The ISSTD Board is a busy group of members who meet every month for 90 minutes, to oversee the activities of the Society and drive many projects to help our Society grow and develop. Here are some of the newest developments.
Conferences The Board has been overseeing our growing conference program and planning well-ahead for a busy schedule. This year there will be regional conferences in New York City, Hobart, Australia, and Chester, United Kingdom. We also continue our conference collaboration with ESTD. Our Immediate Past President, Dr. Martin Dorahy recently attended the ESTD conference in Bern in 2017, and met with the ESTD Board to provide updates on current joint projects, most pressingly the joint research task force. The president of ESTD, Andrew Moskowitz, will be speaking to us in Chicago, at the upcoming conference. In turn, the President-Elect of ISSTD, Christine Forner, will be presenting at the ESTD Conference in Rome in 2019. The time is growing near and we are all quite excited about the upcoming 35th Anniversary Annual Conference in Chicago. Not only is there a great variety of seminars and skill-building inspirations, but many of us will see each other once again, from “all four corners” of the world. It is always so wonderful to see old friends and make new ones. It is a chance for emerging professionals and students to meet the leaders in our field of study. At the conference we are looking forward to sharing the results of The Past Presidents Project, a collection of interviews with former presidents of ISSTD. Their perspectives, wisdom and stories of our history is a not-to-be-missed feature this year. This presentation will also be available later to members unable to attend the conference. UN Collaboration Internationally, we continue our active collaboration with over 4,000 other non-government organizations (NGO’s) via our Special Consultative Status at the UN’s Committee on NGO’s. We are working together in a connective and relational world to heal the effects of trauma. Training The development of a new EMDR training module has been developing at a steady pace. The faculty of our expanding Professional Training Program has been increased. We now will have a much further reach, providing professional development to clinicians around the world. We have both in-person training, as well as teleseminars and asynchronous online courses. Our webinar program is expanding to include all-day programs such as the recent Ritual Abuse, Mind Control, Organized Abuse (RAMCOA) Webinar. We also now are pleased to offer connection via the new Creative Arts Therapy SIG. There, ideas for interventions take on a whole new language! Other Activities I will mention again, our Virtual Book Club, which this year has studied several books as well as articles. The Board has also been delighted to launch ISSTD’s new clinical e-journal Frontiers in the Psychotherapy of Trauma & Dissociation. If you have not already done so, check out the latest edition by logging in to Member’s Corner and clicking on the Frontiers image at the top right of the page. These are the latest headlines of what the Board has been working to provide. We are striving to offer a rich and multifaceted array of educational opportunities to trauma clinicians around the world. Our next Board meeting will be face to face in Chicago. Spring is around the corner, the beginning of a fresh new season of energetic ideas. Warm Regards, Willa