Thanks to the generous support of Eisai Co., Ltd. a special strategic planning meeting of the International Executive Committee took place in Glasgow in mid-November. The meeting was also assisted by Glasgow Convention Bureau who made us very welcome to their wonderful city.
Having reached the mid-term of the current executive, this was the ideal time to reflect on past performance and lto ook forward to the remaining two years of the current executive and, indeed, beyond. Centre of discussion was the Long Term Strategic Plan that was introduced by Philip Lee in 2003, during his term as IBE President, and which has been continually revised by the International Executive Committe since then to take cognisance of objectives reached and new plans put in place.
Among the issues that were addressed in Glasgow, over 2 days of busy discussion, were Membership Enlargement, Constitutional issues, Future Funding, and Developing the Regions. A full report on the meeting will be made available in the Members Section, once this is section of the site is ready.
The main decisions taken at the meeting were:
- The introduction of a special Membership Drive 2008 to assist in identifying epilepsy associations in those countries where IBE is not yet represented.
- A review of the current Annual Dues structure to ensure that no association is excluded from IBE membership solely on the basis of ability to pay.
- The need to consider new ways of funding to ensure that IBE can continue to carry out its activities and to allow the introduction of new services.
The photo shows, from left: Carlos Acevedo, IE News Editor and Vice President Latin America; Martin Brodie, ILAE Treasurer; and Zenebe Gedlie Damtie, Vice President Africa.