President's Welcome Letter
TOWARDS 100% SOCIAL EQUITY AND PARTICIPATION IN THE AΙ AGE
Dear friends and colleagues,
It is a great pleasure to welcome you to the 16th International Congress “Towards 100% Social Equity and Participation in the AI Age,” which will be held from 23 to 25 September 2027 in theThessaloniki Concert Hall, in the beautiful city of Thessaloniki, in Greece.
This International Congress is organized by the European Association for Mental Health in Intellectual Disability (eamhid.eu), in collaboration with the University of Macedonia (uom.gr) and the Laboratory of Autism – Developmental Spectrum Disorders and Behaviour Difficulties of the Human (https://www.labautism.gr/).
The event is open to academics, researchers, professionals, policymakers, students, people with lived experience and representatives from a wide range of sectors — including Education, Health, Social Welfare, Career Counseling, Vocational Training, Special Education, Psychology, Technology, Economy, and Parents’ Associations.
Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming the world we live in. It is revolutionising how we communicate, how we learn, how we work, and how we connect with one another. Fields such as medicine, education, and economics are being redefined. For the first time since the Enlightenment, we are being called to rethink long-standing concepts of knowledge, justice, and social inclusion.
AI now reaches into every aspect of daily life. It changes how we access information, how data flows, and how individuals experience their realities. Critically, it opens new pathways for inclusion —enabling people with communication difficulties to engage socially, and empowering individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to participate fully in education, employment, and community life. It gives people the tools to grow, to contribute, and to be seen.
The purpose of this International Congress is to showcase cutting-edge research, share forward-thinking practices, and exchange ideas on how Artificial Intelligence can be harnessed for a more equitable and inclusive society. Through keynote presentations, case studies, policy dialogue, and open discussion, we will explore how AI can be a driver of full participation — for everyone.
We look forward to welcoming you in person to Thessaloniki, in September 2027.
Let us work together to shape the future of inclusive Artificial Intelligence for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
President of the International Congress
Prof. Christine K. Syriopoulou – Delli
Associate Professor, Department of Educational and Social Policy, University of Macedonia
Laboratory of Autism – Developmental Spectrum Disorders and Behaviour Difficulties of the Human
