The recent Community Café jointly hosted by BestCities Global Alliance and ICCA unfolded successful strategies for crafting compelling submissions for the Incredible Impacts Programme. Gather insights from seasoned experts and past participants on how to stand out and make a significant impact in community and association events.
Understanding the Incredible Impacts Programme
The Café kickstarted with a comprehensive introduction to the Incredible Impacts Programme by Nigel Brown,CICS, Director of Marketing and Partnerships at BestCities Global Alliance. Since its inception in 2017, the programme has evolved to recognize international associations’ impactful meetings. The programme offers two grants: the Incredible Impacts Grant of $20,000, awarded to associations demonstrating proven impact, and the $5,000 Incredible Impact Seed Fund Grant for those at the project initiation stages.
Key Points on Eligibility and Application
Dermot Ryan, Head of Association Engagement at ICCA, highlighted that applications must be linked to an international association meeting. The impact should be clear, measurable, and connected to the meeting itself. If your event has yet to take place, it is advisable to apply for the Seed Fund Grant, which supports early-stage project development.
Success Stories: Caroline Mackenzie and Grace O’Shea
Caroline McKenzie from the International Hip Preservation Society recounted her experience, emphasizing the importance of intentional impact planning. Her society’s meeting in Cape Town involved a community-focused approach with a legacy of raising awareness and improving medical education across Africa. McKenzie advised being clear about impact intent from the start.
Grace O’Shea from Fáilte Ireland shared insights from their successful partnership with the Autism Europe Congress. Their entry was distinguished by its strong mission-driven purpose and the successful application of the association conference impact and legacy framework.
Advice for Future Applicants
Both Caroline and Grace advised applicants to be clear and intentional. Here are some takeaways, including Gayle McGuinn, Head of Association Sales, Edinburgh International Convention Centre, winner of the Seed Fund Grant 2023 and finalist Incredible Impacts 2025 with the International Papillomavirus Society (IPVS):
- Be Intentional and Specific: Clearly define your impact goals. Focusing on a single compelling story with clear evidence of impact tends to resonate more with judges.
- Understand Your Mission: Ensure your impact aligns with your association’s mission and vision.
- Leverage Testimonials: Personalized testimonials can add substantial weight and credibility to your application.
- Know the Right Grant: Choose the appropriate grant type – Seed Fund for prospective projects and the main grant for post-event achievements.
- Don’t be intimidated. Starting small is ok. Getting the Seed Grant led to bigger and better things making Impact a permanent piece of the IPVS’s strategy.
- Involve as many stakeholders as you can in the process from the beginning. The bigger the team, the bigger the impact.
Takeaway Points
Both panels reiterated the necessity of submitting by the deadline and taking time to carefully prepare submissions. Those who proceed to the presentation stage at the ICCA Congress enjoy the unique opportunity to showcase their projects on an international platform.
The engaging session concluded with an interactive Q&A session, reaffirming the value of detailed planning and strategic alignment between conferences and their desired impact outcomes. Submissions for the 2026 cohort are due 2 June 2026, with announcements made in August.
For more detailed case studies and information, visit the Incredible Impacts website.
This Community Café offered not just guidelines but inspiration to drive impactful, legacy-building projects in international meetings. Are you ready to craft your winning entry?
