Day 1 of AMRAE 2016 has come to a close and the delegates are beginning to relax after a hectic schedule of presentations, meetings and discussions with a chance to catch up friends and colleagues.

The key topics on the lips of the conference today were the ability to harness Big Data to enhance risk understanding, cyber and climate change, all of which have huge potential to impact on future risk profiles. As you might expect, there was much debate and opinion, but no clear path or agreement on what is needed to respond to such challenging issues.

In the Exhibition Hall, each of the exhibitors were doing their best to interest and engage with the delegates. Zurich was very busy in the afternoon as was QBE, XL Catlin and Gras Savoye. The 'Super Heroes' from FM Global seemed to be everywhere with the photo booth proving to be a great attraction and the Beazley stress balls were much in evidence.

You can really see those exhibitors that have evolved their proposition and engagement at Lille. For the majority, long gone are the dull and uninviting spaces, where you can really struggle to understand what is being said and the benefit to working with the company. Whether it is through the use of light, bold graphics, AV or simply a well-designed place to speak and do business, the evolution of The Exhibition is certainly increasing year on year.

Day 2 is just about to begin with Commercial Risk handing out the Bulletin at the door, but rain is with us, so the Zurich boots are a great hit...if only they were that little bit bigger..