Susan Cooper, OD, president, World Council of Optometry.

ST. LOUIS—The World Council of Optometry (WCO) announced Wed., May 20, 2015, that the organization will move its offices from London to the American Optometric Association’s (AOA) headquarters here. The global advocate for eye health access and the profession of optometry has a membership of 90 organizations representing more than 200,000 optometrists in 54 countries.

The relocation is expected to be completed in the fall of 2015 and will also include the fundraising arm of the WCO, the World Optometry Foundation (WOF). The WOF is a partner in the Optometry Giving Sight program, which sponsors World Sight Day.

David Cockrell, OD, president of the AOA board of trustees, said, “This is a big win for our profession and the unity of our leading organizations. The World Council of Optometry—which has a vital global humanitarian, scientific and education mission—often looks to the advocacy and public health successes of our AOA and state associations for inspiration and guidance. The work WCO leaders do is important and is aimed at making a difference in countries still lacking access to essential eye health care services.”

Working toward a vision of “making high quality health and vision care accessible to all people,” the WCO works to facilitate the development of optometry around the world and supports optometrists in promoting eye health and vision care as a human right through advocacy, education, policy development and humanitarian outreach.

Susan Cooper, OD, president of the WCO, said, “The WCO and the AOA share a collective determination to make eye health and vision care accessible to all communities, and the WCO looks forward to sharing a working environment with the AOA. The WCO has made great strides in developing a stronger and more responsive organization. The enormity of the challenge in meeting global eyecare needs and in expanding the role of optometry in many countries across the world could be daunting. However, we know collaboration and joint action can take us a long way and provide positive results.”

Defining its organizational principle as “membership by countries, governance by world regions,” the WCO’s goals are: the enhancement and development of primary eye and vision care by optometrists, the promotion of high standards of education and practice by optometrists including the promotion of international coordination of optometrists, supporting programs providing eye and vision care to societies in need, and the promotion of the advancement of the science of optometry.

In addition, the WCO recently announced that its 1st World Congress of Optometry will take place Aug. 14-16, 2015, in Medellin, Colombia, as reported by VMail.