Welcome!
The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) is dedicated to:
- preventing suicidal behaviour,
- alleviating its effects, and
- providing a forum for academics, mental health professionals, crisis workers, volunteers and suicide survivors.
Founded by the late Professor Erwin Ringel and Dr. Norman Farberow in 1960, IASP now includes professionals and volunteers from more than fifty different countries. IASP is a Non-Governmental Organization in official relationship with the World Health Organization (WHO) concerned with suicide prevention.
If you are feeling suicidal or know of someone who needs help, browse Help to find a crisis center anywhere in the world.
News
A new Clusters and Contagion in Suicidal Behaviour Special Interest Group has been created.
IASP will be holding two workshops at the 45th Annual Conference of the American Association of Suicidology.
Please click on the links below for more information:
- Implementation of Media Recommendations for Responsible Reporting of Suicide
- What Workplaces Can Do to Prevent Suicide
Learn about the recipients of IASP's Stengel, Ringel, Farberow and De Leo Awards.
Newsletter
Please click here to download a copy of the newsletter in PDF format.
President Lanny Berman reflects on 2011 highlights, including the successsful; 26th World Congress in Beijing, World Suicide Prevention Day 2011, and transition to our Oslo office. Looking forward he notes the upcoming IASP 5th Asian Pacific Conference in Chennai, India, and IASP's collaborative activities at the 45th Annual Conference of the American Association of Suicidology.
Professor Lakshmi Vijayakuma extends an invitation to members to attend IASP's 5th Asia Pacific Regional Conference to be held in Chennai, 29 November-2nd December 2012. The Conference theme: Suicide Prevention in the Asia Pacific: Barriers, Boundaries and Beyond aims at strengthening networks of academic and practitioners in working towards a common goal within a diverse environment.
Lanny Berman reviews a book, which won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction, entitled, "The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer" by oncologist Siddhartha Mukherjee, and suggests much can be learned from the development of cancer prevention methods and strategies in the U.S. over the last 50 or 60 years.
IASP National Representative for Slovenia, Dr. Saska Roskar offers a Country Report from Slovenia, noting the total suicide rate has dropped from 29.9 (1997) to 20 per 100,000 (2008) which is the lowest suicide rate recorded in the last 30 years (a total decrease of 32.9% in ten years!)
Professor Paul S. Links, IASP National Representative for Canada, shares the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention (CASP) has undertaken activities that relate to the goal of having the federal government endorse a national suicide prevention strategy for Canada.
Learn about the new IASP Special Interest Group on Culture and Suicidal Behaviour which aims to establish a network of people interested in cultural issues in suicide research and prevention.
Discover the new IASP Special Interest Group on Clusters and Contagion in Suicidal Behaviour that has been established with the aim to bring together interested people in research, prevention and policy, who can share information and expertise in clusters and contagion effects in suicidal behaviour worldwide.
Read about IASP Awards, including the: 2011 Stengel Research Award to Paul Yip, 2011 Ringel Service Award to Jose M. Bertolote, 2011 Farberow Postvention Award to Jill Fisher, and 2011 De Leo Fund Award to Eugene Kinyanda.
This issue includes an obituary by Maya Iohan Barak and Alan Apter, for Professor and Clinical Researcher Israel Orbach, (6th November 1943-23rd November 2010), who was a world leader in the field of suicide research with many seminal contributions to the literature.
Ella Arensman, IASP Vice-President, Director of Research, National Suicide Research Foundation, Ireland, reviews a new publication entitled, "International Handbook of Suicide Prevention: Research, Policy and Practice."
See Upcoming Events or Membership Details.
The following IASP/WHO suicide bereavement publications are available:
Preventing Suicide - How to Start a Survivors' Group
Click on translation below to download a copy of the guide.
(Estonian | Flemish | French | Japanese | Polish | Serbian | Spanish)
Please visit the IASP Web Directory for additional suicide bereavement resources.
Web Directory
The following categories have been added to the IASP's Web directory of suicide prevention resources:
Clusters and Contagion in Suicidal Behaviour
Genetics and Neurobiology of Suicide
The following categories have been updated:
PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Upcoming Events
3-6 September, 2012
14th European Symposium of Suicide and Suicide Behavior
Integration of different perspectives
Tel Aviv, Israel
ESSSB 2012 is a tailored congress that takes an integrated approach to suicide prevention. Professionals in the field will enjoy a high-level scientific program covering the latest perspectives and developments in different components of suicidology.
This unique suicide prevention conference promises to be a dynamic and educational event in the equally exciting surrounds of Tel Aviv-Yafo with its distinctive cosmopolitan and energetic atmosphere.
10 September, 2012
World Suicide Prevention Day
Suicide Prevention across the Globe: Strengthening Protective Factors and Instilling Hope
- Download the World Suicide Prevention Day Brochure
- Click here to download a list of suggested activities.
29 November - 2 December, 2012
5th Asia Pacific Regional Conference
Suicide Prevention in the Asia Pacific: Barriers, Boundaries and Beyond
Chennai, India
Download the Conference 1st Announcement.
24-28 September, 2013
XXVII IASP World Congress
Preventing suicidal behaviour on five continents - Innovative treatments and interventions
Norway, Oslo
Download the Congress 1st Announcement.
16-20 June, 2015
XXVIII IASP World Congress
New Technologies and New Discoveries in Suicide Prevention
Montréal, Québec, Canada
The 28th World Congress of the International Association for Suicide Prevention, in collaboration with the Quebec Suicide Prevention Association, the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention and Suicide Action Montreal, will be held from June 16-20, 2015 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The congress theme is: New Technologies and New Discoveries in Suicide Prevention. For further information, please click here to contact Professor Brian Mishara.
