Paul T. P. Wong, Ph.D., C. Psych.

I want to wish every Meaning Partner a Happy New Year!

Looking back, it has been an exciting year with our 20th anniversary celebration for the INPM and my 80th birthday celebration. As part of this celebration, we have finished and will publish the Inspirations for Difficult Times as a fundraiser for the INPM. This is our first ever fundraising campaign, and I hope I count on your support when we release the book!

Another milestone is the special issue of Counselling Psychology Quarterly devoted to Second Wave Positive Psychology (submission deadline: Feb. 28, 2019). Other items which may be of interest include my recent lecture in Spain and TV interview, and the featured article of the last 2018 issue of the APA Monitor — “In Search of Meaning” — has incorporated their interview with me on meaning therapy.

Looking forward, we anticipate an even greater impact on psychology and society. My optimism is based on these observations.

1. An increasing number of practitioners and researchers from many parts of the world have requested collaboration and permissions to use our meaning-oriented test instruments.
2. The revamped www.meaning.ca will complete its updates this year. It will become an important resource for meaning-oriented research and interventions. This gigantic task was made possible by the generous support of Melanie Alsager, Administrator of Sunshine Coast Health Centre.
3. An increasing number of individuals have requested training in meaning therapy. On April 12, 2019, I will give a one-day workshop at the Royal Mental Health Centre in Ottawa, Canada. On July 20-21, 2019, I will give a two-day workshop on Trauma, Resilience, and Meaning Therapy at the Novotel North York Hotel in Toronto, Canada.
4. We will develop more online modules on meaning therapy and PP 2.0 this year.

Additionally, there will be some changes to the Board of Directors. After four years of service, Luis Marrero and Gordon Medlock have left the Board, and they are now replaced by Geoffrey Thompson and Mega Leung. I am pleased that Geoffrey will be responsible for our Publication Portfolio and take over the editorship of this newsletter. Mega will be a Board member at large. We are still in need of Board members for the Research and Development Portfolios; I encourage interested members to apply by writing to me (drpaulwong@gmail.com) or Daniel Jordan (danielj@schc.ca).

Finally, we are still working on the succession plan. Daniel Jordan is now the acting Executive Director and Chieh Hsu, Deputy Chair of the Board, pending approval. We are still in need of a President-Elect, who is committed to carrying on the unique big-tent mission of the INPM.