How does the content of the 20th I.S.P.O. World Congress align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals?

When the members of the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics (I.S.P.O.) 20th World Congress initially formulated the theme for the Congress, we were faced with a difficult decision. Selection of the theme for a biennial, international, multidisciplinary event such as this needs to be selected with careful consideration to maximize the exposure of the topic to a larger audience and to increase the likelihood of future benefit for all involved. At the time, we were well aware of countless efforts to enact The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,1 and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and how prosthetics and orthotics (P&O)–and assistive technology more generally–are integral in our efforts to contribute to attaining these goals.2 It seemed fitting then to use this Congress as a means to increase awareness of the SDGs. In doing so, we hoped to be able to actively contribute by making use of this important event in attaining the objectives set out in The 2030 Agenda. This resulted in the 20th World Congress theme: “Science in Practice, Practice in Science: Collaboration and innovation towards sustainable rehabilitation,” which focuses on working toward sustainability across the field through sharing best practice, the development of novel devices, education, provision, and the interrelationships between science and practice. [...]