Ida Institute Appoints Eight to Advisory Board

COPENHAGEN, June 2 - The Ida Institute, an independent educational institute dedicated to fostering better understanding of the human dynamics associated with hearing loss, has appointed eight distinguished experts in hearing health and related disciplines to its newly formed Advisory Board. The board will provide counsel and support for the Institute's strategic planning, including seminar topics, content and structure, faculty appointments and dissemination of information and tools developed by the Institute. The Ida Institute will convene its first seminar, Defining Hearing, in September.

"The Ida Institute's first year is an especially important one as we are now laying the framework for our future work," stated Lise Lotte Bundesen, Institute Director. "The Advisory Board members bring a depth and range of expertise that will be invaluable as we prepare our first seminar and plan for future initiatives."

The Institute's initial programs are designed to assist hearing care professionals in helping hearing impaired people address the physical, psychological and social challenges of hearing loss. Through a process of professional collaboration involving hearing care professionals from around the world, the Institute works to generate new angles of inquiry and enhance understanding of the ways hearing loss impacts individuals, their families, co-workers and others in their world.

"Because we aim to serve as a catalyst for multi-disciplinary collaboration, we are especially pleased that our Advisory Committee is comprised of leading hearing care professionals as well as thought leaders in communications, social anthropology and psychology," noted Bundesen.

Institute Advisory Board members are appointed for a term of two years. The new members include:

Lucille B. Beck, Ph.D.
Director of Audiology and Speech Pathology Service
Department of Veterans Affairs










Adrian Davis, OBE
Director, MRC Hearing and Communications Group
University of Manchester











Claus Elberling, Ph.D.
Senior Consultant
Oticon Foundation











David Fabry, Ph.D.
Chief of Audiology
University of Miami











Louise Hickson, Ph.D.
Professor of Audiology
Co-Director, Communication Disability Centre
The University of Queensland











Sophia E. Kramer Ph.D.
Psychologist/Senior Researcher, Department of ENT/ Audiology,
EMGO Institute
VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam











Robert Sweetow, Ph.D.
Professor of Otolaryngology
Director of Audiology
University of California, San Francisco











Tine Tjørnhøj-Thomsen, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Anthropology
University of Copenhagen









The Advisory Board will meet twice a year, with the first meeting planned for August.

About the Ida Institute

Established in 2007 with a grant from the William Demant and Wife Ida Emilie Foundation, the Ida Institute is an independent educational institute located in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Ida Institute, named in honor of Ida Emilie Demant, works through a process of professional collaboration to support new angles of inquiry on hearing loss and its impact. The Institute serves as a catalyst for knowledge sharing and the development of innovative and practical tools to assist hearing care professionals in helping hearing impaired people address the physical, psychological and social challenges of hearing loss.