By Wendy Moreno, Conference 2020 Co-Chair

“When I was invited to be part of the
ISAAC 2020 Organizing Committee,
I didn’t hesitate a second to accept.”

This year, ISAAC Conference 2020 makes its second presence in a Spanish-speaking country: México. My country is characterized by being a good host, having a unique cultural and gastronomic richness, and being one of the few countries in the world with the greatest biodiversity. At the same time, it is a country with little knowledge and dissemination of Augmentative and Alternative Communication or AAC.

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When I was invited to be part of the ISAAC 2020 Organizing Committee, I didn’t hesitate a second to accept. On one hand, I enjoy planning events, coordinating, designing, and following up on working plans, and constantly researching and providing solutions to problems that arise along the way. But the reality is, I am not a therapist, professor, or researcher. It made me wonder: What can I do within an AAC professional organization? And the answers came to me when I looked at my daughter:

• We live in an increasingly technological world, with artificial intelligence emerging as a great opportunity to expand the use of AAC by connecting communication systems at home, school, work, etc.
• The family, together with a network of therapists, work together to make it possible to find the tools our children need to become independent communicators.
• We have a huge opportunity to disseminate this great tool that is AAC to Spanish-speaking countries.

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Thanks to AAC, my daughter has a voice, representing a radical change in the way we communicate. We have learned to listen to her.

Let’s spread the word, let’s disseminate AAC, let’s give people with complex communication needs opportunities to learn; to be able to express their thoughts, needs, desires, and ideas; and to participate in the world around them. Together, let us make this Conference a unique and unforgettable experience for all AAC users.

First published in the ISAAC CSWN Newsletter, December 2019 edition

**Read Part 2 by Gaby Mangino, here

ate a second to accept.”