Higher education currently faces multiple challenges derived from social, economic, technological and environmental changes. These challenges require universities and other higher education institutions to reconfigure their practices, approaches and strategies in order to successfully respond to the demands of the contemporary world. Among these challenges, complying with SDG 4 (inclusive, equitable and quality education for all) requires priority actions. Higher education has a fundamental role in the construction of fairer, more sustainable and more innovative societies and is a key element in the fulfilment of the entire sustainable development agenda

The 7th Congress on International University and Disability (CIUD) is conceived as a space for debate and reflection to contribute to the transformation of current university models, improving teaching and research practices, overcoming barriers to access and promoting inclusion and equity. It is also a space for networking and for proposals for training, entrepreneurship and guidance for people with disabilities, so that they can improve their skills and find technical jobs and leadership roles in society. This event builds on the legacy of previous conferences and the commitments of the Manifesto of the 6th CIUD, as well as the current regulatory frameworks. 

The Congress offers a platform for the exchange of ideas in which various actors from the academic, social and political spheres converge. The integration of strategic objectives and the discussion of the issues raised will lay the foundations for the transformation of universities and higher education centres into spaces that guarantee the right to a quality, inclusive and equitable education for all. 

Thematic round tables, workshops and plenary sessions will be organised in which the aforementioned challenges will be addressed in a cross-cutting manner, promoting inter-institutional collaboration and the generation of innovative proposals that promote change towards a truly inclusive university and proposals that improve employment opportunities for people with disabilities. 

1️⃣Innovation and inclusive practices:

• To advance in the implementation of programmes, strategies and practices that facilitate inclusive and equitable higher education, considering new methodologies that guarantee universal accessibility

2️⃣Collaboration and knowledge networks: 

• Promote networking among researchers, teachers and experts in disability to share research and inspiring practices and develop collaborative synergies.
• Disseminate strategies for inclusive and quality research. 

3️⃣Entrepreneurship and employability

• Provide knowledge, tools and strategies to improve the employability of students with disabilities and their capacity for learning and entrepreneurship.
• Provide guidance for a better labour insertion of people with disabilities in the university environment. 

4️⃣Digital and technological transformation in higher education

• Analyse and understand the implementation of technology and artificial intelligence in the classroom, guaranteeing an inclusive and effective use aimed at promoting equity in the teaching and learning processes. 

5️⃣Inclusion of vulnerable groups: 

• Analyse and propose specific programmes that address the needs of those groups with the greatest difficulties of inclusion, such as young people with intellectual disabilities or people in particularly vulnerable situations.