Over the past several years, Els for Autism has hosted four international conferences focused on sharing best practices for supporting and empowering autistic individuals.
World-renowned experts in the field of autism, including our own doctoral-level staff, have addressed the state of the science in autism, the initiation and expansion of a neurodiverse workforce, and the role of recreation as a supplemental intervention.
Our most recent conference, The Autism Innovations and Global Impact Conference: RE-Creating RECREATION as a Supplemental Therapy Intervention for Individuals with ASD, is now available on-demand to access anytime and anywhere.
See below for details on all our previous international conferences.
The Autism Innovations and Global Impact Conference: RE-creating RECREATION as a Supplemental Intervention for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder – 2023
Sponsored by Hazel and Marvin R. Shanken
The conference focused on demonstrating how RECREATION can be used as a platform for other therapeutic interventions. Leaders in recreation programs and services, dedicated to improving the lives of individuals on the autism spectrum, were featured.
Tools and best practices for organizations, providers, and practitioners interested in initiating or expanding recreation services to individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disorders were provided.
Autism Innovations & Global Impact Conference: Building a Neurodiverse Workforce – 2021
Sponsored by Shanken Family Foundation
The virtual conference, Autism Innovations & Global Impact Conference: Building a Neurodiverse Workforce, featured renowned leaders from industry, government, and academia who share a vision to transform the labor market for individuals on the autism spectrum. Conference attendees received information and tools on:
- best practices for businesses interested in hiring employees with autism
- initiating a neurodiverse workforce program
- expanding an existing program
Autism at Work Summit East/Fall Hosted by Els for Autism – 2019
Sponsored by the Olitsky Family Foundation, DXC Technology, EY, JPMorgan Chase & Company, and SAP
Launched in 2016, the Autism at Work Summit supports SAP’s vision to provide for a more neurodiverse workplace. The objective is to continue to create a collaboration platform between private and public sectors, academic/educational institutions, civil societies, and philanthropists. At the 2019 Autism at Work Summit, participants engaged with leaders across multiple sectors who work to actively advance career opportunities for job candidates on the autism spectrum.
Autism Innovations & Global Impact Conference: The State of the Science – 2017
Sponsored by Shanken Family Foundation
Participants heard from renowned leaders in the field of ASD including:
Dr. Andy Shih, Vice President of Scientific Affairs, Autism Speaks
Dr. Roy Richard Grinker, Professor and Chair Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University
Dr. Adriana Di Martino, Associate Professor and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Research Director, Autism Spectrum Disorder Research & Clinical Program, The Child Study Center at NYU Langone Medical Center, Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Dr. Petrus de Vries, Director of the Center for Autism Research in Africa & the Adolescent Health Research Unit at the University of Cape Town & Sue Struengmann Professor of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Honorable Mike Lake, Member of Parliament Edmonton-Wetaskiwin, Canada
Dr. Catherine Lord, Director, Center for Autism and the Developing Brain, New York Presbyterian Hospital; Professor of Psychology Department of Psychology, Weil Cornell Medicine
Dr. Ami Klin, Director, Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar Professor & Chief, Division of Autism and Related Disorders Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University
Dr. Roberto Tuchman, Director of Neurology at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital & Miami Children’s Health System; Clinical Professor of Neuroscience, Psychiatry & Behavioral Health FIU Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
