Prof. Dr. Christina Schwenck is professor for Special Needs Educational and Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology at the University of Giessen, Germany. She is a trained child and adolescent psychotherapist (specification behavior therapy) and a trained supervisor. Her research interests comprise selective mutism, conduct disorder, and children of parents with mental illness. She has published 56 articles in peer-reviewed journals and several book chapters on childhood mental health. She is editor of three book series on child and adolescent psychotherapy, psychology in school and psychotherapeutic children´s books. In her free time, she follows her passion for photography around the globe.

Prof. Dr. Schwenck is currently the Secretary General of the International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (IACAPAP). Her vision is to strengthen training and promotion of child and adolescent mental health professionals, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, including long-term mentorships for early career scientists and clinicians in this important field. Furthermore, she aims at alluring allied professions for IACAPAP to enhance active collaboration between professions in order to provide optimal supply for children and adolescents with mental health problems.