Special Guest
Lauren Kenworthy
Tenured Professor of Neurology, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry at the George Washington University School of Medicine, and Chief of Neuropsychology and Director of the Center for Autism at Children’s National. Dr. Kenworthy received her BA from Yale University and PhD from the University of Maryland. She did internship and residency training in clinical psychology/pediatric neuropsychology at Harvard Medical School, Children's Hospital Boston, Johns Hopkins Medical School and Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital. Her research interests concern the neuropsychological phenotype of autism and co-creation of autism assessment tools with autistic people. She is an author of over 120 peer-reviewed publications [h-index 59] and a co-author of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF), which is used around the world to assess executive functioning. She is author of a school based executive function intervention for autistic youth, Unstuck and On Target.
Special Guest
Elizabeth Pellicano
Professor of Autism Research at University College London (UCL), having recently been Professor at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Her most recent research identifies ways to bridge the gap between lab and life and open up research to greater involvement of Autistic people themselves, with the aim of generating scientific discoveries that bring real benefits to Autistic people and their families. She is much in demand as a speaker on autism and its future, regularly addressing scientific, clinical, educational, policy and broader communities across the world.
Guest Speaker
Evangelina Dominguez
Developmental Psychologist, specialist in Cognitive Assessment and Counseling and PhD in Psychology and Cognitive Science. Graduated in Intervention and Psychological Models in Development with full marks and honors from ‘Sapienza’ University of Rome. She obtained her Second Level University post-graduate degree in Learning Disorders and Cognitive Development with full marks and honors, her diploma in Forensic Psychiatry and Clinical Addiction in the Age of Development and her PhD in Psychology and Cognitive Science from the same faculty. Psychotherapist trained at the School of Specialisation in Psychological Assessment and Counseling, ‘Sapienza’. Social worker/expert ratione materiae at the INPS Medical-Legal Commissions for the assessment of disability/handicap conditions in Rome. Within CuorementeLab, she deals with research, training of learning tutors, parental support and assessment, diagnosis and intervention in the cognitive and behavioral field.
International Speaker
Laura Gutermuth Anthony
Clinical and developmental psychologist, Professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, the Director of the Executive Functioning Clinic at CU Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry and the Director of Research for the Division of Child and Adolescent Mental Health.
International Speaker
Alexandra Hendry
During her PhD at King’s College London she investigated the early development of Executive Functions (EFs) in infants with an increased likelihood of developing autism and/or ADHD because they have an older sibling already with a diagnosis. A core part of her research was developing new ways of measuring EFs in toddlers, who are limited in terms of their ability to understand complex instructions. In January 2018, she joined the University of Oxford to collaborate on a project investigating EF development from infancy into early childhood. In 2021 she was awarded an Advanced Fellowship from the NIHR to develop and pilot the START early intervention programme.
International Speaker
Sarah White
Autism researcher - she studies cognitive differences in the autistic mind through the lifespan, using neuropsychological tasks, eye-tracking, and neuroimaging techniques. She is interested in the universality, specificity, and sufficiency of mentalizing differences in explaining the core characteristics of autism, and whether implicit mentalizing difficulties can account for the specific profile of differences in other domains too - lying, laughter, smiles, future thinking, executive function, mental health, etc. Most recently, Sarah has turned to studying factors that can modulate mentalizing in autism, especially culture, bilingualism, gender, and intergroup bias. The ultimate aim is to understand autism better so that evidence-based support can be developed that targets the source and makes a real difference.
Guest Speaker
Stefania Brighenti
Psychologist, specialist in Neuropsychology and Psychotherapist. She collaborates with SSD Autism Spectrum Disorders in adulthood, Regional Expert Center of the Piedmont Region of Turin.
Guest Speaker
Marco Cadavero
Educator and pedagogist expert in psycho-educational intervention in Autistic Spectrum Disorders in adolescence and adulthood, Marco Cadavero obtained his Master's degree cum laude in Pedagogy and Science of Education and Training at the University 'La Sapienza' in Rome and he is currently a PhD Student in 'Pedagogical Science' Cycle XL at the Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna. Editor and translator of volumes on work, camouflage and executive functions in neurodivergent people for Edizioni Edra and LSWR, and author of articles in educational peer-reviewed journals on 'Neurodiversity Pedagogy', he is currently in charge of Cognitive-Affective Education at Cuoremente Lab and is the pedagogical coordinator of the center and head of the CARE Coach sector. He is also an expert in early intervention with ESDM orientation and an ANFFAS Life Project Operator. President and founder of 'FuturAbilMente APS', an association created to support people with disabilities and their families in obtaining their fundamental rights. Over time he has participated as a guest-speaker in various congresses, conferences and post-graduate courses and holds seminars and workshops on autism as part of the degree course in Education and Training Sciences at La Sapienza University of Rome.
Guest Speaker
Antonio Cerasa
Head of IBFM-CNR Neuroimaging Unit at Catanzaro (CZ) and Part-time lecturer of “General Psychology” at University Magna Graecia of Catanzaro. He is also scientific writer for several popular magazines and some of his books have also been translated into other countries, such as China. Author and co-author of more than 230 publications index in MedLine [H-Index: 52], he’s received several International awards (from OHBM and ECTRIMS) and a national prize for science dissemination.
Guest Speaker
Flavia Marino
Researcher and psychologist-psychotherapist, specializing in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) at the INSTITUTE OF BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH AND INNOVATION - IRIB, part of the National Research Council in Messina. Her work primarily involves the development of innovative diagnostic, treatment, and follow-up methods for ASD, leveraging advanced digital technologies. Her research projects, like "AREA" and "RI-CONNECT," focus on evolutionary behavioral interventions and innovative methodologies for early ASD detection in underprivileged educational settings. Marino's international publications cover diverse topics, including telemedicine, cutting-edge technologies, metaverse applications in mental health, and machine learning in early autism screening.
Guest Speaker
Francesca Mela
Degree in History and Philosophy from the University of Florence in 2000. Diploma in systemic family mediator obtained from the ITFF (Family Therapy Institute of Florence). Has been leading training and education groups for autistic adults since 2017. Founder and administrator of the Facebook group “Asperger Adulti Italia - AAI” since 2017. Co-author with Dr. Mangione of Esplorare il proprio autismo”, edizioni LSWR. With CuoreMenteLab she manages training and support groups and she is also an individual tutor for adolescents and adults on the Autism Spectrum.
Guest Speaker
Davide Moscone
Cognitive Behavioral Psychologist and Psychotherapist with specific training in Autism Spectrum Disorders and in particular Asperger Syndrome and Level 1 Autism. He is a lecturer at the PTS School of Specialisation in Psychotherapy with a Cognitive Behavioural focus and has specific training in Autism Spectrum Disorders and in particular Asperger Syndrome and Level 1 Autism. He works privately with school age children, adolescents and adults and their families. In particular, he trains psychiatrists and psychologists in the diagnosis of Level 1 Autism and Asperger's Syndrome in adults using the Ritvo Autism and Asperger's Diagnostic Scale Revised (RAADS-R), of which he is one of the translators of the official Italian version. He is the clinical director of the center CuoreMenteLab in Rome. He has edited the Italian edition of Cognitive Affective Education (CAT-kit) and the book 'The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome' by Prof. Tony Attwood, with whom he has been in contact since 2010 for the dissemination of good practices for diagnosis and intervention in Italy. He is the editor of the series "Infinite Diversity" by Armando Editore and editor of publications by the Centro Studi Erickson and currently by Edizioni EDRA. He is the official lecturer for Italy for the e.c.m. training courses on the use of the CAT-Kit and has spoken at numerous conferences on autism and Asperger's syndrome. He is the official lecturer for Italy for e.c.m. training courses on the use of the CAT-Kit and speaker at numerous conferences on Autism and Asperger's Syndrome.
Guest Speaker
David Vagni
Theoretical physicist specializing in scientific computing and complexity theory with also a bachelor degree in psychology. Studied learning sciences at the Laboratory of Neurocognitive Psychology at the Maximilian-Ludwig University of Munich. Researcher at CNR-IRIB in Messina (National Research Council Institute for Biomedical Research and Innovation), where he works on the application of new technologies to autism. Vice-president and founder of Associazione Spazio Asperger ONLUS, his work has led him to become interested in the theory of dynamic systems and complexity, which he has furthered by seeking applications in fields as diverse as epigenetics, neuroscience and sociology. Author of several publications in the field of economics and management, he has published scientific and social articles in national and international journals. As an author, trainer and advocate, he has participated in conferences in various European regions. In the field of research, he is also interested in moral development and the transition from a categorical to a dimensional and functional definition of different conditions and well-being; from an intervention point of view, he conducts research and studies on third-generation cognitive-behavioral therapies, mindfulness and cognitive-affective education.