2012 AMAC

Conference
Overview
The
AMAC Airport Business
Diversity Conference,
convened each year by the Airport Minority
Advisory Council (AMAC) brings airports,
the federal government, corporations
and entrepreneurs together in one of the
aviation industry’s premier educational,
training and business networking events.
The conference, held since 1984, is also
the primary vehicle for Disadvantaged
Business Enterprises (DBEs) and Airport
Concessions Disadvantaged Business
Enterprises (ACDBEs) to cultivate
relationships and build partnerships with
national airports and business partners.
The 4-day event also features the Annual
Expo, which allows airports, DBEs and
corporations to showcase their businesses
before thousands of attendees.
AMAC is the only national, non-profit
airport/business trade association
that advocates specifically for the full
participation of minority-owned, womanowned
and disadvantaged businesses in
airport contracting. Its primary goals are
to eliminate the barriers that traditionally
have hindered full participation by these
businesses in the aviation industry, and to
assist them in capitalizing on all available
opportunities within the industry.
AMAC and its members view inclusion not
simply as a worthwhile public policy goal;
rather, inclusion makes good economic
and business sense and reflects the
diverse markets that airports serve.
AMACESP, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit
8
organization established by the AMAC
Board of Directors in 1997, offers
internships, scholarships and outreach to
students interested in aviation careers.
The Bill Walker Memorial Golf Tournament,
Silent Auction, and AMAC After Dark and
Fundraisers for the AMACESP Scholarship
Fund, are part of the annual conference.
During the conference, all stakeholders,
including airport directors, commissioners,
DBE liaison officers, and state and
local government officials, participate in
workshops, trainings, and networking
events to discuss their current challenges
and prospective opportunities. The
sessions range from how to pursue
business opportunities with airports, to
how to build capacity as DBEs, to how
2012 AMAC AIRPORT BUSINESS DIVERSITY CONFERENCE | www.amac-org.com/annualconference.html
to dissect and analyze the economic
trends and public policy decisions that
impact DBEs seeking opportunities as
airport vendors, professional service
providers, construction contractors and
concessionaires.
The 28th Annual Airport Business Diversity
Conference will be held in St. Louis,
MO, on June 9 through June 12, 2012,
and will be hosted by Lambert-St. Louis
International Airport.