The need to create a coordinated plan to analyze, summarize, and present current evidence in the treatment of acute renal failure finally found its practical expression in the first international meeting of the Acute Dialysis Quality Initiative in New York. Experts from different fields and continents got together and took the first step in a planned and comprehensive approach to the problem of acute renal failure in all of its facets. In this report, the details of the New York conference, its rationale, and its methodology are presented, and the goals and scope of the Acute Dialysis Quality Initiative are introduced to the critical care community