International Association ofCommunication Sciences and Disorders (IALP)PRESIDENT’S LETTERJULY 2024
Dear IALP Individual Members, Colleagues of the Affiliated Societies and Friends of IALP—I hope this communication finds you well!
The IALP Executive Committee (EC), Board, and many IALP members continue to be engaged
and productive. Below please find some of the major activities and initiatives undertaken
since my last communication in April 2024.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------IALP’S CENTENNIAL EVENTOur Centennial event and celebration, Contemporary Perspectives in Communication Sciencesand Disorders (27-29 June 2024, Vienna, Austria) was a resounding success. The two-and-ahalf-day event was attended by several delegates from 25 different countries. The scientificprogramme consisted of 26 different sessions on speech-language therapy, audiology,
swallowing and voice disorders, including 2 Keynote Speeches, one Special Past Presidents’session and a WHO presentation. Antony Duttine, Technical Lead for Rehabilitation at WHO
joined us virtually from Geneva and presented the work by WHO on Rehabilitation 2030 witha call for further opportunities for action from IALP.
During the event, due recognition was given to the IALP Past Presidents who wereacknowledged for their dedication, commitment, and vision in driving IALP forward to theorganization it is today. In particular, the Past Presidents in attendance, Prof. Nasser Kotby(EG), Prof Mara Behlau (BR), Prof Helen Grech (MT), Prof Lilly Cheng (USA) and Prof Pam
Enderby (UK) were publicly acknowledged by current IALP President Dr Brian Shulman (USA)at the celebratory dinner event held on Friday evening in a typical Viennese brewery throughthe presentation of an IALP Centennial pin.
We were also honoured by the presence of Evemarie Haupt (DE) who is the eldest IALP
member and who, for several years, was very active as a member of IALP’s Voice Committee.
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My personal thanks to all the presenters! Thank you for your valuable contribution to theevent, which greatly enriched and engaged the audience. We also extend our gratitude toKarger Publishers for their support.
Here are some photos from our Centennial event.

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IALP COMMITTEES
Our 14 Standing Committees continue to be very active.
Below are highlights from some of our committees.
CHILD LANGUAGE COMMITTEE (CLC) – Chair, Marleen Westerveld (AU)••••••••••

Current activities:IASCL 2024: One symposium and 1 poster presentation
IALP Centennial June 2024: Child Language Committee presentation
Including at least 2 doctoral / Master’s students / undergraduate students in CLC
project work: 2 PhD student presentations at IASCL 2024.
Promote countries' participation in the digital literacy survey. CLC members are
Greece, Israel, Australia, the US, South Africa, Cyprus, Croatia, Ireland, and the HongKong SAR.
Special Issue on Global TALES in FPL: 10 peer-reviewed papers on the use of this tool.
Contributions from 8 CLC members.
Future Plans:
Webinar - Global TALES (via IALP) TBA
Underway (2024-2025):- Project to develop and administer a survey internationally to ascertain the statusof S-L clinicians’ use of digital literacy.
- Dissemination of results of the digital literacy survey. IALP 2025 (Malta)
Based on the results of the digital literacy survey make recommendations regarding
moving forward with digital literacy – 2025 (December,2025)
Encourage members who are clinicians working with children and adolescents tocomplete the digital literacy survey.
In May (SPA conference) President Shulman met with Anita Wong (CLC) and Shaun
Ziegenfusz (RADLD) to discuss actions (MOU with RADLD signed earlier this year).

CHILD SPEECH COMMITTEE - Chair, Helen Grech (MT)Current Activities:• Participation (3 presentations) at IALP Centennial event – June 2024
• Expansion of committee membership to different parts of the world (new members in2024)
Future Plans:• Special Issue - based on previous webinars (IJCLD) – in progress• Book by Oxford UP - The Oxford Handbook of Speech Development in Languages ofthe World – in progress• Survey - related to SSD services available internationally (planned for Autumn 2024)

4CLEFT PALATE AND CRANIOFACIAL CONDITIONS COMMITTEE - Chair: Valerie J. PEREIRA (HK)

Current activities:• Committee Membership increased from 4 to 11 with members from across the globe(except for the African continent); representing clinical, research, and academic
expertise• FAQs document on the IALP website in English and Chinese; Resources page forFamilies; Resources page for professionals• many committee members are members of the global speech task force of the ICCPA(International Confederation of cleft palate and related craniofacial anomalies).
• COMMITTEE CONTINUES TO SUPPORT THE TRANSFORMING-FACES-IALP MENTORINGPROGRAM: Many members involved as mentors: Debbie Sell, Triona Sweeney,
Carolina Rivera, Karen Goldschmied, Valerie Pereira
Future Plans:• New webinar series 2024-2025• Moving forward the work done by the Global Speech Taskforce: Subramaniyan, B.,
Sell, D., Pereira, V., Sweeney, T., Nagarajan, R., Bostock, E., Young, S., Goldschmied, K.,Prathanee, B., Jayathilake, M. Takei, Y., Jahan, N., & Yu, V. Profiling the roles andresponsibilities of professionals and non-professionals providing Speech and Language
services for individuals with CLP in resource-limited regions. [Manuscript insubmission]• Updating FAQs document on the IALP website and to extend the scope to craniofacial
dysostosis and syndromes; resources and links for families and for professionals(2024)• Members will be taking up the role as mentors of the IALP-TF Mentoring program• Webinar for TF-IALP Mentoring program (2024, 2025)• Increasing diversity of committee (2024).
DYSPHAGIA COMMITTEE - Chair, Mershen Pillay (NZ)
Current activities:• Developed and finalised content for the dysphagia committee page on the IALP
website, enhancing access to relevant research and resources.
• Designed a distinctive Dysphagia Committee logo, reinforcing the committee'sidentity and visibility.
• Initiated planning for webinars to assess educational needs through a comprehensive
survey and gather expert speakers, promoting evidence-based practices globally.
• Prepared for the Vienna Composium by selecting a speaker and outlining thepresentation format, facilitating international knowledge exchange.
Future Plans:• Strengthen educational resources on dysphagia through the IALP website, tailoring
content to diverse cultural and regional needs.
• Contribute to the development of international guidelines for clinical practice indysphagia, promoting standardized care globally.
• Enhance professional development opportunities for members, focusing on culturallysensitive practices and mentorship, particularly benefiting clinicians from low- andlow-middle-income countries.
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Foster mentorship relationships that encourage reciprocal learning and support
among members, enriching professional growth within the global dysphagia
community.
Increasing global membership diversity to enrich perspectives and foster inclusive
practices in dysphagia research and clinical care.
Enhancing member engagement through interactive platforms and ongoing
communication, ensuring active participation and contribution to committee
initiatives.
Strengthening communication channels to facilitate seamless information sharing andcollaboration among members.
Providing robust platforms for member-to-member engagement, facilitatingknowledge exchange and collaborative opportunities within the dysphagia
community.

EDUCATION OF SLT AND AUDIOLOGY COMMITTEE – Chair, Tommie Robinson (US)Current activities:• Finalized Education standards in speech-language pathology• Developing clinical competencies in speech-language pathology• Planning IALP’s Centennial celebration.
Future Plans:• Conduct a world survey on clinical competencies• Publish results of information gathered from the world survey• Create webinars on how to implement activities• Develop program to expand mentorships to aid those who are continuing orcompleting studies in speech pathology, regardless of the country.
FLUENCY COMMITTEE – Chair, Thomas Law (HK)
Current activities:• The committee has put together a session of on cultural practices on fluency at theNew Zealand conference.
Future Plans:• The Fluency committee has been reformed. Two new members will join thecommittee: Prof Yuki Hara from Kitasato University of Japan and Prof Vilma
Makauskiene from Vytautas Magnus University in Lithuania.
• The committee will collaborate with our official journal, Folia Phoniatrica etLogopaedica, to publish a special issue on Fluency Disorders.
The next President’s Letter will include the work of some of the other IALP Committees.

RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION
An overview of membership and renewals was presented at the IALP Board meeting in June
2024 including our partnerships working with Affiliated Societies. IALP currently has 586

Affiliated Society members and as of 17 June, we had a total of 351 members (an increasefrom 2023 when we had a total of 285). As well as reaching out to encourage membership ofother Affiliated Societies, it was discussed and agreed that IALP will work with current IALP
members to identify how IALP can support professionals working in countries that have noformal networks or professional associations.

INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS AND MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING (MOU)
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)IALP has built on our relationship with the WHO and are pleased to announce that the WHO
has accepted 5 nominees from IALP for the Expert Review Group for the Development of theBasic Rehabilitation Package Clinical Resource (BRP-CR) for the World Health Organization's(WHO) Rehabilitation Programme.
• Stephanie Somers (CA)• Vandana VP (IN)• Fernanda Dreux (BR)• Pamela Enderby (UK)• Mridula Sharma (AU)MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDINGS (MOUS)
A number of organisations have approached IALP regarding Memoranda of Understanding(MOUs). In the last President’s newsletter, I reported that we had signed MOUs with anumber of organisations including the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative(IDDSI). Their mission is: to facilitate the safe consumption and enjoyment of food and drink
by all persons with eating and drinking difficulties (dysphagia) by maintaining the IDDSI
Framework, a common language and system of practical and valid measurement techniques
for naming and describing food texture and drink thickness; continuing to provide free accessto the IDDSI Framework, documents, and electronic resources; and fostering global
implementation and use of IDDSI. We have already identified a number of opportunities forjoint working, including an IALP presence at the UK IDDSI Festival in London on 19 September
2024. Further information about IDDSI can be found here https://iddsi.org/ and you can also
sign up for the IDDSI e-bite https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/r7ckFhF/iddsi.

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CALL FOR PAPERS

Folia Phoniatrica et Logopaedica is issuing a Call for Papers for its next special issue on the“Melody and Rhythmicity in Vocal Patterns of Prelexical Infants”. This special issue aims tobring together recent innovative research in the field of infant vocal development and tounderstand their implications for a better understanding of the earliest vocal roots oflanguage. This knowledge is crucial for the early identification of infants whose language
development is at risk, as well as indispensable for therapists to design individually optimized
treatment for clinical practice. We welcome original research, reviews, and case reports. If
you have any questions pertaining to suitability for the Call for Papers, you can contact Prof.
Michael Robb, Editor-in-Chief of Folia Phoniatrica et Logopaedica by email(michael.robb@canterbury.ac.nz). Please use ‘Infant Vocalization Special Issue’ in the subjectline. The submission deadline is 31st October 2024. Publication of the special topic issue isplanned for Spring of 2025. Articles accepted for publication after successfully completingpeer-review will appear online first before the issue is compiled. We look forward to featuring
your research in Folia Phoniatrica et Logopaedica and collaborating with you in the nearfuture. For more information and to submit your paper, please visit the Karger website.

IALP ANNUAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY (AGA) 2024
Please save the date for the IALP 2024 Annual General Assembly (AGA) which will be held on
Wednesday 4th September at 13.00 UK time. This will be an entirely virtual meeting on Zoom.
We hope that many of you will join and be kept updated with IALP’s latest developments sinceAugust 2023. An official invitation with the agenda and the zoom link to the meeting will besent in due course.

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IALP MASTER PRIVACY POLICY AND COOKIE POLICYIALP has developed a master privacy policy and a cookies policy in collaboration with our legal
team and web developers. Here are the links to both the Master Privacy Policy and the Cookie
Policy pages on the IALP website.

IALP 2025 WORLD CONGRESS

Preparations for the 33rd World Congress of IALP are well underway. We invite you to Save
the DATE and VENUE of the IALP Malta 2025 Congress.
GENERAL INFORMATION:❖ Congress Date – 24 to 28 August 2025
❖ Congress Venue – Hilton Malta Conference Centre and Resort❖ Congress Website - https://ialpmalta2025.org/❖ Discounted accommodation at the Hilton Resort and at another 8 properties atwalking distance from conference venue. Available through the Congress website
from August 2024.
❖ Historic and Unique 17th century Gala Dinner Venue❖ BOOK YOUR TRAVEL AND ACCOMODATION EARLY AS AUGUST IS HIGH SEASON FOR
MALTA. AIR TRAVEL AND HOTEL RATES ESCALATE AS TIME GOES ON❖ SUBSCRIBE TO IALP 2025 NEWSLETTER (new issue every 3-4 weeks) to keep yourself
fully informed.
KEY DATES:❖ JULY/AUGUST 2024 - Opening of the Abstract Submissions (accepting Committee
Sessions, Symposia, Short Oral presentations, Poster Presentations, Special

Sessions for organisations having an MoU with IALP)❖ SEPTEMBER 2024 – Opening of the Early Bird Registration❖ 31st January 2025 – Deadline for Abstract Submissions❖ 31st March 2025 – Deadline for acceptance of submitted abstracts❖ 31st May 2025 – Early Bird Registration Closes

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CONFIRMED MAIN REPORT SPEAKERS:
Itai Dattner (IL) – Artificial Intelligence and Communication Sciences andDisorders: A Bidirectional Frontier
Barbara Ehren (US) – Adolescent Language Disorders: A Critical Focus Now andin the Future
Simon Kitto (CA) – Integrating Interprofessional Education and Practice withImplementation Science: A ‘backwards design’ approach
We invite you to visit the Congress website and read more about the Main Report Keynote
Speakers and the Congress Topics which are being offered.
“Kindly note that, in connection with the 33rd IALP World Congress, your personal data shall beprocessed by Paragon Group Ltd., (Paragon), Professional Congress Organizer (PCO) of 5 Hatidhar St.,
Raanana, Israel, in the course of the management of the Congress. IALP has entered into a writtenagreement with Paragon in compliance with Article 28, GDPR. More information on how IALP
processes your personal data, in general, may be found in the Privacy Policy on our website.”

As demonstrated, IALP is flourishing in various aspects thanks to the dedicated efforts of the
Executive Committee, the Board, and the numerous Individual Members and AffiliatedSocieties who actively contribute to advancing our mission, vision, and core values.

Brian B. Shulman, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow, FASAHP, FNAP
President
President@ialp-org.com
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