WFO Council elects new Executive Committee
The WFO Council convened Feb. 4 prior to the 7th International Orthodontic Congress (IOC) and 4th Meeting of the WFO in Sydney, Australia. Seventy-eight of the 133 councilors were able to attend the Council meeting. During this session, the WFO Council elected the members of the Executive Committee and approved two amendments to the WFO Bylaws. It also received reports from Dr. Athanasios E. Athanasiou, the 2005-2010 president, and Dr. William DeKock, secretary-general, as well as a report from the Executive Committee. Dr. Richard Olive of the Australian Society of Orthodontists and Dr. Paul Jonathan Sandler of the British Orthodontic Society reported on the 7th IOC and the 8th IOC, respectively.
During the past 15 years, the WFO has seen tremendous growth in both its affiliate organizations and general membership. In his report to the Council, Dr. DeKock noted that the number of WFO affiliate organizations has grown from 69 organizations in 1995 to 108 in 2010. The WFO has also had a 21 percent increase in membership since the 6th IOC in 2005. Today, the WFO membership exceeds 8,000 individuals.
The Council elected the new Executive Committee, and Dr. Lee Graber, past president of the WFO and president-elect of the American Association of Orthodontists, installed the new committee. On the 2010-2015 committee, Dr. Joseph Bouserhal represents Africa and the Middle East; Dr. Himawan Halim represents Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines and Singapore; Dr. Keiji Moriyama and Dr. Somchai Satravaha represent Central and East Asia; Dr. Kurt Faltin Jr. represents Central and South America; Dr. Theirry De Coster and Dr. Allan Thom represent Europe; and Dr. Thomas Ahman, Dr. F. Amanda Maplethorp and Dr. David Turpin represent North America. Dr. Roberto Justus is president, and Dr. DeKock is secretary-general. Dr. Sandler, chair of the 8th IOC, represents the British Orthodontic Society, host of the 8th IOC, on the Executive Committee.
Dr. Justus formally recognized the retiring members of the 2005-2010 Executive Committee: Dr. Athanasios E. Athanasiou, Greek Orthodontic Society; Dr. James Gjerset, American Association of Orthodontists; Dr. Julia Harfin, Sociedad Argentina de Ortodoncia; Dr. Larson Keso, American Association of Orthodontists; Dr. Jung Kook Kim, Korean Association of Orthodontists; Dr. Francesca Miotti, Società Italiana di Ortodonzia; Dr. Richard Olive, Australian Society of Orthodontists; Dr. B. Ian Watson, Australian Society of Orthodontists; and Dr. Abbas Zaher, Egyptian Orthodontic Society.
The WFO Council also approved two amendments to the WFO Bylaws. Article 8.3.3 was amended to ensure proper budgeting of the Executive Committee meetings. Article 13.1 now states that proposals for amendments to the WFO Bylaws must be submitted to the Executive Committee not less than five months prior to the next Council meeting. The Executive Committee must forward proposed amendments to the Council not less than three months before the next Council meeting, and the Executive Committee must approve its recommendations regarding amendments to the Bylaws by a two-thirds vote before submitting them to the Council.