Better Together: GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026 calls the global visitor economy to radical collaboration

In a fragmented world, collaboration is no longer optional. GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026 places active co-creation between generations, communities, and cities at the centre of destination transformation.

From 16 to 18 June, destination leaders, sustainability practitioners, policymakers, and changemakers from around the world are invited to Szczecin, Poland, for GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026.

Hosted by the Global Destination Sustainability Movement (GDS-Movement) in collaboration with #MEET4IMPACT, the City of Szczecin, the Szczecin Convention Bureau, the Polish Tourism Organisation, and the Poland Convention Bureau, the event positions the visitor economy as a strategic driver of long-term urban, social, and environmental transformation.

A catalytic gathering for cities in transition

GDS-Forum and Impact Day is not a traditional conference. It is designed as a strategic catalyst, creating the conditions for alignment, shared purpose, and collective action across sectors.

At the core is a clear impact ambition: to create the enabling conditions for sustainable and regenerative tourism and events by aligning actors, priorities, and narratives, so that impact, sustainability, and regeneration can be pursued collectively, coherently, and over time. 

The programme is structured around participatory workshops, systems dialogue, peer exchange, and applied learning, replacing passive attendance with active contribution and shared accountability.

“Better Together” reflects the reality that today’s challenges cannot be solved by individual organisations, sectors, or generations acting independently. It calls for better collaboration across the public and private sectors, between residents and industry, and experienced leaders and emerging talent.

Through open dialogue and mindful co-creation, participants move from shared understanding to practical action in an iterative, 3-day process, turning regenerative ambition into outcomes that can scale and endure.

From alignment to action: an impact-led design

The four operational pathways focus on:

• Building capacity for sustainable and regenerative tourism and events so ambition translates into consistent practice
• Youth leadership and future talent, positioning young people as active contributors to city transformation
• Destination positioning and attraction, aligning international visibility with real sustainability performance
• Leveraging the visitor economy for city transformation, ensuring tourism and events actively support urban regeneration, identity, and quality of life for residents

The design and impact framework of GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026 is developed in alignment with European Union policy priorities on sustainable tourism, destination resilience, and climate transition, reinforcing the role of tourism and events as legitimate instruments of public value and long-term, urban transformation.

Designed for impact

“Better Together” is also reflected in the way the event itself is delivered. GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026 is co-created through a close collaboration between GDS-Movement, #MEET4IMPACT, the City of Szczecin, Szczecin Convention Bureau, Polish Tourism Organisation, and the Poland Convention Bureau. They bring together global thought leadership on sustainability, deep expertise in impact and legacy, and a host city and country actively using events as a lever for long-term urban and community transformation. This partnership embodies the belief that meaningful change in tourism and events happens not in isolation, but when cities, organisers, and impact practitioners work together around shared intentional goals.

The global community of tourism, events, and association professionals is invited tois invited to Szczecin to help build the city’s growing regenerative capacity and ambitions, while strengthening impact across destinations worldwide.

Szczecin: A host city that welcomes radical collaboration

Just two hours from Berlin, Szczecin is a post-industrial city in active reinvention. Shaped by water, industry, and decades of change, it is transforming its industrial legacy into a regenerative future guided by its Floating Garden vision, a water‑based metropolis that integrates natural and developed aspects. By hosting GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026, Szczecin positions itself as a living laboratory for how cities can align tourism, events, ecology, and culture and civic life to support long-term transformation.

Applications for the 2026 GDS-Awards open soon

The GDS-Awards Ceremony, taking place on 17 June 2026, will recognise cities, destinations and individuals demonstrating leadership in regeneration, innovation, and impact, with 3 application-based awards.

The awards ceremony will announce:

• The GDS-Movement and #MEET4IMPACT Impact Award, which acknowledges and celebrates a destination management organisation committed to legacy and impact through business events.
• The GDS-Movement Innovation Award, which recognises and showcases a destination using innovative solutions to drive sustainability performance.
• The new GDS-Movement Changemaker Award, which recognises an individual professional who has made an outstanding contribution to advancing regeneration within a destination.

GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026 is designed to:

Individual or joint event registration is now available, with limited capacity to ensure meaningful participation and deep collaboration. https://www.gds.earth/forum-impact-day-2026/

Organisations or professionals interested in partnering or speaking at the event are invited to contact: forum@gds.earth

Guy Bigwood, CEO of the Global Destination Sustainability Movement, said:

“GDS-Forum and Impact Day exist to help destinations and leaders move from intent to impact. Our focus is transformation through accountability, action, and radical collaboration. ‘Better Together’ reflects a simple truth: none of us can meet today’s challenges alone, but together we can accelerate real, measurable change.”

Geneviève Leclerc, CEO & Co-Founder of #MEET4IMPACT, added:

“Impact Day is about centring people – especially young people – in how we design the future of events. With the theme, ‘Where the Future Grows’, we’re creating space for youth-led ideas, local engagement, and practical impact that lasts long after the event ends.”

Leopold Korytkowski, Director of Tourism and Events in Żegluga Szczecińska Turystyka i Wydarzenia, commented:

“Hosting GDS-Forum and Impact Day 2026 is an opportunity to help build the regenerative capacity and ambition of Szczecin’s visitor economy, while contributing to the global transformation of tourism and events. We are proud to welcome a community that is ready to collaborate, innovate, and lead with purpose.”

Aneta Ksiazek, Head of Poland Convention Bureau, said:

“Poland is shaping a new narrative for business events; one that is deeply personal, interactive, and emotionally engaging. Through destinations like Szczecin, we want to show how Polish cities are regenerating and transforming, creating experiences that deliver real value for participants, communities and places alike. Hosting the GDS-Forum and Impact Day is an open invitation to the world: come to Poland, co-create with us, and be part of a future where events truly matter.”