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AREA IX ACTIVITIES
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Fall 2002 AAAP News Column
The anniversary of "9-11" has just passed, and much has changed in the world community since last year. Economic conditions have declined (especially in South America), travel has become further complicated and matters of a global nature are much more on the minds of us all. The international membership in the Academy has suffered as a consequence. Beyond financial realities, temptation has been to react by thinking solely in terms of ensuring safety and restricting focus to matters immediately nearby to avoid potential hassle or worse. While a certain reprioritization is healthy, it can also inadvertently lend itself to stifled creativity and isolationism. Hopefully, global realities will soon stabilize and economic circumstances will improve to allow the international membership in the Academy to grow again.
At this year’s Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, the second annual International Members workshop will continue to reflect the diversity of experiences and research being conducted by the international membership despite the changes in global circumstances. Dr. Ben van de Wetering will speak on drug and social policy in the Netherlands and its effect on substance use and treatment there. Dr. Robert Milin will give a presentation on adolescent substance use disorders and their comorbidity, focusing on treatment implications, and I will discuss our work in Calgary involving the functional magnetic imaging of pathological gamblers. I look forward to seeing you all in Las Vegas in December.
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