30 years Advocating for the Homeopathy Profession
Informal discussions on the streets of Dublin in Spring 1990 while the Irish Society of Homeopaths was being formed, led to a first meeting of representatives of homeopathy organizations from Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK on 9th June 1990.
Those attending this meeting agreed to establish an organisation to advocate for the homeopathy profession in the EU, harmonise standards and share information. The European Council for Classical Homeopathy (later changed to the “European Central Council of Homeopaths) was born!
Most homeopathy organizations were not thinking outside their national borders at that time. ECCH saw the need to bring the profession together at a European level and create professional solidarity. There was also a growing awareness of the EU’s influence on health and pharmacy regulation.
Stephen Gordon had the political acumen and experience essential to carry ECCH forward and accepted the role of General Secretary. ECCH owes so much to Stephen’s vision and dedication.
Andreas Bjørndal representing NHL, Norway, says “It was a time full of ideas, full of idealism and hope. We saw a future with a place of respect, scientific accepted, well regulated in the sense of our needs and principles been taken care of and a high quality of education, ethics, professional standards as well as remedy production.
We lived in the best time of homeopathy, …schools were established, societies grew, there were many conferences to attend and journals were full of good quality articles.
We felt like being part of something important, something with a lot of potential and prosperity – the limit was only the sky.”
30 years on, it’s good to celebrate that positivity as ECCH continues to carry forward that vision, advocating for homeopaths’ right to practice, and harmonizing standards for the homeopathy profession in Europe.