Hi John

These are very good questions, and to perhaps answer them in a fashion that addresses the underlying request of coming up to date with Gestalt therapy and the people in the field, I would recommend a different tack which is to access the free ejournal listed on this forum as well as the web page of journals like the Gestalt Review (also listed here).

Further I have little sense of how to evaluate a training program in the USA from the outside as this would be A. a lack of knowledge on my part and B. my criteria for being in the top ten may vary greatly from yours.

This also applies to the defining of who is innovative at present, as I am sure there are many who I might deem innovative yet that would just be my vote and I sense, rather limited at that.

I do know however, that Erv Polster, who presented the keynote address at our AAGT (Association for Advancement of Gestalt Therapy) conference in Vancouver this year presented an excellent talk on the Next Giant Step for Psyhcotherapy based on his book - Uncommon Ground: Creating a System of Lifetime Guidance.

There is also a web site for AAGT on this Forum and Erv's speech along with conversations with Richard Kitzler, Judith Brown and Anne McLean are on sale at a reasonable price.

Brian