There’s a first time for everything

For the FIRST time in IASP history a global pandemic meant the cancellation of our in person world conference and a pivot to virtual for the 37th annual meeting of science parks and areas of innovation.

We used to travel the world and will miss seeing each other and discovering new places and cultures together. We’ll miss local cuisine and serendipitous encounters that over the years have created lasting friendships and business opportunities within our global network of innovation ecosystem managers. 

Looking back at my first year at the helm of IASP the current scenario is certainly quite different from what I had first imagined when starting in my new role at last year’s world conference in Nantes. We had an unforgettable time and were set to meet in beautiful Seville in 2020.  

Things turned out quite differently, but knowing our team, members and friends we’ll still know how to make #IASPvirtual just as special as every global IASP gathering. As we reach our conference dates (1-3rd December 2020) we are also discovering that the online format can actually be a feature, not a flaw!

For the FIRST time in IASP history we are all the same distance from our annual world conference venue, with content just one click away and available for on demand viewing to catch up on content at your own pace after the conference too.

We’ll also still be able to (virtually) ‘travel the world’ without jetlag and long hours in airports, especially on day 2 where we’ll ‘drop by’ our seven regional divisions to hear their experiences in current times, as well as connecting with managers of science parks and areas of innovation to discuss community building, talent attraction, sustainability and how we best support our companies and communities through the pandemic.

Pandemic pivots and other compelling company stories will also be shared by entrepreneurs based in science parks around the world, as well as expert insights from IE University, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Element AI, BestCities Global Alliance, Tataj Innovation, Bondo Advisors, BCI Global, and the Competence Center on Technology Transfer (JRC) of the European Commission.

The latest trends in life sciences and innovation stories from MaRS Discovery District, Here East, Ruta N Medellin, Ann Arbor SPARK, High Tech Campus Eindhoven, MIND and many more will also be springing from our global storyboard.

Last but not least, we’ll also have a range of light hearted quickfire interviews, putting the people of our network in the global spotlight as we at this year’s IASP world gathering explore “The human factor: people, communities and their innovation ecosystems”.

As a new format at our events, the interviews are another first, just like it is the first time we’ll have a virtual venue like you can see in the picture, and the first time we are offering trees as a delegate gift – the event may be virtual, but the Treedom forest IASP is planting will be very real! 

We’d love to have you with us, jointly unlocking the door to our virtual venue on December 1st. To make it easy (and as another “first”) we are even keeping the early bird fees for the late birds and I look forward to wrapping up the year on a high note with lots of food for thought and the knowledge sharing that is the cornerstone of everything IASP does!