 15 September 2022An Essential Guide to Google Analytics 4 (GA4) for Travel – 5 October 2022Carbon Literacy for Travel – 3 October 2022Employment Law – 1 December 2022ADVERTISEMENTTo reflect the growth in new recruits entering the industry, ABTA is offering the option for businesses that wish to book multiple training sessions across the year to book discounted delegate packages that they can use at a time that suits them.
ABTA will also be hosting its annual conferences, including:
Travel Trends – 17 November 2022Travel Matters 2022 – 6 December 2022 (rescheduled from June 2022)Travel Finance Conference – 1-2 March 2023Delivering Sustainable Travel – 15 March 2023Travel Law Seminar – 10-11 May 2023Travel Marketing Conference – 17-18 May 2023Travel Matters 2023 – 21 June 2023
In addition to the multiple training sessions discount, ABTA is offering a 10% discount on all event bookings made before 31 August using the code ABTASUMMER22*. The events are open to the whole travel industry with reduced rates available for ABTA Members and Partners.
ABTA’s Head of Events, Eve Coburn, said:
“Following high demand from our Members, we have focused our events programme to offer a wide range of training sessions and conferences as the industry moves forward in the aftermath of the pandemic. ABTA is offering our Members and travel professionals the opportunity to increase their knowledge and skills in our ever-changing industry.”
All ABTA events can be found listed on the Breaking Travel News Travel Events Calendar – https://www.breakingtravelnews.com/events/

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Destination Canada is pleased to announce the return of Innovate Canada, a Destination Canada signature business event that highlights the groundbreaking work taking place across Canada’s leading innovation sectors to attract aligned international business events. Running from July 25-28 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Innovate Canada 2022 will give international delegates the opportunity to explore Canada’s blue economy and global leadership in ocean sciences, including the people and facilities behind some of the most transformative sustainable technologies and solutions for ocean restoration and marine health.
“Bounded by three oceans and home to the largest coastline in the world, it should be no surprise that Canada has a rich history of innovation and global leadership in the ocean’s sciences sector,” says Virginie De Visscher, Senior Director of Business Development, Economic Sectors, Destination Canada Business Events. “After a two-year hiatus, we are thrilled to bring the Innovate Canada program to St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. The city has a global reputation as a centre of ocean excellence and is home to some of the most exclusive facilities, advanced post-secondary institutions and renowned ocean research and training centres. Combine this leadership with the warmth of Newfoundland and Labrador hospitality, and there’s little wonder why global organisations in ocean sciences continually choose to host their events in St. John’s.”
In addition to educational site visits to disruptive startups and established businesses across St. John’s ocean science related industries, the Innovate Canada program will take delegates on curated tours of:
The National Research Council’s Ocean, Coastal and River Engineering Research Centre for research being conducted in the Ice Tank, one of the globe’s largest facilities of its kind; the Offshore Engineering Basin, one of the most advanced indoor model ocean facilities in the world; and the Tow Tank, which simulates marine conditions to evaluate the performance of marine systems.The Marine Institute of Memorial University to experience the most advanced marine simulation technology, pilot underwater vehicles in the Underwater Exploration Lab, and discover the newest technologies being applied to the global fisheries industries in support of sustainable aquatic resources.“From ocean technology, aquaculture and fisheries, ocean defense, marine bio-products, marine renewable energy, shipbuilding, and marine transportation, St. John’s is changing the way business in the ocean economy is conducted,” says Cathy Hogan, Executive Director at OceansAdvance, Newfoundland and Labrador’s ocean technology cluster organisation. “We’re thrilled to collaborate with Destination Canada through the Innovate Canada program, to put local leading innovators, cutting edge innovations and world class oceans research facilities on the global stage and show delegates why St. John’s is an incredibly distinct and unique location to host ocean-related business events.”
Aligned with Destination Canada’s national meeting strategy, Innovate Canada aims to drive regional economic growth and compel global organisations to host their business events in Canada.ADVERTISEMENT“When conference-goers meet in Canada’s innovation hubs, they can tap into the country’s brain trust, connect with some of the brightest minds and thought leaders, preview made-in-Canada solutions to the world’s greatest challenges and explore the Canadian innovations that are creating a more sustainable world,” adds Chantal Sturk-Nadeau, Executive Director, Business Events, Destination Canada. “When this intellectual capital is combined with our vibrant urban centres and unique natural landscapes, it provides a thriving ecosystem for business events that foster creativity, collaboration and ultimately, leave a lasting impact. We can’t wait to provide a look at just that.”
Innovate Canada rotates destinations and industry sectors each year and will return in May 2023 to share the brilliant minds and transformative work being done across Waterloo, Ontario’s advanced manufacturing sector including automotive, aerospace, food processing, cutting-edge robotics and automation innovation. Aligned with Destination Canada’s new Canadian Business Events Sustainability Strategy, Innovate Canada 2023 will, for the first time, be carbon neutral.

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