Meeting Professionals International (MPI)’s World Education Congress (WEC) was a long time coming to Gateway City. Organizers overcame construction delays, a tragic tornado a month before doors opened and a chaotic international events scene to bring 1,900 people (with another 300 accessing online) to the expanded America’s Center Convention Complex last week.
Big Ideas at MPI WEC
The scene from the main stage was one of confidence with an emphasis on local and diverse voices starting with Master of Ceremonies Carol Daniel, senior producer and host of the local PBS station and opening speaker Brittany Packnett Cunningham, who started a confidence revolution from her activist roots in St. Louis and has risen to national acclaim for her TED talk aimed at helping everyone share their perspectives.
The pioneer in supporting diverse neurological thinkers, Temple Grandin, took the stage to encourage the return of practical arts such as woodworking, sewing and vocational schools to support different types of thinkers because AI can’t do everything. “We need all types of minds to see the risks and make the world work better,” she said.
Read More: What to Expect at MPI WEC 2025 in St. Louis
The Friday afternoon closing session kept attendees on the edge of their seats with an energetic presentation from tea entrepreneur Daniel Lewis. His message: “Pursue bold ideas and say, ‘yes,” even when you think you might look crazy.” One person’s crazy is often followed by validation from another and then momentum when everyone joins in.
That message of vulnerability was echoed and demonstrated by Freestyle +’s exercise in getting everyone to connect through music, improv and movement. A powerful combination.
To keep everyone until the final day, surprise St. Louis native and Grammy-winning rapper Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., AKA Nelly, headlined a street-themed closing celebration.
During the conference, post-lunch “micro-sessions” offered bite-size learning with longer presentations in the afternoon. Bonfires (enhanced campfire chats) in the WEC Marketplace had many donning headsets to get in on the action.
IMEX CEO Carina Bauer summed up the importance of the gathering and the work meeting professionals do every day by pointing to the human desire for connection. “We don’t just plan events. We create moments where people feel seen, heard and understood. We in fact, create the conditions for mattering, and we do that by bringing people together face-to-face in real time, in real places, across cultures, countries and companies.
In a world where AI can fake a voice, a face, a message, what we create is something that cannot be faked. It’s that spark of real human connection, the kind that you feel in a shared laugh, a burst of energy in the room or a moment that reminds you that you’re not alone. And that’s why I believe that being together in person is not a luxury, it’s actually a basic human need, and we should all feel enormously proud of fulfilling that need through our work.”
Learn More: Lessons from Leaders with Carina Bauer
MPI Growth Metrics
As WEC also served as the association’s annual meeting, MPI President and CEO Paul Van Deventer shared updates on business performance and strategic direction. His topline since Covid has been the number of people actively engaged through attendance at events, MPI Academy class participation and GMID activations. He counted 160,000 people interacting—a number he hopes to grow to 250,000 by 2027.
He reported 13,000 official members in the MPI community and nearly 6,500 planner members projected by year-end with member buying power exceeding $26 billion.
Read More: MPI’s EMEC 2025 Pursued Harmony in Turkiye
The fastest-growing chapter participation is coming from Latin America, according to Van Deventer. The group now counts nine chapters and clubs in the region. He also reported growing participation at WEC 2025 in St. Louis from international audiences, including Canadian attendees. He attributed the countertrend to active groups north of the border.
Van Deventer said the organization is building reserves up post-Covid to prepare for whatever challenge may beset the industry next.
International Board of Directors Chair and Bishop-McCann President Rob Adams reported that MPI plans to invest in member education and professional development, including advancing social responsibility. This year’s initiatives include required training for staff and volunteers on anti-human trafficking, anti-harassment and conflict resolution.
A new Help, Equity, Action, Resolution (HEAR) support framework aims to improve psychological safety. Further efforts include neuroinclusion training in partnership with ASAE and research into workforce development with IMEX Group.
Read More: Designing Events for Everyone, Neuroinclusivity with Megan Henshall
In partnership with ReFED, WWF and the U.S. Food Waste Pact, MPI participated in a food waste audit to monitor detritus and make real-time adjustments.
MPI Chief Revenue Officer Rachel Benedick introduced new self-paced certificate programs around AI and the relaunch of the Certified Meeting Manager program based on user feedback.
From stage, Vice President Jessie States, announced that she will be leading the new MPI Consulting arm, offering solutions for meeting planners and suppliers, including live event strategy, focus groups and speaker sourcing.
Rebecca DeLuca, vice president of destination sales with Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and chair of the Global Board of Trustees for MPI Foundation, reported that between the silent auction, a pickleball event hosted by Visit Seattle and Chicken ‘N Pickle, a live auction at the Presidents Dinner and Rendezvous after-party sponsored by Explore St. Louis, more than $200,000 was raised for scholarships and grants.
For those hugging goodbye on Saturday morning, the announcement of a full calendar of future events stretching out four years gave everyone something to look forward to. Upcoming MPI signature events include:
- the EVENT in Fredericton, Canada (Sept. 7-9, 2025)
- EMEC 2026 in Barcelona, Spain (Feb. 21–24, 2026)
- WEC 2026 in San Antonio, TX (June 2–4, 2026)
- WEC 2027 in Las Vegas, NV (June 2027)
- WEC 2028 in Denver, CO (June 2028)
- WEC 2029 in Anaheim, CA (June 2029)
- WEC 2030 in Tampa Bay, FL (June 2030)
St. Louis Updates
New Explore St. Louis President and CEO Brad Dean treated attendees to off-site experiences outside the convention center and into the neighborhoods as part of MPI Learning Journeys. Attendees could choose from:
- The Role of Events in Black History, St. Louis—Missouri History Museum
- Power of Play, Transform Your Meetings & Events with Games—City Museum
- Executive Three | Sixty: Disruption, Neuroscience and the Science of Happiness—Washington University in St. Louis
- Women in Business: A Journey of Resilience and Connection—Energizer Park
The St. Louis Legends Series offered an opportunity for WEC attendees to learn from local thought leaders.
Read More: Notes from the Road: St. Louis
“By gifting attendees with a heaping healthy dose of hospitality, we hope to give them a reason to come back,” Dean said.
For those who were able to enjoy the conference in the expanded expo floor and some of the bounty from the new culinary garden, a return visit may be needed to see the transformation of the Washington Avenue entrance and a $54 million upgrade planned for the adjoining The Dome at America’s Center Stadium. The former home of the NFL Rams is now a full-time entertainment venue and available for citywide events in conjunction with the convention center across the street.
Also in the works now that renovations to historic Old Courthouse in Gateway Arch National Park have completed, a new life is planned for nearby Millennium Hotel as part of a major downtown mixed use development project, including an outdoor amphitheater. And, recently approved was a plan for a new year-round entertainment district project.
“It’s a very exciting to be and meet in St. Louis,” said Dean, who took one of his only vacations as a child to the city and was impressed then.
