There are many exciting developments happening within the Society, and we’re pleased to share the following updates.
In 2026, we welcomed four new board members: Milissa Kaufman, Emily Haas, Kathia Lopez Murdock, and Bethany Akudike. We are fortunate to have them on the Board and look forward to the perspectives and experience they each bring.
Our 43rd Annual Conference just wrapped up in Portland, Oregon, USA. We had 350 attendees, including many first-time attendees and early career professionals. We hope many of you will be able to join us for next year’s conference in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, from March 4-7, 2027. The conference theme is, “Beacons of Hope: Lighting the Way to Connection and Courage.” Keep an eye out for the call for proposals which will open in July. For those unable to travel to the United States at this time, we will also be holding a one-day regional conference in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on October 16, 2026, which is bookended by Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) Training Levels 1 and 2. DBR training registration is now available for Level 1 and Level 2. More information about the regional conference is forthcoming.
Updated Website
In February, ISSTD launched its updated website. This project has been underway for some time, and we hope that members and the public will be able to more easily navigate the website and connect with needed resources.
Strategic Planning
ISSTD currently works on a three-year strategic plan which prioritizes and guides our efforts. We are in the final year of our current strategic plan and have already begun the process of developing the 2027-2029 Strategic Plan. At the March board meeting, the board engaged in a SWOT analysis to assess organizational strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, which will factor into our planning over the next few months.
Conflict of Interest Policy
As noted in the second quarter board brief from last year, the Board approved the creation of a Conflict of Interest Task Force that was charged with creating a revised conflict of interest policy for ISSTD. The intention behind this was to help our members in leadership positions better understand when they may have a conflict of interest, and also to provide procedures to check on potential conflicts of interest when uncertain. The task force has completed this project, and the policy is now before the Board for approval. We hope to have this new policy available in the coming months.
We are very grateful for your continued membership. Please feel free to keep in touch with the Board; we always welcome feedback and suggestions.
