Dr Assie Gildenhuys was re-elected to the Board of the International Association for Group Psychotherapy and Group Processes (IAGP) at the Association’s 19th International Congress that took place in Rovinj, Croatia in September this year. 

The IAGP is a network of professionals involved in the development of group psychotherapy and group processes in the areas of theory, clinical practice, training, education, research and consultancy. The network provides opportunities for meeting other professionals from across the globe who are exploring the applications of small, medium and large group processes in clinical, organisational and political settings. The meetings organised under the auspices of the Association have great potential for furthering international cooperation on training, research, clinical work and consultancy in a multicultural society.

The theme of this year’s congress was ‘Despair and desire in times of crisis – groups in the city … of the world’, which represented both a recognition of the stressful and painful times in which we live, and an appreciation of the confluence of the power of culture and society on the individual, and hence the on groups of which we are members.

Dr Gildenhuys participated in two panel discussions at the congress, namely: 'From despair to hope: Group dynamics in different cultural settings' and 'How does the psychic heritage of "exploitation colonialism" enter into groups and how do we understand that analytically?' He described his participation in the Congress as 'a very meaningful experience' and said that he felt gratified about his contribution to the board as well as to the conference.