MEDITERRANEAN ORTHODONTIC INTEGRATION PROJECT (MOIP)
The Mediterranean Orthodontic Integration Project (MOIP)
Part of the report of the President of the Italian Orthodontic Society (SIDO) which was presented in the founding meeting of the representatives of the Mediterranean Orthodontic Societies during the Mediterranean Orthodontic Societies Cooperation project (MOIP) in Cairo Egypt in 2005 and which describes the history and goals of the ΜΟΙΡ.
... Up to now, the vision of the Mediterranean has been unilateral. This means that the Mediterranean has been considered a projection of the North onto the South. The prevailing style has been the European one, which was first imposed and then adsorbed
It was only in the XX century, though, that a unified vision of the Mediterranean began to be developed. Conversely, since the Barcelona Conference of 1995, the European Union seems to have chosen the bridge even though it has confined itself to establishing a free economic trade area without adopting a real structural and cultural policy.
It is for this reason that we have decided to organize this workshop in 2005, the "Year of the Mediterranean" as decreed by the European Union, to bring together the Orthodontic Societies of the Mediterranean. This cultural bridge will be the first step to bring together different cultures which need to learn to work together and to know and appreciate each other.I have asked Prof. Francesca Miotti, who, apart from being a member of the executive committee of the WFO, is also in change of international relations within SIDO for the next two years, to define by the end of the day a roadmap with future steps to be taken in order to attain the objective we have set.
We need a communication tool and SIDO would like to suggest that we use the journal called Progress in Orthodontics. Our intention is to create an International Editorial Board composed of all the Chairman of the Orthodontic Societies of the Mediterranean who will join our project because if the researchers of your Societies publish on PIO too, we will be able to be up to date with all the orthodontic developments taking place in all our countries. However, this is not enough. It is just the beginning.
If we truly want to achieve a real integration among our cultures over the next few years, we need to start some common projects such as:
1. the adoption of an official language by all the societies which take part in the Mediterranean Orthodontic Integration Project (MOIP) which I suppose will have to be English. Therefore at each national congress there will have to be translation facilities into English from the various mother tongues.
2. a mailing list of all the orthodontics of the Mediterranean who belong to our societies. This will enable Orthodontics Societies, whenever they organize their national congresses, to send the programmes to all the members of the Societies which participate in the MOIP.
3. an agreement amongst Societies which take part in this Project to treat members of Mediterranean societies as if they were their own members in relations to the financial aspects of their congresses.
4. the creation of an Orthodontic Committee of the Mediterranean composed of the Presidents (or delegates) of the Orthodontic Societies and with a Chairman who will act as coordinator. The aims of the Committee wil be as follows:
a. to foster contacts amongst orthodontic societies of the Mediterranean and promote studies and research projects on subjects which are of common interest and relate to the development of orthodontics in those countries which take part in the MOIP initiative.
b. to organize seminars, round tables and conferences within national congresses to encourage the process of integration amongst orthodontic societies of the Mediterranean.
c. to develop information on the objectives of the Committee by creating a website to simplify contacts amongst orthodontic societies of the Mediterranean as well to improve the flow of scientific and professional information amongst their members.
d. to set up and grant merit awards scholarships to professionals and/or researchers of the orthodontic societies of the Mediterranean who, in the previous year, have distinguished themselves by the publication of articles written in cooperation with countries which take part in the Project.
5. Last, but not definitely not least, the European Union has created a budget line through its Euro-Med prorgamme, which takes the objectives of the final document of the 1995 Barcelona conference into account. Through this budget line, the European Union is providing 5,350 million euros from 2000 to 2006 to support projects that have been agreed between the European Union itself and the Mediterranean countries. I therefore propose that an international Committee be set up to work on a project aiming at creating a "Mediterranean High Institute of Orthodontics" to be based in Alexandria. Moreover, with the assistance of some Universities of the European countries, the Committee ought to work on the creation of a Post-graduate Orthodontic Training Programme which our young people can attend to follow master courses held by teachers who come from our countries.
Prof. Giuseppe Sicilliani
President of SIDO 2004-2005
