Dear IODA Community,
I’m writing to share a few updates from your President and the Executive Committee ahead of our Online Members’ Meeting on 5 September, where I hope many of you, both long-standing and new members, will join us.
We’ll discuss many of the following developments during the meeting, but as IODA is currently in a particularly active period, I wanted to keep you informed about some important milestones ahead.
IODA is growing
First, a few words about the overall health of our organiszation. It is heartwarming to see how many of you are actively contributing to making IODA a strong and ambitious global community of outstanding OD practitioners.
One particularly encouraging sign is that the number of active IODA members who have paid their membership dues has increased by more than 30% over the past couple of months. As membership fees are currently our main source of income, this directly strengthens our ability to operate and grow.
So, if you haven’t renewed your membership yet, please do so. And if you’ve been thinking about joining IODA, now is the time!
Our Executive Committee
The Executive Committee is also in very good shape. Our VPs are actively developing new ideas to engage and mobilise our community, while also working to strengthen our operations.
Behind the scenes, Sophie Dazin and James Eckley keep our back-office operations running smoothly. Sophie is at the heart of our day-to-day communication, while James manages our administration and bookkeeping. We are also very grateful to Ron Banerjee, who, after completing his VP term, volunteered to serve as our Interim Treasurer.
However, we still need to find our Treasurer for the coming years. If you would like to join the EC and feel comfortable taking responsibility for overseeing our finances, please contact me. Our day-to-day financial operations are already well managed by James, but we need someone to take on the Treasurer role at an operational governance level.
Your opportunity to shape IODA
This brings me to one of the most important points: the nomination period for our General Vice President and VP of Affiliations & Partnerships elections is now open.
Please encourage anyone who meets the election criteria to stand for these positions, and consider nominating yourself or someone else, before the 29 August deadline.
The more candidates we have, the stronger our internal democracy becomes. More importantly, when we welcome new members to the EC, we are also looking for the people who can become the long-term leaders of IODA.
Ideally, those who step forward today will gain the experience and understanding to run for President in the future and help lead our organisation for decades to come.
Looking ahead to our conferences
Another piece of good news is that our upcoming IODA Conferences are in very good hands.
Marrisa Fernando, leading the Host Team in Thailand, and Alette Vonk, leading the Dutch Team, regularly join our EC meetings and keep us updated on the excellent progress being made towards our 2026 and 2027 conferences.
At the same time, we have started looking for host teams and countries for our 2028 and 2029 IODA Conferences, and we would also like to identify a venue for our 5th OD World Summit in 2030. If you would like to bring one of these milestone events to your country and build a Host Team, please get in touch. We will support you in exploring the feasibility of making it happen.
Our awards & journal
We are also fortunate to have three enthusiastic and committed teams working on important IODA initiatives.
The Richard Beckhard Committee is working hard to identify the recipient of this year’s Richard Beckhard Award. The Silverman Endowment Committee continues its important work of recognising the unsung heroes of conflict resolution while developing the vision and positioning of the Saul A. Silverman Award.
Meanwhile, our newly formed Editorial Team is developing the concept for our own professional publication, the Journal of International Organization Development, which we hope to launch soon.
To everyone involved in these initiatives: thank you for the time, energy and commitment you are putting into moving them forward.
See you in Bangkok!
And finally, most importantly, in less than two months we will meet in Bangkok for our 40th IODA Conference!
Our host organisation, Assumption University, and its team of professionals are working hard to make this another unforgettable IODA experience. Have you seen their list of speakers yet?
If you have already registered, rest assured that we are in very capable and caring hands. And if you haven’t registered yet, don’t hesitate any longer! Book your place, pack your bags, and bring your expectations, ideas and knowledge to share. We look forward to seeing you in Bangkok from 15–17 October.
For your information, the Executive Committee will meet in Bangkok on 13 October to work on the future of IODA, with our Global Ambassadors joining us on 14 October.
Help us spread the word
Finally, please help us promote the IODA Conference Thailand 2026. You can download an image here and share it on your preferred social media platform, especially if you are already planning to join us in Bangkok. Don’t forget to tag IODA please.
On behalf of the Executive Committee, thank you all for your continued support, commitment and contribution to our global community.
I look forward to seeing many of you online on 5 September, and in person in Bangkok in October!
Best regards,
Peter Kalmar
President of IODA