Brisbane and Darwin picked as host conference destinations

Two Australian cities, Brisbane and Darwin, have won hosting rights to the International Federation of Surveyors’ (FIG) prestigious Working Week, and 8th DevelopingEM Conference, respectively.

FIG will be held at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC) in 2025, and is expected to attract 1,700 of the world’s leading surveyors and spatial experts.

Darwin (pictured) will host a global emergency medical conference in 2022

Paul Digney, president of Surveying and Spatial Sciences Institute, the conference host association, led the successful bid with the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre team, supported by industry partners, Tourism & Events Queensland, Tourism Australia and Brisbane Economic Development Agency.

One of the key goals of the conference, he said, was enhancing the capacity of the profession to develop the knowledge and innovative thinking to help deliver more sustainable and resilient communities, aligning with the theme of the conference, ‘Surveying and geospatial: Creating resilient solutions for sustainable communities.’

Brisbane is in a prime position to host the 2025 conference having been recently announced as the host city of the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with its accompanying reputation for hosting large world-class events and as an active and engaged surveying and spatial hub.

Over in Darwin, the Northern Territory capital city is preparing to host the 8th DevelopingEM Conference, slated to happen from September 26-30, 2022. Past conferences have been held in locations such as Colombia, Fiji, Sri Lanka, Cuba, Brazil and Sydney.

The five-day conference will be staged at the Darwin Convention Centre and is expected to attract approximately 300 delegates from around the world. Two days of workshops will be followed by three days of keynote presentations, as well as plenary and discussion sessions.

DevelopingEM conferences focus on adult emergency medicine and critical care, paediatric emergency medicine and trauma care. The Darwin conference theme of “Global Emergency Medicine” will provide a spotlight on the importance of First Nations Healthcare, as well as remote populations with limited access to health care services, especially relevant during the pandemic.

Northern Territory Business Events, the official convention bureau for the Northern Territory, partnered with Darwin Convention Centre, to secure this global health sector conference.