Building Events Where AAPI Voices Shape the Narrative — Not Just the Stage

May marks Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month — a celebration of cultures that have shaped, challenged, and enriched every corner of our communities.

But true inclusion isn’t achieved through heritage months alone. It’s built through everyday decisions about who designs the experience, who tells the stories, and who profits from the platform.

Inclusion that lives at the surface (a performance or a panel) can be seen. Inclusion that lives at the foundation (in strategy, storytelling, and leadership) can be felt.

In the meetings and events industry, we are not just curators of experiences. We are curators of narratives, economies, and opportunities. Our sourcing decisions, programming choices, and design principles either reinforce the status quo or reimagine it.

Strategies for Embedding Authentic AAPI Inclusion:

1. Shift from Audience to Architect

Invite AAPI professionals to lead as planners, creators, strategists, and consultants—shaping the experience from inception, not postscript.

2. Fund Representation with Intention

Source AAPI-owned businesses across your supply chain — from venues to speakers to caterers to creative partners. Inclusion means economic empowerment, not just visibility.

3. Center Lived Experience

Move beyond showcasing culture as entertainment. Invite authentic storytelling that explores identity, innovation, and leadership through lived expertise.

4. Design for Intersectionality

AAPI experiences are not monolithic. Curate programming that reflects the diversity within the AAPI community — across ethnicity, gender, generation, and geography.

5. Measure for Momentum

After every program, assess: Who was heard? Who was hired? Whose perspectives shaped this experience? Let your metrics evolve alongside your intentions. 

Closing Thought:

Inclusion isn’t a sidebar to strategy, it is the strategy. It’s how we future-proof our industry, fuel innovation, and build ecosystems of trust and belonging. This month, honor AAPI Heritage not by adding something decorative but by building something different.