Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC) are delighted to announce the first conference confirmed to take place at the new venue, due to open in 2019.
This news highlights the work of the AECC team, who are continually sharing news of the exciting new development throughout the UK, Europe and beyond, including promotion at key industry events in Las Vegas and Los Angeles over the coming months; and are successfully attracting a host of business to the region, with bids and enquiries as far reaching as 2023.
The Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST) Conference will take place in the new venue, based at Bucksburn, Aberdeen, in 2020; and will be the first time the conference has been held in the UK. This conference was awarded subvention funding from VisitAberdeenshire, match funded by VisitScotland’s Conference bid Fund.
The event is the biggest gathering of global science communication scholars and practitioners; with around 600 delegates expected to gather in Aberdeen for the 16th PCST conference, which will include workshops and keynote speeches from leaders in the field.
The event was attracted to Aberdeen through Team Aberdeen partnership working between the venue and the University of Aberdeen, who won the right to host the conference through a competitive bidding process at this year’s PCST Conference in Istanbul with a presentation led by Dr Ken Skeldon and Dr Heather Doran from the university’s Public Engagement with Research Unit.
Aberdeen City Council Leader Jenny Laing said: “It is great news that the new AECC has received its first booking just a few weeks after we held the sod-cutting ceremony for it.
“The new AECC is a vital part of ensuring Aberdeen can compete on a global basis with other major cities and also for its future prosperity as it will attract bigger names in entertainment, as well as more international events and conferences.”
President of PCST, Brian Trench, commented: “Scotland will in 2020 become the sixteenth country to host a PCST conference, and we confidently expect the Aberdeen event to be a big success. We have had our conferences in all continents, reflecting our standing as a global network.
"We look forward to meeting representatives of the very many facets of science communication that are practised and studied in Scotland, the United Kingdom and far beyond, when we gather in Aberdeen in 2020."
Aberdeen University’s vice-principal for External Affairs, Professor Dame Anne Glover, said: “Public Engagement in Aberdeen continues to go from strength to strength and our successful bid to host the 16th PCST conference is further proof of this. It will be a great opportunity to show how connected and forward thinking Aberdeen is in this area.”
Dr Kenneth Skeldon, Head of Public Engagement at Aberdeen University added “The securing of this global conference on science communication reflects the international networking and reputation of our public engagement effort at Aberdeen. In the lead up and delivery of the conference, we now have the opportunity to build further links with the world’s largest community of science and technology communication scholars and practitioners.”
Interim managing director at AECC, Graeme Cumming, commented: “We are delighted to announce the first conference confirmed to take place at the new venue; this is a culmination of the work, passion and dedication of the team at AECC, who are committed to promoting the new development as far and wide as possible. This could not be achieved without the strong teamwork displayed by the Team Aberdeen partners, which provides Aberdeen with a strong competitive position when attracting international business to the city.”