IGDF Conferences

The IGDF Conference is the biennial international conference for guide dog professionals. It features a range of speakers, workshops, and plenary sessions on all aspects of the guide dog sector. It also includes a gala dinner and the awards ceremony for the Derek Freeman Scholarship, Ken Lord Award, and IGDF Dorothy Award. See the individual IGDF Awards page for further information about these awards, the nominations process, and lists of previous winners.

Group photo at IGDF Wokingham in 1986.
Group photo of IGDF Wokingham in 1988.

Next Conference

IGDF is please to announce it’s next face-to-face conference will be held Thursday 19th – Sunday 22nd June 2025 at Warwick University Conference Centre, United Kingdom in 2025. 

 

Presentation Library

IGDF is in the process of developing a library of presentations including those delivered at previous Seminars. This resource is available to all IGDF Members, Affiliates, Applicant Organisations and Enquiring Organisations and can be found here.

Previous Conferences

1973: Cannes, France (IMC Conference)
1976: London, UK (IMC Conference)
1983: Vienna, Austria (IMC Conference)
1986: Wokingham, UK (Working Group to establish International Guide Dog Federation)
1988: Wokingham, UK (Working Group to establish International Guide Dog Federation)
1990: Royal Leamington Spa, UK
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
1992: Reading, UK
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
1994: Reading, UK
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
1995: Reading, UK
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
1996: Clermont-Ferrand, France
Hosted by French Federation of Guide Dog Associations (FFAC)
1998: San Rafael, USA
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind, USA
2000: Warwick, UK
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
2002: Seoul, South Korea
Hosted by Samsung Guide Dog School

2004: Lenk, Switzerland
Hosted by VBM Blindenhundeschule
2006: New York, USA 
Hosted by Guide Dog Foundation, Guiding Eyes, and The Seeing Eye, USA
2008: London, UK
Hosted by Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
2010: Ottawa, Canada
Hosted by Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind
2012: Paris, France
Hosted by The French Federation of Guide Dog Associations
2014: Tokyo, Japan
Hosted by Japan Guide Dog Association
2016: Hvar, Croatia
Hosted by Croatian Guide Dog and Mobility Association
2018: Sydney, Australia
Hosted by Guide Dogs Australia
2020: Prague, Czech Republic*
*Awarded to: Matilda Guide Dogs – Cancelled Global Pandemic
2023: Vancouver, Canada
Hosted by BC & Alberta Guide Dogs