About the Award
The Regional Award of Merit, which was created in 2015, recognizes WFO members who make significant contributions to orthodontics, whether through academic, research, clinical practice or leadership and service in organized orthodontics. A nominee must be, or have been, a Fellow, Academic, or Retired Member of the WFO.
Dr. Julia Harfin
Dr. Harfin received the Regional Award of Merit during the Argentine Society of Orthodontists VIII International Congress of Orthodontics and 1st International Congress of Orthodontics with aligners, which took place June 26-29 in Buenos Aires.
A long-time leader of orthodontic associations in Argentina and other parts of Latin America, Dr. Harfin recently became Vice Dean of the Dental and Medical School at Maimonides University in Buenos Aires, where she is a professor and has held academic leadership positions since 1991 including Chair of the Orthodontic Department at the School of Dentistry.
Dr. Harfin has served as the president of the Argentine Society of Orthodontics (1990–96), ALADO (Latin American Association of Orthodontics, 1999–2008), the Argentine Chapter of the International College of Dentists (1997–2001), the Argentine chapter of the Pierre Fauchard Academy (1992–1993), and the International College of Dentists Section IV (2010–12).
A member of the Executive Committee of the World Federation of Orthodontists from 2000 to 2010, Dr. Harfin represented Central and South America. She served on the Scientific Committee of the 7th International Orthodontic Congress, held in Sidney, Australia in 2010. She has presented more than 120 course and lectures worldwide.
An Honorary Member of the Argentine, Chilean, and Polish Orthodontic Societies, Dr. Harfin is the author or editor of several books. One of her books, Adult Orthodontic Treatment (Zagier & Urruty 2nd edition, 2015), was translated into Portuguese. Two other books, Achieving Clinical Success in Lingual Orthodontics (Springer 2014) and Clinical Cases in Early Orthodontic Treatment: An Atlas of When, How and Why to Treat (Springer; 1st ed. 2017) were translated into Chinese. Dr. Harfin was co-editor of the latter book with Dr. Somchai Satravaha (see below) and Dr. Kurt Faltin.
Dr. Harfin has also served on the Editorial Committees of several journals, including Clinica de Ortodontia (Brazil), the Journal of the Argentine Society of Orthodontics; and Clinical Orthodontics and Research (Denmark).
Dr. Somchai Satravaha
Dr. Satravaha received the Regional Award of Merit during the Thai Association of Orthodontists Scientific Conference, which took place July 11-12 in Bangkok.
Clinical associate professor at Mahidol University in Bangkok, Dr. Satravaha is a Diplomate of the Thai Board of Orthodontics. She was an Executive Committee member of the WFO from 2005-2015 and is a past president of the Thai Association of Orthodontists, the Thai Orthodontic Foundation and the Asian Pacific Orthodontic Society.
Dr. Satravaha later served as president of the Advisory Board of the Thai Association of Orthodontists and of the Thai Association of Orthodontists’ Mobile Orthodontic Unit for Cleft Lip/Palate Patients. The latter organization sends orthodontic volunteers on a monthly basis to provide free orthodontic treatment to cleft lip and palate patients at the Maharaj Hospital in Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat), a province in northeastern Thailand from 2010 to 2015 and at Sawanpracharak Hospital in Nakhon Sawan, a gateway to northern Thailand since September 2015.
She is an Honorary Member of Association of Philippine Orthodontists, the Indian Orthodontic Society, the Ho Chi Minh Association of Orthodontists, the Bangladesh Orthodontic Society, the Orthodontic & Dentofacial Orthopedic of Nepal and is an Honorary Fellow of Asian Orthodontic Society.
Recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Thai Association of Orthodontists in 2013, Dr. Satravaha also received the 2014 Outstanding Alumni Award from the Dental Alumni Association of her alma mater, Chulalongkorn University. (She also earned degrees from earned doctoral degrees from Baden-Württemberg, Germany and Munich, Germany.)
A member of the International Advisory Board of Orthodontic Waves, the Journal of the Japanese Orthodontic Society, Dr. Satravaha has lectured extensively in Thailand and in many other countries. She has spoken at meetings hosted by the American Association of Orthodontists, the Asian Pacific Orthodontic Society, the Japan Association of Adult Orthodontics, the German Orthodontic Society and others.
