The Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information & Exchange
By Marsha E. Shapiro, C.I.R.R.I.E. (mes36@buffalo.edu)

The mission of CIRRIE, or the Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information & Exchange, is to facilitate the sharing of information and expertise in disability research between the U.S. and other countries. CIRRIE provides consumers, advocates, service providers, and researchers a gateway to disability research around the world. CIRRIE also provides access to cultural diversity resources that contribute to understanding how people from other countries view disability, independent living, employment, and community access for people with disabilities.

CIRRIE's mission is realized through the following initiatives:

International rehabilitation research database
Users are able to locate research by topic, researcher, or country, through the CIRRIE web-site. The database now contains over 21,000 citations.

A list of the >2,000 rehabilitation journals - the sources for the citations indexed in the CIRRIE Database - can be viewed at http://cirrie.buffalo.edu/journal/. Some of these journals are well known in their country of origin, but not well known by many U.S. researchers. CIRRIE will be happy to add significant international publications recommended by subscribers to CIRRIE-Connection, the new current awareness service. You may subscribe at http://cirrie.buffalo.edu/CIRRIE-Connection/subscribe.html.

Country Directory
A searchable database that includes contact information and descriptions of research centers, government agencies, associations, and organizations from around the world whose work is related to disability and rehabilitation.

Monograph Series: Culture Brokering and the principal cultures of the foreign born population in the U.S.
Monographs are available for purchase - or may be downloaded free of charge - from the website.

Culture Brokering Workshop - Bridging the Gap Between the Foreign-Born Consumer and the Rehabilitation Services
Your organization may be interested in hosting this workshop for your staff. Please contact CIRRIE for further information.

Rehab Talk
A list of electronic bulletin board and discussion groups on the various areas of rehabilitation and disability research, so U.S. researchers may engage in an exchange of ideas with researchers in other countries on a regular basis.

Standard International Travel Grant Program
This program provides airfare for international rehabilitation/disability researchers hosted by projects funded by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) to travel to the US for collaborative activities. It also provides airfare for US researchers hosted by international organizations, to travel to other countries for collaborative activities. Eligibility requirements, FAQs, and applications are available online

Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) International Travel Grant Program
This program provides funds for travel expenses related to collaborative activities between MSI-based faculty, researchers, and graduate students, and international researchers in the field of disability and rehabilitation. Eligibility requirements, FAQs, and applications are available online.

Forum on International Collaborative Research in Rehabilitation
In July 2003, CIRRIE hosted a forum on International Collaborative Research in Rehabilitation in Rockville, Maryland. Invited participants from 10 countries - Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Canada, France, India, Italy, Sweden, U.K., U.S. - examined collaborations with U.S. researchers and identified problems and best practices. Case studies provided examples of the forms that international research collaboration has taken in several fields of rehabilitation. Projects presented, included:

• outcomes for survivors of traumatic brain injury;
• aging with spinal cord injury;
• development of accurate methods of command detection for a direct brain interface with assistive devices for people with little or no ability to move;
• model group homes for adults with developmental disabilities;