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CVMA Attends AVMA Convention, 40th Annual WVA Congress, and IVOC Annual Meeting
August 11, 2025
Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) President, Dr. Tracy Fisher, and CVMA CEO, Mr. Joel Neuheimer, attended the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Convention, the 40th World Veterinary Association (WVA) Congress, and the International Veterinary Officers Council (IVOC) Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., from July 16-22, 2025.
The CVMA will continue to collaborate with international colleagues through these types of events to advance both the national and global interests of veterinarians in Canada.
Photo 1: CVMA President, Dr. Tracy Fisher, with WOAH President, Dr. Susana Pombo
AVMA Convention
Among many other important engagements, Dr. Fisher attended the AVMA House of Delegates meeting where she passed on greetings from the CVMA and heard from 2025-26 AVMA president, Dr. Michael Q. Bailey, who emphasized his dedication to amplifying veterinarians’ voices, boosting their visibility, and strengthening their influence.
A DEI session, presented by Dr. Latonia Craig (AVMA) and Dr. Lisa Greenhill (American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges), focused on belonging and explained that, unfortunately, much misinformation dominates DEI discussions. The duo also demonstrated the economic benefits of DEI, including retention.
Photo 2: Global VMA Presidents, AVMA House of Delegates meeting
40th WVA Congress
WVA President, Dr. John de Jong, reported that the association is working with the United Nations, the World Medical Association, and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) to advance One Health, highlighting its work on the Essential Veterinary Medicines List.
CVMA Past-President and current Chair of the WVA Animal Welfare Working Group and the WVA ad hoc Communications Committee, Dr. Enid Stiles, delivered the WVA 2024 financial report which was passed along a membership fee and structure change for 2026. Dr. Stiles recently oversaw WVA rebranding and messaging to align with strategic goals, in an effort to upscale the importance of veterinary professionals.
Current World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) President, and CVMA Past-President, Dr. Jim Berry, delivered the association’s report, explaining WSAVA is working more closely with the WVA, and will be exploring climate change and One Health and possible member supports to address these issues.
The WVA Global One Health Summit, Veterinarians’ Role in Global Food Security, emphasized the critical role veterinarians play in ensuring food security around the world. The demand for safe, nutritious food that is accessible to all will continue to rise and the expertise of veterinarians is essential in ensuring the health of animals, humans, and the environment is maintained as food production evolves to meet these demands. The Summit explored various opportunities for veterinarians to engage in global food security efforts, addressing emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and environmental factors that affect food production while promoting sustainability and considering economic implications.
Key Summit highlights include:
- There are more than 800 million chronically hungry individuals around the globe
- 600 million people are affected by food-borne illness each year
- 75 per cent of emerging diseases in humans originate from animals
- 1.3 billion people depend on livestock for their living, including 800 million of the poorest
- 70 per cent of the world’s poorest people depend on livestock for food and transportation
- The global population is projected to grow from 8 billion in 2023 to 9.7 billion in 2050
- Demand for animal-based protein is projected to increase by 39 per cent for eggs, 40 per cent for dairy, and 52 per cent for meat by 2050
- Diseased animals provide 30 to 50 per cent less milk, meat, and offspring, hugely impacting food availability
Photo 3: North American Veterinary Leadership meeting
IVOC Annual Meeting
IVOC member countries (Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, South Africa, and the U.S.) met to discuss topics of international importance, including rabies. Rabies, a devastating zoonotic disease, kills an estimated 59,000 people annually, predominantly in Asia and Africa. The disease poses a significant public health threat, especially to children, and is entirely vaccine preventable. The Zero by 30 goal, endorsed by WHO, WOAH, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations under the United Against Rabies initiative, calls for coordinated global action, with veterinary leadership at its core.
The CVMA offered to distribute campaign information and invite support for this project. The joint CVMA/AVMA/Federation of Veterinarians of Europe statement on the Global Control of Dog-Mediated Rabies was noted.
Photo 4: IVOC meeting