Congresses dealing with mental health are very rarely bringing together all the stakeholders of the promotion of mental health – the ministries of education, social welfare and health, the societies of professionals – psychologists, psychiatrists, educational specialists, patient and family organizations, as well as scientists and practitioners in the field of mental health from many countries.  This alone should be a sufficient reason to join the congress: but there are three more – first,  the focus of the congress in 2020 will be the promotion of mental health of children and adolescents whose mental health seems to have deteriorated in many countries; second, the congress also represents a step to respond to the United Nations inclusion of mental health among sustainable goals for all its members; and third, according to preliminary indications the congress will attract a highly respectable number of  leading specialists  involved in this field.

Please come to participate, learn from others and teach about your experience. There is little doubt about the fact that the solutions of problems related to mental health require the involvement of many professions and institutions and that networking with others of good will and knowledge is the most likely way to solve problems.

The program of the conference is already rich you can enrich it further by being present and involved.  The children and adolescents of today will be responsible for the shape of mankind’s future: it is our duty to do whatever we can to help them be successful in building the world of tomorrow.

Professor Norman Sartorius, MD, PhD, FRCPsych.

President, Association for the Improvement of Mental Health Programmes (AMH)

Honorable Chairman of the International Organizing Committee