The meetings industry is not insular. Much of what makes headlines in the news directly affects or has a trickle-down effect on the world in which we make our living. As we finish up this issue, the foiled bomb plot on America-bound airliners in England is being hashed out on every news station.

International travel is at an all-time high, and more U.S.-based organizations have been exploring destinations beyond our borders to host meetings. We are hopeful that this latest terrorist threat will not be a setback.

When we at Convene turned our attention to international meetings to plan for this issue, we decided to take a very how-to approach. We asked our legal columnist, John Foster, to address preparing and negotiating contracts for meetings in international destinations. He turned in a comprehensive guide (p. 38) that is chock-full of tips as well as insights into negotiating with different cultures. For more wisdom on dealing with other cultures' customs, see Cynthia Lett's article on protocol on p. 61. For a wealth of information on customs of another kind, you'll want to take the scissors to "An Insider's Guide to International Shipping" (p. 54) and file it for future reference.

Headlines of a different sort got our attention several months ago. When she heard all the brouhaha in the news about the Episcopal Church General Convention in June, Managing Editor Peggy Swisher thought it would be interesting to hear how the planner behind the convention handled the media barrage. Lori Ionnitiu, the Episcopal Church's director of meetings and conventions (and PCMA member), generously shared her experience with us. By experience, I don't mean just this last convention. Lori has been planning meetings for the Episcopal Church for 23 years. Here's one of her nuggets: She makes sure to find out in advance who owns the sidewalk outside the convention center hosting her convention. Read her article (p. 66) to find out why.

P.S. Convene has some news of its own. For the first time in its 20-year history, Convene's mailing list is now BPA audited, which validates the strength of our circulation - 34,913 qualified recipients - to the industry. I congratulate my colleagues on their hard work seeing this audit to its completion. If you are not a PCMA member and have not already made a request to continue receiving this magazine, please take a moment to fill out the card (between p. 80-81 of this issue), or submit your information online at www.pcma.org/resources/convene/subscribe/. Thank you for your support!