We are delighted to welcome back Rob Beenders, to open this year’s CI Advocacy In Action Conference in Brussels, to ensure that we make  our voices heard.

As Rob Beenders, reminds us: “Access to CI shouldn’t depend on your age or how well you navigate the system. Get CI advocacy on the agenda – politicians aren’t waiting for you”.

Rob is Minister of Consumer Affairs, Social Fraud & Equal Opportunities in Belgium, himself a CI user.

Professor Graeme Clark will be sending our delegates a welcome message from Melbourne!

Professor Graeme Clark pioneered the Multi-channel Cochlear Implant for severe-to profound deafness: the first clinically successful sensory interface between the world and human consciousness, and the first major advance in helping deaf children and adults to communicate in a world of sound.

Andrej Kral will be a guest speaker at CI Advocacy in Action 2026.

His title will be “Time is Running”.
To be able to advocate we need to be up to date with the science and no body better that Andrej to share with us the latest research on how hearing is crucial early in life. He is delighted to be joining us this year in Brussels, and join our discussions and collaborations.

Andrej is Chair & Professor of Auditory Neuroscience, Hanover Medical School, Professor of Systems Neuroscience, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney

We are pleased to announce that Shelly Chadha will join the welcome to our conference; supporting our focus on sustainability in ear and hearing care and the focus of the World Hearing Forum on Awareness, Advocacy and Alliance.

Dr Shelly Chadha is Technical Lead at WHO.

Carolina Der will be a guest speaker at CI Advocacy in Action 2026 sharing the outcomes with the team from the CIICA project: Parents’ Voices, CI in Low and Middle Income Countries. Go to https://ciicanet.org/resources/new-resource-development-parents-voices-in-lmic/ to meet the team and read more about this unique and exciting  project.

Carolina is Technical Officer for Ear & Hearing Care Programme at WHO.

We are delighted to welcome a new speaker at our conference, Kristine Sørensen. 

Kristine says: “When we bring evidence and lived experience together, we can create sustainable, lifelong cochlear implant services that empower people, strengthen health systems, and leave no one behind.”

Kristine is an internationally recognized professor and thought leader in health literacy. She is Founder of the Global Health Literacy Academy, Past-President of the International Health Literacy Association, and Chair of Health Literacy Europe.

Stefan Gijssels will aslo be joining us this year!

His book “De Stem van de Patiënt” (The voice of the Patient) was published in 2025. He is a survivor of a metastatic colorectal cancer, and co-founder and former head of Digestive Cancers Europe. His mission is to make the healthcare system more patient-centric, not only in words, but also in actions.

Stefan is chair of the Patient Expert Center in Brussels, member of the board of the Alzheimer Liga Vlaanderen, and advisor to several health organisations.

We are pleased to introduce Professor Helen Cullington who is joining us for a third year.

Helen is an enthusiastic participant in our activities and will be contributing to a Round Table – on Delivering Services differently.

Helen is a Founder member of CIICA, from the University of Southampton, leading clinical and research audiologist, and with particular interest in tele-medicine.

Prof. Dr. Andrzej J. Zarowski will be joining us this year!

He is a great supporter of CIICA, and delighted to be at the conference, addressing the issue of criteria for CI, particularly bilaterals for adults.

Andrzej is an otorhinolaryngologist consultant and surgeon with additional background in the field of medical electronics. He is currently President of the European Institute for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, Head and Neck Surgery in Antwerp, Belgium, and Prof. of Clinical Audiology. Prof. Żarowski is also President of the European Academy of Otology and Neurotology (EAONO), and a member of the Board of Directors of the International Federation of Oto-rhino-laryngological Societies (IFOS).