The whole is greater than the sum of its parts - UKREiiF reflections

This week saw the culmination of months of planning with my client UK Business Council for Sustainable Development and supporting event partners Sir Robert McAlpine Sir Robert McAlpine Capital Ventures , Keyland , Inspired PLC , 世邦魏理仕 , Planning Portal and Prologis UK .?

The UKREiiF event organisers said it would be bigger and better, and I think it delivered on both counts. I noticed a more diverse audience, many people travelling up for all three days, and many more fringe events this year.?

The event is undoubtedly becoming more attractive than MIPIM for a UK audience due to the UK location. I think we will see a shift, for those that can, away from the international-facing event, to focus on more local partnerships which can be similarly cultivated on home turf. I had this conversation multiple times over the three days with clients past and present who are hardcore MIPIM-goers. It will be hard for this group to justify the tens of thousands in costs for individual companies to attend MIPIM if the audience can be found in the UK in one place at UKREiiF.

I caught up with a LOT of faces, old and new ones, and spotted many in the crowd I did not get to, sadly. Met some people in person for the first time, having only met them on here previously and also made some new relationships and shared stories from our past - seven degrees of separation is an actual thing! And also met some incredible speakers, especially the ones that said thank you - you will always make it back on my speaker list..:). What more could you ask for from a 3-day networking event?

Way too many from this combined list of people to mention, but?a few are; Ayo Abbas , Eimear Strong Iain Jenkinson , Caroline Norbury, OBE , Sir Andrew McAlpine , Simon Delahunty-Forrest , Eleni Polychroniadou , Rachel Bell , Sarah Rawlings , Louise Wyman , Harry Swales , Graham Sibley , Nigel Banks , Pierre Wassenaar the list goes on, but memory has failed…:)

It was a pleasure to put on the Beyond Net Zero Pavilion, curating a packed and exciting pavilion programme of speaker content over three days with Jason Longhurst and key partner Bradford Council . Thanks also to Matt Christie for your support in providing some excellent speakers into the mix. Thanks to Harriet Cooper for keeping it all together and being the backbone (an excellent event manager), and to MyLahore Restaurants for gorgeous catering - those cakes!

We welcomed keynotes and panellists from across different parts of the industry to share insights and thoughts around how we tackle this enormous task of going beyond net zero and, importantly, showcasing the excellent work already happening in this area. Something endorsed by Chris Skidmore MP on the final day when he gave his keynote and supported the UKBCSD member report' Sustainability Superpower - The Economic Prize for the UK' with Inspired PLC and Prologis UK .

We launched the UKBCSD industry report, which gained excellent traction both on-site through more than 120 downloads during our event and in the Guardian Business and, subsequently, a variety of online sustainability and business publications thanks to Chris Walker ?- I'm looking forward to working with UKBCSD and members to delve into some of the key points raised on the report to discuss via roundtables and, ultimately, bring the conversation on for next year and showcase, hopefully, some progress in this area too.

I didn't get to many fringe events. Still, oh my, the Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture event on Wednesday was a true testament to the diversity, passion and enthusiasm that a City can have for its place with strong joined-up leadership from Susan Hinchcliffe . The drummers and food from My Lahore were out of this world. Had some great conversations there too!

Until next time. And drop me a DM if you want to discuss UKBCSD or how my company Henbe Communications which specialises in strategic communications for built environment firms and projects, can help you elevate your purpose.