ORLANDO and ST. LOUIS—The World Council of Optometry and the American Academy of Optometry have announced their partnership to present an education program at Academy 2019 Orlando and the 3rd World Congress of Optometry, taking place from Oct. 23 to 27, 2019. This year’s Plenary Session, “Today’s Research, Tomorrow’s Practice: WHO World Reports on Vision,: Opportunities for Optometry to Make an Impact” is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 23. The session will discuss the World Report on Vision, the distribution of eye disease and blindness across the globe, and more. Speakers will include Kovin Naidoo, OD, PhD, FAAO; Sandra Block, OD, MPH, FAAO; and a speaker from the World Health Organization.

“Gene Therapy for Ocular and Neurologic Disorders,” is the title for this year’s Monroe J. Hirsch Research Symposium, which will discuss contemporary issues in gene therapy including Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy, animal models of glaucoma, and Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis. Speakers at the symposium will include Stephen Russell, MD; Abbott Clark, PhD; and Byron Lam, MD.

The Ezell Fellows Present symposium features three investigators at different stages of their careers, all who were once supported through the Foundation’s Ezell Fellowships. This year, Nicole Carnt, BOptom, PhD, FAAO; Charlotte Joslin, OD, PhD, FAAO; and Dean VanNasdale, OD, PhD, FAAO, will present their research. This year is the 10th anniversary of the symposium, and it is titled “Public Health / Epidemiology Potpourri.”

This year, The World Council of Optometry President’s Forum is titled “Optometry’s Role in Addressing the Changing Face of Technology, Public Health and Clinical care.” This event is invitation-only, and will provide a space for decision makers and key partners of optometry to come together and discuss current developments in the profession and their impact across the world.

Finally, the Global Summit on Optometric Education, co-sponsored by the World Council of Optometry, American Academy of Optometry, and the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, welcomes educators from optometric educational programs around the world to share their teaching methods and philosophies, and to discuss changes and challenges in their institutions.

To register for Academy 2019 Orlando and the 3rd World Congress of Optometry, please visit www.aaopt.org/annual-meeting/orlando-2019.