SciFY held the SciFY Academy event “Assistive Technologies & Disability”, on Thursday, October 3rd, 2024, at 19:00, at INNOVATHENS of Technopolis City of Athens (100 Piraeus Street, Gazi).

Participation is free and open to everyone!

The goal was to co-discover:

• What is Assistive Technology?
• How does it affect the quality of life of people with disabilities and beyond?
• Which “tools” exist, and for which disabilities?
• Where are we in Greece in this domain?
• What new technologies does IT offer for people with disabilities?
• What is Digital Accessibility, and how does it relate to Assistive Technologies?
• What is the future of Assistive Technologies, and how does AI contribute?

Participants had the opportunity to learn about Assistive Technologies and their role in disability today. SciFY, through the SciFY Academy initiative, aspires to create a platform for discussion by bringing together representatives from the field of scientific research, the development of Assistive Technologies, and their use with citizens, students, and related professionals. The purpose of this event was to inform, inspire, and shed more light on the field of disability, learn about new technologies, as well as existing ones, and learn about what is happening in Greece today from the most experts!

Here are the presentations of the speakers (in Greek):

Professor Georgios Kouroupetroglou, Professor Emeritus and Director of the Speech and Accessibility Laboratory at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) talked about Assistive Computing Technology and Digital Accessibility

Katerina Chorafas (MSc OTR/L), Professor at Metropolitan College – Marousi, Occupational Therapy Department and owner & director of the Standard Occupational Therapy Center Artimelia

Dr. Alexandros-Stathis Pino (PhD, MSc, EE), a member of the Laboratory Teaching Staff of the School of Sciences at the Laboratory of Speech and Accessibility, with the subject “Assistive Technology, Accessibility, and Real-Time Signal Processing”

Kalliopi (Kelly) Lappas, MSc Occupational Therapist, Head of Paramedical Staff – Head of Assistive Technology of the National Rehabilitation Center (EKA), President of the Hellenic Association of Assistive Technologies (HAAT)

Vassilis Giannakopoulos, Chief Marketing Officer of Science for You – SciFY