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VOLUME 28, ISSUE 2 • JUNE 2024. Full issue »

Overview: MDS’s next global leadership elections

As Chair of the 2023-2025 MDS Nominating Committee, I am pleased to take this opportunity to provide you with general information on the MDS nominations process and invite you to take an active role in selecting the next leaders for MDS. 

The MDS President appoints Nominating Committee members to reflect the international scope of the Society and ensure broad representation on the Committee. The Committee has been specifically convened to include a combination of longitudinal, contemporary, and regionally diverse members with knowledge of the work and membership of the Society.

The 2023-2025 Nominating Committee members are:

Angelo Antonini, Italy
Kailash Bhatia, United Kingdom
Francisco Cardoso, Brazil
Cynthia Comella, USA
Nobutaka Hattori, Japan
Irene Litvan, USA
Michele Matarazzo, Spain
Njideka Okubadejo, Nigeria
Ali Shalash, Egypt
Claudia Trenkwalder, Germany
Yih-Ru Wu, Taiwan

The MDS Bylaws charge the Nominating Committee to prepare a slate of Officers and International Executive Committee (IEC) members for the Society every two years. The Nominating Committee takes this process very seriously and strives to nominate the best leaders to advance the mission of the Society. After the Nominating Committee prepares the slate, the members can review the nominees and then submit their votes via proxy ballot or in person at the annual Business Meeting during the International Congress. The next election will occur at the International Congress in Honolulu, HI, USA, on Monday, October 6, 2025.

One of the ways that you as an MDS member can be involved is through submitting candidates for the Nominating Committee to consider. MDS calls on the membership to propose candidate names that fit the criteria for serving in our leadership positions. You can nominate yourself by completing an application, or you can nominate a colleague by sharing their name and email. If you nominate a colleague, the MDS staff will contact that individual and invite them to complete the application. To submit your or a colleague’s name for consideration as President, an Officer, or an IEC member, you can find the nomination submission on the leadership elections page, and it will also be emailed to all members in July 2024. Nominations for leadership positions will be accepted until August 31, 2024.

The criteria used to select candidates have been carefully refined over the past years. Generally, we are seeking the following attributes:

Long and varied volunteer experience within MDS. Typically, the higher the position, the more extensive the experience should be (i.e., Previous service as an MDS Officer for Presidential consideration)
Harmonization with the existing Officers.
Ability to work well in teams.
Strong scientific and/or clinical reputation.
Organized working style and responsive to requests.
Ability to represent MDS.

Review the full list of criteria

Additional considerations to ensure a balanced slate include:

Representation of different disciplines (Neurology, Neurosurgery, basic sciences)
Diversity: Gender, geographic distribution

After we receive the list of nominations from the membership, the Nominating Committee evaluates the candidates based on defined criteria. The Committee’s goal is to prepare a diverse slate poised to work well as a team and bring their individual expertise to advance MDS goals and provide the best experience for our membership.

We look forward to and welcome your active participation in this process by submitting candidate names for consideration, reviewing the slate and bios prepared by the Nominating Committee, and participating in the final voting process. Together, we will select the next leaders of the Society.