NEWS AND NOTES FOR THE MEETINGS AND CONVENTIONS INDUSTRY

Petal Pushers Towering creations at a flower parade in Holland. For more, see p. 26.

All Inclusive Bishop T.D. Jakes (center) is bringing his MegaFest religious conference to Dallas this August. Dallas CVB Customizes Diversity I

n November, the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau appointed Cheryl Richards to the newly created position of chief diversity and inclusion officer — becoming the first DMO in the country to elevate a diversity-related

position to the chief officer level, according to Dallas CVB President and CEO Phillip Jones. Part of the CVB’s mission, Jones said, is to market Dallas as an ideal

convention and visitor destination for women, multicultural, multigenerational, and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) groups. According to CNBC. com, Dallas qualifies as the sixth most diverse city in the nation, Jones said, with 30 percent of the population being Latino and 15 being percent African American. “As one of the most culturally diverse cities in the country, Dallas is uniquely positioned to understand the needs of this market.”

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ON THE WEB Dallas isn’t the only city making diversity its business. The Philadelphia Multicultural Affairs Congress is a division of the Philadelphia CVB that’s dedicated to “increase[ing] Philadelphia’s share of the multicultural meetings and tourism markets.” To learn more, visit philadelphiamac.org.

JANUARY 2013 PCMA CONVENE

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