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The IAC Executive Council has regional representation from every world region.

The IAC vision is of "A world where counselling is available to all". counselling changes lives for the better and reduces suffering. IAC’s humanitarian movement advocates for more access to counselling worldwide. IAC lobbies and influences governments and international organisations to have counselling better recognised as a profession. In some countries there is no counselling at all. IAC helps to establish counselling structures, (e. g. National Associations or Education Programmes) in those countries. Technology is moving the global circle of counsellors ever closer.

Figure 2: IAC Activity Framework (2021)

IAC embraces the modernisation of our profession and proudly serves at the forefront of connecting counsellors worldwide. Here are some of our main areas of work:

IAC is currently engaged in a major global counselling project entitled the 'World Mapping of the counselling Profession' (see ssss1). The aim of the project is to compile data and information about the scale, standards and contexts of counselling activity in each of the world’s 196 countries. Generating detailed knowledge about the counselling profession for each country will significantly raise public and professional awareness of counselling, enable enhanced advocacy (both national and international), and improve information sharing for individual counsellors and the wider profession. The World Health Organisation (WHO) views the IAC mapping activity as a positive development in gaining an accurate assessment of the numbers of mental health professionals worldwide. We have received financial and in-kind support from the American Counselling Association, the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association, Taylor’s University, Malaysia, and the University of Cologne, Germany. The mapping information will enable IAC to better utilise its consultative status with the aforementioned United Nations (UN) organizations. These inter-governmental (UN) organisations make important high-level policy decisions on mental health, education, work, and social issues. These decisions have a strong and direct influence on the approaches that national governments take to these matters. In turn, the national policies directly affect counsellors and the counselling profession in all countries. The information will also increase the ability of those involved in counselling worldwide to connect with, inform and support each other in advocating for counselling, and enhancing counsellor education and counselling practice.