Find your impact in your core business

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Your association has the knowledge, people and network to help move your sector forward. Those same strengths can also be used to create a lasting positive impact on the lives of people outside your sector. Because your greatest societal impact may not be far removed from your day-to-day expertise. It is right at the heart of it.

The campaign by the European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators’ Association is a perfect example. This association representing the European travel industry organised a much-needed holiday for Ukrainian children affected by the war. In 2026, the campaign's impact was recognised with an ESAE Impact Award.

An escape from war

The travel industry knows better than anyone how to create a meaningful holiday experience. ECTAA used that expertise for people for whom travel was not simply a holiday, but an opportunity to be carefree children again, if only for a while. The Holiday Camps for Ukrainian Children in Europe campaign was born.

ECTAA mobilised its members to organise six holiday camps for Ukrainian children and their carers. Hotels, transport companies, restaurants, attractions, tour operators, associations and volunteers contributed financially or in kind. Partners from Flanders, Croatia, Denmark, Latvia, Poland and Sweden joined forces to make the initiative possible.

During the camps, 216 Ukrainian children and carers took part in a mix of cultural, educational and recreational activities. Above all, they were able to experience something that should be taken for granted by everyone: a safe environment where they could relax, laugh and meet other people. 

Group of teens in orange caps posing in a city square with a cathedral tower and #bollekeisyana sign

The Ukrainian children visiting Antwerp. 

Flanders also played its part in this wonderful project. And that is no coincidence. For years, tourism and conferences have been seen here as a way to create positive societal change. The Ukrainian children’s holiday coincided with a special anniversary: the 25th anniversary of Everyone Deserves A Holiday. This network supports people for whom going on holiday is not a given because of financial, social or practical barriers.

“Going on holiday is often seen as a luxury. Yet new experiences, new connections and the opportunity to step away from everyday life are crucial for recharging your energy, making them essential drivers in people’s lives.”

Jeroen Marijsse, Everyone Deserves A Holiday

Smiling man in a navy button-up shirt, posed against a plain light background.

An award for the entire sector

With this project, ECTAA won the 2026 Impact Award, presented by the European Society of Association Executives. The award recognises projects that go beyond an association’s day-to-day activities and turn a broader vision and set of values into tangible action. This can take the form of a legacy project, a charitable initiative, education or societal change.

The jury was particularly impressed by the direct human impact the project created. Children were given safety, enjoyment, social connection and a temporary escape from the reality of war. At the same time, the organisation used its own core competencies to make that impact possible.

The project was also collective by nature. An entire ecosystem of national associations, travel companies, hotels, restaurants, attractions, transport companies, NGOs, volunteers and sponsors was mobilised. ECTAA therefore sees the award not as recognition for itself, but for the travel industry as a whole. 

Five people in business attire pose on stage at an event with “European Travel Agents' and Tour Operators' Association” on screen

ECTAA receives the prestigious Impact Award. Second from the right: our very own Milo Vergucht. 

“Tourism is about people. This award shows what our sector can achieve when we look beyond travel and choose solidarity.” 

Eric Drésin, Secretary General, ECTAA 

Headshot of a man in a dark suit and striped tie, looking at the camera against a light gray background.

Find your authentic impact too

A conference is one of those moments when almost everything your association has to offer comes together: expertise, members, partners, companies, researchers, policymakers, visibility and international attention.

You can use that energy to do more than exchange knowledge. You can also ask what your association, drawing on everything it does well, can mean for people in society.

For ECTAA, that question led to holiday camps for Ukrainian children.

At their Conference in Bruges, EACD encouraged children with disabilities to join a music association or sports club, contributing to their happiness, development and social inclusion.

Since the UCI Congress in Leuven, residents of the city have been using bicycles more often for short journeys, with a positive effect on their health and wellbeing.

And in every city where the Hands On! Conference takes place, the association encourages children from disadvantaged backgrounds to visit museums. Research shows that this can provide an additional lever for improving their social situation. 

Children playing in a gym, including two girls in wheelchairs, with balloons scattered on the floor.

Children with disabilities, too, are happier when they take part in sport 

We help you make a greater impact

What change do you want to create in people’s lives? For whom? With which partners? And how can that change continue after your conference? Flanders Convention Bureau helps you find the answers to all these questions.

When you organise your international conference in Flanders, we support you with a complete impact journey. Together, we identify the societal challenge that genuinely fits your association, define concrete impact objectives, find the right local stakeholders, develop actions and explore how you can track, measure and sustain the results.

Would you like to know more about this Impact Methodology and our free support for associations and PCOs? Our Impact Expert Milo Vergucht will be happy to tell you all about it. 

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