International Intellectual Disabilities & Dementia Summit Secretariat
This page is dedicated to news and announcements from the Secretariat of the International Intellectual Disability & Dementia Summits
Secretariat of the International Summits on Intellectual Disability and Dementia
About Us...
Our mission is to serve as a coordinating body for past and successive International Summits on Intellectual Disability and Dementia.
Organizing Members of the Secretariat:
Matthew P. Janicki, Ph.D. (University of Illinois Chicago, USA)
Nancy Jokinen, Ph.D. (University of Northern British Columbia, Canada)
Frode Kibsgaard Larsen, Ph.D.(c) (Norwegian National Centre for Ageing and Health, Norway)
Philip McCallion, PhD. (Temple University, USA)
Eimear McGlinchey, Ph.D. (Trinity College Dublin, Ireland)
Alyt Oppewal, Ph.D. (Erasmus University Medical Center, the Netherlands)
Karen Watchman, Ph.D. (University of Stirling, Scotland)
In 2016, an informal group of researchers met and organized the initial International Summit on Intellectual Disabilities and Dementia in Glasgow Scotland. Information about the initial Summit and its work and outputs can be found here. The group's planning for subsequent Summits was interrupted by the global shut-down stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023 it was decided to reinvigorate the Summits as the result of an exceptionally kind offer by the Reena Organization in Toronto, Canada, which wanted to hold a significant scientific meeting on older age issues and intellectual disability in association with their celebration of 50 years of service to the Metropolitan Toronto community. This resulted in the 2nd International Summit on Intellectual Disabilities and Dementia. For more information on this Summit.
Thus was born the impetus for formalizing planning and oversight of subsequent Summits. The organizing participants opted to formalize a Secretariat to undertake that role and serve a point of contact and coordination. The Summit Secretariat was formally organized on October 25, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario Canada.
The Secretariat is currently engaged in producing a report from the Summit, which will be posted shortly.
The virtual Secretariat can be contacted via this page, or by email to Dr. Nancy Jokinen, Secretariat Correspondence Official. Our postal address is Summit Secretariat, PO Box 862, Rockport, ME 04856 USA.
Summit Secretariat issues report on autism and dementia
Autism, aging, and dementia: A consensus report of the Autism/Dementia Work Group of the 2nd International Summit on Intellectual Disability and Dementia.
This summative 112-page report synthesizes what is known about the nature of autism (or ‘autism spectrum disorder’) and inherent later-age neuropathologies, particularly dementia, and explores potential genetic, neurobiological, and environmental factors associated with dementia and their effects on the lifespan and lived experience of older adults with autism. Covered are various factors that influence the onset of dementia, diagnostics, and a range of post-diagnostic supports.
To read the Executive Summary