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Big Shoes to Fill
Kuldev Singh (Stanford), Tin Aung (Singapore), Jonathan Crowston (Melbourne) and Tarek Shaarawy (Geneva)
January 1, 2008 marked a structural, if not functional, shift in the Executive Office of the World Glaucoma Association (WGA). Since the creation of this organization, two individuals, Erik Greve and H. Caroline Greve-Geijssen have provided the energy necessary for unprecedented growth. The Association now represents over 10,000 glaucoma physicians, scientists and educators in over 70 countries. There are currently 63 glaucoma society members of WGA throughout the world.
In 2007, The WGA Board of Governors came to the conclusion that as the Association continues to grow, no one or two individuals will be able to perform all of the tasks undertaken by the current Executive Vice President (EVP). It was thus decided that the Office would be restructured such that one EVP would work closely with three Associate EVP's to ensure that the Association would continue on the path so carefully constructed by Drs. Greve, Greve-Geijssen and the first three presidents of the Association (Roger Hitchings, Robert N. Weinreb and Ivan Goldberg). We are pleased to accept this challenge and look forward to working closely with incoming President Remo Susanna, the Board of Governors and other leaders of WGA to fulfill the ever expanding mission of our organization.
Our most immediate task is a timely start in planning for the next World Glaucoma Congress, which will be held in Boston from July 8-11, 2009. With the recent merger of our World Congress with the International Glaucoma Symposium, we have the benefit of Shlomo 'Choka' Melamed and Joel Schuman contributing to the organization of the Boston meeting. Choka and Joel are joined by Jeff Liebmann and Dennis Lam on the Program Committee which has already been active in conceptualizing what promises to be the largest global glau-coma meeting to date. Our office will make certain that the Program Committee has, at it's disposal, the resources necessary to put on a meeting that lives up to the high standards already established in Vienna and Singapore. In addition to the Program Committee, we will work closely with the various Organizing Committees to promote Boston 2009. We expect the meeting to be memorable for all who attend.
One of the defining characteristics of the WGA is the egalitarian approach that the Association has fostered since inception. The Associate Advisory Board (promising glaucoma clinician scientists of under forty years) to which each of the new Associate EVP's previously belonged, has had a representative at Board of Governors meetings. We believe that many current members of the Associate Advisory Board are ready to play more prominent roles in the Association including the assumption of leadership positions on the many WGA committees and subcommittees. Tin Aung will take the lead in matching these exceptionally talented formerly 'young' leaders with new tasks that will reinvigorate existing committees and help create new ones. With this advancement of several Associate Advisory Board members, there will be voids to fill with future leaders who will build on our foundations for continued success. The EVP office will work closely with the Board of Governors, other Association leaders and representatives of glaucoma societies to identify suitable candidates for membership on the Associate Advisory Board. The WGA is unique amongst glaucoma organizations in that it is made up of member glaucoma societies.
While the growth in the number of such member glaucoma societies has been extraordinary under the leadership of Drs. Greve and Greve-Geijssen, the roster is by no means full. New glaucoma societies are emerging throughout the world, often inspired by existing WGA member societies. Tarek Shaarawy will take the lead in interacting with existing societies to insure that our Association is meeting their needs, as well as with new societies that we hope to recruit to WGA. Regions of the world with some of the highest glaucoma prevalence rates in the world, including Sub-Saharan Africa, remain underrepresented in the global glaucoma community and the growth and WGA membership of new glaucoma societies from such regions will add to both the diversity and credibility of our Association. In addition to his role with existing and future glaucoma societies, Tarek will also represent the Executive Office as an ex-officio member of the World Glaucoma Patient Association (WGPA) Liaison Committee. We hope to continue the spirit of common purpose and cooperation that has developed between the WGA and WGPA.
The WGA educational initiatives have been impressive. In particular, the global consensus meetings led by Robert N. Weinreb have received broad acceptance and worldwide acclaim. The next consensus meeting, focusing on screening for both open and closed angle glaucoma, is scheduled to take place this year in Fort Lauder-dale, USA, just prior to the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) annual meeting. Jonathan Crowston will be responsible within the executive team for future educational initiatives on behalf of the WGA. Jonathan will work closely with Dr. Weinreb as the EVP liaison for interaction with consensus projects and their promulgation. Jonathan also will interface with Dr. Weinreb, Chief Editor, on the International Glaucoma Review (IGR). The IGR has created a terrific database which has a number of advantages over PubMed when it comes to browsing or reviewing glaucoma-specific literature. We hope to expand the capabilities of this database such that it becomes the preferred entry point for anyone interested in a glaucoma topic. Transparency improves the likelihood of success for all organizations. WGA has been blessed with leadership which values open forthright dialogue with all members. For example, our predecessors, Drs. Greve and Greve-Geijssen have been exemplary in their dealings with WGA industry members and have established a standard which we intend to continue. Existing and new industry members can be assured that their voices will be heard within our Association. The WGA will continue to have an industry interaction policy where significant information shared with one member will be shared with all. The WGA leadership has recognized the importance of glaucoma advocacy since the Association was created. To advocate is to plead one's cause. In the glaucoma world, some of our causes include advances in patient care, research and education. It is reasonable to expect that the individuals most likely to advocate for glaucoma are those who are involved in advancing the field and those who suffer from the disease. There is no other organization that has more at stake or is in a better position to advocate for glaucoma than the WGA. Towards our goals, we are in the process of creating an Advocacy Committee with support already committed from Roger Hitchings, Paul Kaufman, Daniel Grigera and Hidenobu Tanihara to name a few. We consider glaucoma advocacy to be a primary focus of our term.
The Executive Office of the WGA will remain in the Netherlands with the 'M-team' (Mariska van der Veen, Madeline Mullin and Mariette Helmann) providing continuity at this critical juncture. As the Association continues to grow, we expect that we will require more of their time. Nevertheless, we intend to have monthly EVP telecon-ferences to ensure that we stay on top of our ambitious agenda. We welcome communication from our global glaucoma community, through the Executive Office, to let us know how best we can serve your needs. During the transition, it has become clear to us that Drs. Greve and Greve-Geijssen have put their hearts and souls into insuring the suc-cess of the WGA. No task has been too large or too small for them to assume. We are indebted to them for the opportunity to take the reins of a vibrant organization with a limitless future. We are also grateful for their ongoing advice and support as we wrestle with the complexities of our duties and commitments. Continuity is critical during periods of transition. When one has big shoes to fill, it is a luxury to be able to pick up the phone and call one's predecessors.
