Committee on International Veterinary Affairs

Established in April 2007 the purpose of the committee is to study issues of interest to the AVMA regarding international veterinary affairs and add structure to AVMA international activities.

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Charge/Objective

The CIVA, in its advisory role to the AVMA Board of Directors (BOD) and through engagement with AVMA liaisons to veterinary organizations outside the USA, will evaluate international trends and activities that enhance and sustain the AVMA’s role in global veterinary medicine, and make recommendations based on such evaluations that support the AVMA’s strategic initiatives.

Membership, method of appointment and representation

The committee will be composed of the following 10 voting members: the U.S. councillor to the World Veterinary Association (WVA); the AVMA liaisons to the Pan-American Association of Veterinary Sciences (PANVET), World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA), and Federation of Asian Veterinary Associations (FAVA); one member each representing the BOD, American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), recent graduates or emerging leaders, and the Student AVMA (SAVMA); and two at-large members. The U.S. councillor to the WVA and AVMA liaisons to PANVET, WSAVA, and FAVA will serve on the basis of their positions.

The SAVMA representative will be appointed by the SAVMA Executive Board at its summer meeting and designated the junior representative without vote until they assume the SAVMA representative position on January 1 of the following year. To help provide continuity in SAVMA representation, the SAVMA junior representative will work closely with the SAVMA representative and may attend CIVA meetings virtually or at their own expense. The AVMA BOD will appoint all other representatives from nominees received.

The SAVMA representative serves a single one-year term running from January 1 – December 31. The BOD representative serves a single three-year term. All other representatives appointed by the BOD may serve a maximum of two, three-year terms. Terms for CIVA members who serve on the basis of their positions as liaisons to other organizations may be limited by the term of service established by the other organization.

Chair

The committee elects a chair and vice-chair annually from among its members.

Invited representatives

Representatives from the following organizations are invited to attend committee meetings, either in full or in part, as non-voting observers at the organization’s expense to provide an update on the organization’s activities of relevance to the committee and perspective on global veterinary issues: U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Health Agency, Veterinary Services and the One Health Commission Board of Directors (ideally, the AVMA representative or executive director). Invited representatives may choose to participate virtually in committee meetings that are held in -person.

Meetings

The committee is authorized to hold one in-person meeting per year at AVMA headquarters and may meet virtually as needed to fulfill its charge.

Reports

The activities of the committee will be reported through CIVA minutes, recommendations to the AVMA BOD, and written trip reports submitted by officers, liaisons, or executive staff attending key meetings of international organizations.

Life expectancy

The committee will be reviewed in compliance with AVMA governance policies.