Welcome to GARIS 2027 | Chris Abildgaard

Connecting Insights, Transforming Lives: A Global Vision for Autism Innovation

Dear GARIS 2027 Participants,

It is a privilege to welcome each of you to the 2027 Global Autism Research & Innovation Summit. Whether you come to Paris as an autistic or neurodiverse individual, a family member, educator, school professional, clinician, researcher, advocate, student, or community leader, your presence matters. Conferences such as GARIS are most valuable when they bring different forms of knowledge into the same room—scientific evidence, professional expertise, family perspectives, and, most importantly, lived experience.

I see GARIS 2027 as one of the critical conferences to attend because our field needs more than new information. We need opportunities to challenge assumptions, listen across disciplines and experiences, and translate what we learn into meaningful change. The conference’s emphasis on research, clinical practice, inclusive education, mental health, technology, transition to adulthood, workplace inclusion, family engagement, self-advocacy, and lifespan support creates an important space to examine autism and neurodiversity from multiple perspectives.

My hope is that you leave this conference not simply with notes from presentations, but with new questions, new relationships, and practical ideas that can influence what happens after the conference ends. For families, that may mean a stronger understanding of possibilities and supports. For school staff, it may mean reconsidering how environments, expectations, relationships, and instruction can increase access and belonging. For clinicians, it may mean strengthening person-centered and neurodiversity-affirming practice. For researchers and students, it may mean identifying the next questions that must be asked—and ensuring that autistic voices are part of how those questions are framed and answered.

At this moment, our communities need greater trust, deeper understanding, and a more complete appreciation of neurodiversity. In particular, we must continue moving beyond narratives that define autistic people primarily by deficits. Autism

can involve genuine challenges and support needs, and those realities should never be minimized. At the same time, autistic individuals bring strengths, perspectives, interests, talents, patterns of thinking, creativity, persistence, expertise, and ways of experiencing the world that deserve to be recognized, valued, and included.

Trust is central to that work. We build trust when we listen before assuming, seek understanding before judging, create environments in which people do not have to hide who they are to belong, and treat autistic and neurodiverse people as partners in decisions that affect their lives. Knowledge becomes most powerful when it changes how we see people, how we design systems, and how we respond to difference.

Although I am unable to be with you in Paris, I am honored to serve on the GARIS 2027 Scientific Committee. I believe every person attending has an opportunity to leave with at least one insight, connection, strategy, or question that can influence another person’s life. I encourage you to be intentional about finding that one idea—and then to act on it.

For those attending the conference; I challenge you to the following: Attend sessions outside your usual area of expertise. Speak with someone whose role or lived experience differs from your own. Ask whose perspective may be missing from a conversation. Share resources. Challenge deficit-based assumptions. Celebrate strengths without overlooking support needs. Most importantly, consider how what you learn can become action in a classroom, clinic, home, workplace, university, research program, or community.

The true measure of a conference is not only what happens during these two days. It is what participants carry forward. I hope GARIS 2027 strengthens our collective commitment to a future in which autistic and neurodiverse people experience greater voice, value, visibility, opportunity, and belonging.

Thank you for being part of this international conversation. I wish you an inspiring, challenging, and productive conference—and I hope you leave Paris prepared to be an agent of meaningful change.

Warm regards,

Chris Abildgaard, Ed.D., L.P.C., N.C.S.P., N.C.C

Scientific Committee, GARIS 2027

Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology and School Psychology, University of Hartford, USA

Welcome Message and Greetings | Iria Helena Duarte

Dear Participants, Researchers, and Mental Health Professionals,

It is a true privilege to welcome you to this inspiring initiative. In a world where mental health and neurodevelopmental care require our deepest dedication, events of this magnitude play a vital role. They provide an essential platform for bridging rigorous science, clinical practice, and human empathy.

As a proud member of the Organizing Committee and Keynote Speaker for GARIS 2027, I have experienced firsthand the exceptional commitment of this organization to global scientific excellence. I am honored to support this broader community and witness the profound impact of our shared efforts.

May this event spark meaningful dialogues, foster innovative collaborations, and inspire lasting advancements in our field.

Warm regards,

Iria Helena Duarte

Clinical Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscientist

Scientific Director — International Academy of Neurosciences (Spain)

ABOUT GARIS 2027

Welcome to the Global Autism Research & Innovation Summit (GARIS 2027), taking place on March 22–23, 2027, in Paris, France. Under the theme, "Connecting Insights, Transforming Lives: A Global Vision for Autism Innovation," GARIS 2027 brings together researchers, clinicians, healthcare professionals, educators, policymakers, industry leaders, advocates, and students from around the world to advance autism research and innovation.

The summit serves as a global platform for sharing cutting-edge research, emerging technologies, clinical advances, and evidence-based practices that improve the lives of autistic individuals across the lifespan. Through keynote lectures, scientific sessions, workshops, panel discussions, and networking opportunities, participants will explore the latest developments in neuroscience, genetics, precision medicine, artificial intelligence, inclusive education, rehabilitation, mental health, and assistive technologies.

Join us in Paris for two inspiring days of scientific exchange, interdisciplinary collaboration, and global partnerships as we work together to shape the future of autism research, promote inclusion, and transform lives through innovation.

Welcome to GARIS 2027—where insights connect, innovation inspires, and lives are transformed.