World Day

Down syndrome day today, AI takes the field to eliminate words used as insults

Revolutionising language to make it more inclusive, the 'JUST EVOLVE' campaign kicks off

21 March 2026

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Focus on numbers, over 1000 children worldwide are born with Down syndrome
The (gentle) revolution of the 'Just Evolve' campaign
President of CoorDown: "The words we choose shape reality".

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

The 'R-word' may be a distant memory. Used to offend - often unintentionally - people with Down syndrome, the expression may soon be deleted from the artificial intelligence.

The CoorDown association has created an AI agent - by the FAIRFLAI team - trained to guide web surfers to understand more about the genetic condition caused by having an extra chromosome. It is just one of many initiatives organised by the national coordination and - among the projects - there is also a film.

The invention was created to raise awareness of the condition on World Loneliness Day, established in 2007 by the United Nations, and this year's theme was loneliness.

Focus on numbers, over 1000 children worldwide are born with Down syndrome

A dreaded genetic anomaly, but one that is more common than people think. Diagnosed during gestation through special tests, it is estimated that one in every 1,000 babies is born with Down syndrome. The consequences affect the learning style, as well as the physical characteristics and health of the unborn child itself.

According to UN figures, around 3,000 to 5,000 children are diagnosed with Trismonia each year, while more than 250,000 families are affected in the United States. In Italia, the ceiling of 40,000 cases has been broken. It becomes necessary to improve the quality of life of people with the syndrome to meet their health needs, in particular through regular medical check-ups to monitor their physical and mental condition and to provide interventions when necessary. What is of concern, however, is their loneliness, which is not by chance the theme chosen for the almost 20-year World Day.

The (gentle) revolution of the 'JUST EVOLVE' campaign

More than 10 million people have been engaged by the film 'JUST EVOLVE' on different social platforms. A global movement that is mobilising millions of people worldwide to create a culture of respect and inclusion starting with language.

This is stated by CoorDown, which has launched a film for this year, and also wants to initiate a real revolution in the language used on the web thanks to artificial intelligence.

The film's protagonist is a young man with Down's syndrome - played by the young British actor Noah M Matofsky - who dialogues with a man to convince him to stop using the 'R-word'. Historical examples of old habits of the past, such as washing one's laundry with urine and selling one's wife at the market, alternate on the screen to challenge the antagonist of the short film.

Artificial intelligence takes the field in another project to help Internet users not only eliminate terms that may be offensive from their vocabulary, but above all to spread awareness.

President of CoorDown: "The words we choose shape reality."

It is the words of Martina Fuga, President of CoorDown, that send out a message of hope: "We are aware that 90% of the time that people use these words is not to offend people with disabilities directly. But their use contributes to a cultural context that associates disability with incapacity, failure and marginality. The words we choose shape both the reality of others and our perception of it, they can include or exclude and clarify or confuse. We want to ask,' he concludes, 'every person who still utters these harmful expressions to stop. Not because 'you can no longer say anything'. But because they belong to the past'.