Union of International Associations (UIA) Round Table Asia Pacific, Chiang Mai, Thailand 21-22 Sept. 2017

Upon nomination by WCCES President Professor N'Dri T. Assié-Lumumba,  Secretary General Lauren Misiaszek represented the WCCES at the Union of International Associations (UIA) Associations Round Table Asia Pacific held during September 21-22, 2017 in Chiang Mai, Thailand, the fifth of its kind (http://www.uia.org/asiapacific-2017). Over 60 organizations were represented. Lauren participated in an invited panel that followed the opening keynote and she also facilitated a round table break out session. 
 
The WCCES has also recently updated its UIA profile, which will be available in the coming months in the UIA Yearbook (UIA.org/yearbook), a 110-year-old publication containing information of over 75,000 international organizations. 
 
The Secretary General noted that it was particularly useful to learn about the work of other “organizations of organizations,” and learn about how umbrella groups across disciplines think about the value of their umbrella groups, discussing the notion of how to look at the groups, and considering the notion of such a group being “greater than the sum of its parts.” 
 
She also noted that these exchanges also helped her consider the characteristics unique to WCCES, those shared with other organizations, and how both connect to the types of contributions that the WCCES is making. Finally, she noted that the event itself was very well planned and paced, which helped her consider strategies that might translate to the next WCCES Congress.