Royal Jaarbeurs’ Beatrix Theatre at heart of successful WHO conference

As part of the ‘Heart of Health’ initiative, the Utrecht region is working together towards a healthier, sustainable future. These efforts have not gone unnoticed globally as Utrecht was chosen to host last November’s international European Healthy Cities Network Conference. The event took place over several days and at various locations, including Royal Jaarbeurs, with each day’s programme starting in the plush red seats of the Beatrix Theatre. Miriam Weber, healthy city coordinator for the municipality of Utrecht, reflects on a successful event. 

“The conference is an annual event by the WHO European Healthy Cities Network," explains Miriam. "Every municipality has the option to submit a bid book to organise this conference and, aligning as it does with the city council’s ambitions, we were keen to host it in Utrecht. With this in mind we approached Royal Jaarbeurs to see if a partnership might be possible. Kelly, our contact person there, immediately made a reservation and provided valuable information for the bid book, including promotional materials and photos. The Utrecht Convention Bureau turned these into a smart presentation and the WHO was suitably impressed."

As the date of the conference drew nearer, did the tension levels perhaps rise? “It really wasn't too bad,” remembers Miriam. “The WHO team came to Utrecht a week before the event and visited Royal Jaarbeurs. Its tech person wanted to know every detail about the technology as they’d seen too many instances of things being poorly organised at other venues in the past. Kelly arranged for the stage manager to provide extra information about the technology. Each time we went over something the WHO was positively surprised. All aspects are integrated at Royal Jaarbeurs and pretty much everything is possible.”

Looking back, Miriam considers the conference to have been a great success. “Everything went well down to the smallest details. I heard the same from others too and there was a genuine air of enthusiasm throughout the days. Quite simply this was the best conference we've ever organised and a fine overall experience. Looking back at the photos they exude happiness and the evaluation process with Royal Jaarbeurs reflected that. Oh yes, there was only one little thing we could think of… A cracker that could have tasted better with some toppings. That’s how efficiently the conference went!"