IASSIDD World Congress 2024: Reimagining connections.

03Original abstract

We gather at Chicago for the 17th World Congress of the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IASSIDD) in August 2024 under the theme ‘Reimagining Connections’. It is timely that we look back to the founding of IASSIDD (formally the International Association for the Study of Mental Deficiency - IASMD) on 11th August 1964. Yes, the Chicago conference marks our 60th birthday! Let us also acknowledge that in hosting IASSIDD 2024 in the USA, we return to the roots of the American Association for Intellectual and Development Disability, the oldest professional association internationally dedicated to advancing the interests of people with intellectual disability, originally founded in 1876. And in gathering at Chicago, we recognise and celebrate the foundations of Special Olympics in 1968. Let us honour the giants on whose shoulders we stand and commit ourselves to supporting the next generation of researchers, policy makers and agents of change dedicated to promoting understanding of and a better quality of life for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities across the world. This special edition of the Journal of Intellectual Disability Research (JIDR) is the journal of record for our 17th World Congress. It documents the keynotes, individual presentations, poster presentations and roundtable events comprising the conference. In response to our call for papers, we received over 1500 submissions. Each submission was reviewed by a knowledgeable and dedicated team of over 60 IASSIDD members. We are indebted to these individuals for their commitment to IASSIDD and the quality of our congress programme. The quality of submissions was high, and regrettably, we could not accommodate all submissions. Where needed authors responded positively to suggestions for revisions to bring greater clarity to their papers. This has resulted in a rich programme covering a broad spectrum of issues and interests. Indeed, the richness and complexity of the programme will mean that those attending the conference will be spoilt for choice. There will inevitably be situations where delegates' interests will require them to make tough decisions about which papers to attend, and which they cannot. Where delegates are unable to get to particular papers, they are encouraged to make use of the contact details in this special edition of JIDR to follow-up with individual authors either while at Chicago or when they return home. The programme includes coverage of the medical and social sciences, the law, politics and advocacy, business, economics, and the arts. There is a broad representation of the various ontologies and epistemologies informing and shaping our work in better understanding what it means to be a person with intellectual disability in a complex and often challenging world, and how we might leverage capabilities and best address these challenges, harnessing evidence-informed policy and practice. So too there is a breadth of quantitative and qualitative methodologies evident in the work to be presented; spanning traditional experimental science to scholarly reflection on lived experience. An important feature of the programme is the high representation of people with intellectual disability as researchers and contributors to both science and society. Our keynote speakers similarly represent the breadth of our IASSIDD community. Each was invited based on the recommendations of our IASSIDD Special Interest Research Groups (SIRGs), taking into account the individual and intersecting interests of our SIRGs. A number of the keynotes will include panel discussions to bring to the congress a breadth of perspectives and to bring these differing perspectives into conversation. Notably, subject matter relating to co-design and co-production of research and the emerging role of people with intellectual disability as co-researchers alongside traditional academic roles is a feature of this congress and its content. In addition to the usual keynotes and individual presentations, the programme features many poster presentations. The poster presentations provide an important opportunity to both read in detail about a researcher's work and to meet with the researcher to speak with them about their work. IASSIDD particularly values the opportunity for interaction and scholarly discourse that comes with poster presentations. Also, the programme features many round table discussions. These sessions will be introduced by experts in various topics. Most importantly the round table sessions will provide an opportunity for delegates to engage in discussion among each other and bring to the topic their own expert and lived experience to help forge solutions and contributions to improve scientific endeavours, policy, practice and the lived experience of people with intellectual disability and those who support them across the world. We intend that this special edition of JIDR will provide delegates and those who cannot attend at Chicago an opportunity to review the latest research in our field and support to connect with leading researchers and advocates across the world. We hope that those who are able to participate at Chicago and those reading these abstracts long after the congress will learn from and be both challenged and inspired by the differing perspectives offered; and will reimagine a world of connections where, as Bengt Nirje once challenged us, we might together create ‘a world where all people are free to be themselves among others’ (Nirje 1985). No conflicts of interest have been declared.

Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2024 · doi:10.1111/jir.13165