MAIN STAGE SESSIONS

Explore powerful Main Stage sessions led by industry voices.

Monday, February 2 | 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

AI That Plans With You

Speaker: Anca Platon Trifan

Artificial intelligence has evolved from simple prompts to systems that think, learn, and collaborate. In this keynote, I’ll share how planners can tap into this new generation of intelligent agents to streamline workflows, personalize experiences, and scale their impact. We’ll take a look at how AI is already transforming event design, strategy, and execution, and what the next wave of innovation means for the way we work.

Top 12 Ways to Make an Impact

Speaker: Kristin Banta

Every event has the potential to leave a mark and Kristin Banta is an expert at doing just that. In this session, she’ll share her top 10 ways to create unforgettable experiences, from thoughtful details to bold statements. You’ll walk away with ideas you can use right away to inspire, delight, and make every moment count.

Storytelling Beyond the Event: How to Extend Impact

Speaker: Dori Adams

Your event doesn’t end when the doors close. In this session, Dori Adams challenges event organizers to rethink how they define success by looking beyond the physical experience. She explores how intentional content capture and storytelling can extend an event’s reach, preserve its energy, and create lasting impact long after the final moment. Attendees will learn how to move from simply documenting an event to designing it with post-event momentum and future promo in mind. Through this session you will learn how to use content to drive connection, visibility, and ROI. This talk offers a practical framework for building presence before, during, and after the event.

Welcome to the New World of Event Sponsorship

Speaker: Brent Barootes

Get ready to see where the money is. Get ready to understand what is different and why it is necessary to shift your way of thinking if you want to generate maximum sponsorship dollars at your event or experience. From augmented reality to AI generate proposals, relationships to data collection and gamification… this is a new world and success begins here! Be prepared for a paradigm shift in thinking about sponsorship revenue and then get ready for the cash to flow! 

NeuroMarketing in Action: Capture Attention, Evoke Emotion, Drive Results

Speaker: Lisa Schulteis

In a world where attendees, clients, and stakeholders are overwhelmed with competing messages, it’s no longer enough to simply promote an event or service — you must design communication that the brain can’t ignore. In this fast-paced session, neuroscience and marketing strategy collide to reveal what truly captures attention, sparks emotional connection, and drives decision-making.

In just 15 minutes, you’ll learn three powerful brain-based triggers you can apply immediately to elevate your event marketing, strengthen sponsorship and sales communication, and increase conversion. Whether you’re filling seats, pitching partners, or positioning your destination or service, you’ll walk away with simple and practical techniques to make your message unforgettable.

Key Takeaways

  • Discover the 3 neuroscience triggers that dramatically improve attention, engagement, and decision-making

  • Learn how to craft messages that create emotional resonance and stick in long-term memory

  • Apply a simple framework to increase response, conversion, and marketing ROI

Elevating Your Next Event

Speaker: Evan Babins

As the event landscape evolves faster than ever, standing out takes more than great logistics, it takes great intention. In this dynamic keynote presentation, Evan Babins explores five key shifts redefining how we plan, produce, and experience events in 2026. From storytelling and sustainability to collaboration and tech-driven engagement, discover practical ways to elevate your next event from good to unforgettable.

The Hunt for More: Turning Events into Unforgettable Experiences

Speaker: Hailey Dawood

Event professionals are natural explorers — always searching for the next big idea, the next experience that makes people stop and say “wow.” 

Join Hailey Dawood, Owner and Chief Huntress of The Idea Hunter, as she takes you on an inspiring deep dive into what’s next for Canadian events. From creative formats and cultural shifts to tech innovations and audience psychology, this session will reveal the trends redefining how we connect, celebrate, and create impact.

You’ll walk away with:

  • Fresh, actionable ideas ready to pitch to clients and teams

  • Insight into the forces shaping event design and entertainment in 2026 and beyond 

  • A renewed sense of creativity, purpose, and excitement for what’s possible

This is your chance to refuel your creative edge and join The Hunt for More.

Meaningful Connections: Beyond the Buzzword

Speaker: Christine Renaud

“Connection” has become one of the most overused words in the events industry.
But what does meaningful connection actually look like—when it’s real, measurable, and transformative?

Drawing from nearly 1,000,000 peer-to-peer connections hosted through Braindate across iconic global events such as TED, SXSW and Dreamforce, Christine explores what truly brings people together. Not icebreakers. Not networking tricks. But shared questions, vulnerability, and the courage to learn from one another.

In this keynote, Christine shares surprising data on:

  • What people really want to talk about when given the chance

  • Why “hugs” quietly became a KPI at some events

  • How intentional peer learning creates deeper belonging, higher engagement, and stronger business outcomes

This is a practical and hopeful talk for event leaders who want to move beyond transactional networking—and design experiences that people still talk about long after the badges come off.

This session is sponsored by adn speakers.

Ethics, Transparency & Trust - Redefining Standards in the Events Industry | Panel Session

Speaker: Jody Paulson

Panelists: Evan Babins, Kerrie Blizard and Tim Lang

Four event professionals walk into an event.

No punchline, just the kind of conversation the industry can’t afford to ignore.

In an industry powered by relationships, reputation, and results, ethical clarity, transparency, and safety are no longer optional, they are foundational. This engaging main-stage panel lifts the curtain on how ethics, safety standards, and honest communication are reshaping professional expectations and redefining how events are planned, sourced, and delivered.

Join a lineup of industry leaders as they unpack:

  • Why transparency is essential to building trust with clients and business partners, including conversations around compensation, commissions, and fees

  • How evolving safety standards, crowd management practices, and OHS guidelines are raising accountability across all event environments

  • The ethical considerations behind vendor sourcing, preferred partnerships, and supplier relationships

  • How clear contracts, risk management, and defined safety responsibilities protect people, brands, and businesses

  • What fair, sustainable business models look like when openness, safety, and shared standards lead the way

  • How true professionalism shows up in a global, interconnected events industry, on-site, behind the scenes, and beyond

Because when four event professionals walk into an event, success isn’t just measured by what looks good, it’s measured by what’s ethical, transparent, and safe. This session challenges attendees to align values with business practices, strengthen trust, elevate collaboration, and set a higher bar for integrity and responsibility across every corner of the events community.

Tuesday, February 3 | 1:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Hot Topics: Battle of the Event Profs | Interactive Live Game Show

Speaker: Arthur Kerekes

Panelists: Carly Silberstein, Sébastien David, Mahoganey Jones and Jason McKay

Get ready for opinions, debate, and audience participation — this is not your typical panel.

Hot Topics: Battle of the Event Profs is an interactive live game show hosted by Arthur Kerekes, where industry leaders go head-to-head on the issues event professionals actually care about.

Game show contestants include Carly Silberstein, Sébastien David, Mahoganey Jones, and Jason McKay — and the twist? The audience plays along.

Using a Majority Rules format, attendees compete alongside the contestants as hot industry topics are debated live, viewpoints are challenged, and the crowd helps decide which perspective wins.

Fast-paced, interactive, and guaranteed to spark conversation — this session brings the energy and the insights.

Live Podcast Recording: Events: Demystified

Speaker: Anca Platon Trifan

Panelists: Niesa Silzer, Dustin Westling and Epiphany Bourque

When timelines shrink, expectations rise, and the margin for error disappears — how do event leaders really make decisions? 

Join us for a live podcast recording of Events: Demystified, hosted by Anca Platon Trifan, featuring Niesa Silzer, Dustin Westling, and Epiphany Bourque.

In Conversations That Matter When the Pressure Is Real, this candid panel dives into leadership under sustained pressure. From production and event technology to business and talent leadership, the discussion explores what’s holding, what’s under strain, and how decisions made in real time impact teams, partners, and outcomes.

If you’ve ever felt the weight of responsibility without extra capacity, this conversation is for you.

The Magic of Us: Why Human Connection Will Shape the Next Era of Events

Speaker: Trish Knox

Belonging is the new competitive advantage.

In a world increasingly shaped by AI, global uncertainty, and intense competition for attention, the need for human connection has never been greater. People don’t just attend events anymore—they seek belonging, meaning, and moments they can’t get anywhere else. The future of events belongs to those who create that emotional spark. 

Winning mindshare today requires more than great content. It demands experiences that stand out, foster genuine connection, and transform audiences into communities.

In this keynote, Trish Knox explores the next era of events—where experiential design, emotional resonance, and a true sense of belonging determine which gatherings thrive. Join us to discover how your event can rise above the noise, win mindshare, and become the one experience your audience refuses to miss.

Slow Down, Power Up

Speaker: Carl Honoré

Event planning is one of the most fast-paced and high-pressure professions there is. So what if the most powerful thing you could do… is slow down? 

We’re closing the GO WEST 26 main stage on Tuesday afternoon with Carl Honoré, internationally recognized keynote speaker and leading voice of the Slow Movement.

This refreshing and thought-provoking keynote invites planners to step off the constant treadmill of urgency and explore how slowing down can lead to clearer thinking, better decisions, renewed creativity, and more sustainable success — both professionally and personally.

Designed to leave you grounded, re-energized, and inspired with a new perspective, this is the perfect way to close GO WEST 26.

This session is sponsored by adn speakers.