Tourism and event industry play a crucial role in Eastern Finland, especially in the South Karelia region, as key drivers of economic growth, bringing vitality and well-being to its residents. This importance has been accentuated, particularly in light of recent societal events and changes in the industry, which have restricted the number of traditional customers. With the European Capital of Culture application and subsequent European Region of Gastronomy projects, the significance of cross-pollination between creative industries, tourism, and other sectors has grown. It has been observed how such inter-sectoral collaboration can enhance competitiveness and support the aspirations and goals arising from both the Saimaa phenomenon and ERG (European Region of Gastronomy). Strengthening growth requires new initiatives and internationalization. Therefore, enhancing conference and event tourism is a natural goal for the South Karelia region. This not only supports tourism and creative industries but also logistics, education, trade, and the well-being of residents, encompassing various industries and business models. Events serve as a natural platform for both entrepreneurs and professionals in creative industries. Whether it's a gala, performing arts production, or a large festival, events are unique occasions where people are invited to come together around a common theme and enjoy an organized gathering. Practices, funding sources, and operational models for event execution may vary depending on the industry, but the fundamental principle remains the same. The objective of the Event Cluster is to bring together event organizers across industries, share best practices, and make different aspects of event production more visible. This, in turn, facilitates engagement for those interested in organizing events. The goal is to extend the tourism season in the region and enhance event production and marketing expertise with a global perspective. It also involves developing regional capabilities for creating new events and hosting large-scale events, aiming to prolong the benefits of the aforementioned jubilee years by strengthening the concepts created in the Saimaa Phenomenon 2026 project. Simultaneously, international networking is utilized to attract new events and event audiences to the region, enhancing the event experience through digital means. There is a clear need in South Karelia to establish an event cluster—a collaborative network across different industries—aimed at increasing regional vitality by connecting businesses, event organizers, research institutions, students, and communities. The event cluster makes regional stakeholders more visible and fosters dialogue between sectors, increasing collaboration among cities and thus creating a new form of appeal for the entire region. The project will involve bringing together event organizers and companies in the region whose activities are related to or can be expanded into the event sector, such as tourism service providers, restaurants, technology companies, and construction and cleaning services. Through this project, the event field will become a significant contributor to the region's attractiveness. Additionally, the project will focus on developing event concepts that attract both domestic and international tourists to the area. The project will gather information about the region's events, key areas for event development, target audiences, and develop a clear impact measurement metric for the region. Based on this information, experiments and measures will be undertaken to enhance the region's attractiveness and create forward-looking forecasts for the future. The project's ultimate goal is to develop events in South Karelia and strengthen their impact and sustainability. Transforming the event sector into a year-round enterprise opens up new business opportunities and networks for service providers in the region and contributes to the region's overall vitality.