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DC and its surrounding suburbs are home to more than 1.1 million “knowledge workers,” people whose jobs require them to use, analyze and develop ideas and information. What does that mean for meeting planners? It means that the DC metro area is a great place to seek out compelling speakers and programming topics—and a built-in, interested population that can help boost attendance and increase awareness of your organization.
*Medical conferences and conventions are exempt from DC SafeRx licensing requirements. After lobbying efforts by the Washington, DC Hospitality Alliance, the District of Columbia Department of Health announced that pharmaceutical industry employees who travel to DC do not need to be licensed in the District to staff booths or speak at medical conferences and conventions. The clarification came in response to concerns raised by the SafeRx Amendment Act, a piece of legislation passed last year requiring employees of pharmaceutical manufacturers and labelers to obtain a license to call on clients in Washington, DC. The DC metropolitan area is a thriving hub for biotechnology, home to the third-highest number of bioscience companies in the world and a major center of human genome research. World-renowned healthcare and research facilities like the National Institutes of Health and the US Food & Drug Administration are headquartered here, along with many top medical associations and major biotech companies like MedImmune, Martek and Digene. The region’s bioscience workforce employs 19,000 public-sector and 14,000 private-sector workers, a number that has increased by 5% since 2003. More than 50 world-class universities, federal laboratories, bioscience companies and nonprofit research facilities attract students and researchers to the metropolitan area. From research and development to testing and regulation, biotechnology is big business for DC. It’s also big business for DC’s hospitality industry and the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, which has successfully hosted gatherings of some of the most prestigious groups in the industry, including the Biotechnology Industry Organization and the American Society for Microbiology. “The personnel were extremely courteous, pleasant, knowledgeable and very helpful and were able to work with our computer system very easily. We look forward to working with your staff again…when we return to Washington, DC” HIGH-TECH With so much high-tech industry in its own backyard, it’s no surprise that the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and DC’s other meeting and convention facilities are well-equipped to handle the requirements of major tech-focused conventions and smaller corporate gatherings. Contact Destination DC to learn more. FEDERAL GOVERNMENT The federal government is a driving force – and a leading spender – in the DC economy, including its hospitality industry. DC’s hotels, restaurants and meeting facilities play host to grand events like presidential inaugurations as well as small-scale summits and symposia. Convention and conference services managers understand the unique needs and concerns of government planners and are eager to help events run smoothly and efficiently. GREEN Meeting planners find one of the country’s greenest meeting facilities in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, which is outfitted with features like low emission glass that controls heat gain and loss and maximizes natural lighting; energy-conserving heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems that operate in zones; high-efficiency lighting; automatic controls on restroom fixtures; plus recycling programs and direct access to public transportation. Hotels and restaurants are also stepping up, purchasing wind credits for energy, boosting recycling programs and supporting local, sustainable agriculture. Eco-minded associations are paying attention, choosing DC as the host location for events and gatherings like the American Council on Renewable Energy’s annual convention and the annual Green Festival at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. For more information on DC’s green efforts, explore DC’s green experience here. INTERNATIONAL High-profile international organizations like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank are also headquartered here, along with leading international news bureaus, more than 400 international associations and 700 internationally owned companies. Area colleges and universities hosted about 19,000 international students in 2005. With so many international influences at play, it’s no surprise to discover that DC residents are well-traveled and globally aware, voted “most worldly” in Travel + Leisure’s 2007 “America’s Favorite Cities” poll. Fifteen percent of DC residents and 20% of the region’s residents speak a language other than English at home, and the city’s dining and nightlife scenes span the globe, from high-end Asian cuisine to casual African fare to Brit Pop dance nights. DC’s is also a hotspot for international travel, with direct flight service to approximately 30 international locations, including new routes to Beijing, China and major cities in Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. Meeting planners are discovering that DC’s appeal, easy access, and the favorable exchange rate have led to an uptick in international delegate counts. More than 40% of the nearly 25,000 delegates who attended Digestive Disease Week in 2007 came from outside of the US. Click here to learn more about the international experience in DC. TESTIMONIALS WCTC staff helped to deliver an efficiently executed meeting. We were impressed with the professionalism of the staff and their dedication in responding to our needs. They very quickly became an extension of our own staff. |
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