Disability & Culture
Access to Culture, Recreation, Leisure and Sport for People with Disabilities
#12thdss
12th International Disability Law Summer School 31 May - 2 July 2021 Online via Zoom 1 th 12International Disability Law Summer School 31 May - 2 July 2021 Table of Contents
Introduction to the 2021 Programme Programme ...... 2 While there is a growing understanding of the importance of access to culture, leisure, recreation and sport for people with disabilities, a focus on the rights-based approach as Craftivisim ...... 11 found in Article 30 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is often missing from discussions on this topic. This year’s summer school aims to bring together those who are leading in establishing cultural rights for people with disabilities, advocates Biographies ...... 12 and human rights experts in order to learn from each other – and develop ideas in this crucial area. Using Discord ...... 28
We turn to art, music, sport and play to find comfort and meaning in difficult times. This global pandemic has also highlighted new ways to make culture more accessible, for Draft Guidance for States on Interpreting and Applying example, through live streaming of cultural events. Nevertheless, disabled people are still Article 30 CRPD ...... 32 excluded from accessing culture in different forms and much work remains to ensure full and meaningful participation of disabled people in all forms of cultural life. About the Centre for Disability Law & In its first-ever online incarnation, the summer school will take place over 5 weeks, from Policy ...... 34 31 May to 2 July. The programme has been designed to allow participants to dip in and out of the material based on their availability throughout these weeks, and contains a LLM in International and Comparative Disability mixture of specially pre-recorded content, live panel discussions with opportunities for Law & Policy ...... 36 Q&A and interactive events (including comedy sets, a storytelling event, and a DJ’d dance party). Participants will receive an email each Monday with pre-recorded videos, live panel discussions will take place each Wednesday from 2-4pm Irish time, and the interactive and group activities will take place on Thursdays and Fridays (each lasting no more than 2 hours).
Each week will address a different theme, including Article 30 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, voices of disabled people in media, disabled people as artists and creators, sport, leisure & play, and access to the arts. We are committed to making summer school as accessible as possible in this online format, so please let us know your access needs on registering, and we look forward to welcoming you (virtually) to the various home offices, bedrooms and living rooms of our speakers from around the world this year! CONTENTS PROGRAMME Week 1:w/c31st May 2021 Chair session:Live Participation of People Disabled inCultural Life Wednesday 2ndJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time shared be will which with delegates final inthe week of school.summer photographed, and audio-described uploaded to ashare drive to form of part acollage school, by crafting, making, creating drawing, sewing or a otherwise piece be of to art explainRóisín will to delegates the how incraftivism can part take they the at summer Recorded Introduction to Róisín Craftivism Power Hackett Panel Chair Recorded Discussion: Theright participateto cultural life, in recreation, leisure and sport Welcome from Summer Directors: School Eilionóir Flynn and Maria Ní Fhlatharta Welcome from President NUIGalway: of NUIGalway, Ciarán ÓhÓgartaigh Welcome to Delegates Recorded Welcome Address Monday 31st May by at email 2021(released 9am Irish time) guidance for States on implementing 30of Article the UNConvention the inpractice. participationThe give will delegates activity the opportunity writeto some interpretative delivered live, highlight how will right this achieved inpractice for can be disabled people. negotiation of 30of Article UNConvention, the and keynote the address and response, forms of part year’s this programme. The recordedpanel the discussion on focus will welcome address, panel discussion, and introduction to craftivism the which activity Convention on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities. Delegates receive will arecorded life, recreation, leisure and for sport, disabled people, as outlined 30of inArticle UN the Week One of on focus Summer human the will School right to participate incultural Disability, Human Rights and Culture Response Speaker Keynote
with Disabilities Monthian Buntan, Former Member of UNCommittee the on Rights the of Persons Amy Farkas, Human Rights, Sport and Inclusive Development Professional Janet E.Lord, Harvard Project Law School on Disability Ferri,Delia Maynooth University
Geetanjali Misra, Co-Founder and Executive Director of CREA Rosaleen McDonagh,Rosaleen Playwright and IHRECCommissioner Sinéad Burke, Educator, Writer, and Founder of Tilting Lens the 2 3 Artist /Initiative of Krazy theweek Kat TheatreCompany completedthe draft guidancethe finalweek in of summer school. complete Kayess, Chair Rosemary provide section. their will feedback to delegates the on delegatesto all for comment inweekgroup 3,with final the in meeting week four to Groups again meet will inweektheir two draft, to be finalise will the draftscirculated and amentor allocated be and given direction on how to of write guidance. the section their States ininterpreting right the contained 30of Article UNConvention. the group Each will Activity Participation Friday 4thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time –delegates split be will into groups to develop written guidance for
PROGRAMME PROGRAMME Week June 2:w/c7th 2021 and feedback. of overall the section guidance document summer with school delegates all for comments Convention inpractice. By end the of week, this each group share will written their draft written guidance for States ininterpreting right the contained 30of Article UN the Activity Participation Thursday 10th June 202114.00–15.00 Irish time Panel Chair session:Live Writing our stories own Wednesday 9thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time Panel Chair Recorded Discussion: Representations of Disability inMedia Monday 7thJune by at email 2021(released 9am Irish time) 30ofArticle UNConvention. the groups continue to to meet work on draft their guidance document on implementing narratives. This week’s interactiveevent is an session, mic storytelling open theand working different forms (includingwriting, visual andart mime), theand importance of controlling and live the on focus session stories the will told by disabled people about lives their in representations of disability (including media inthe comedy, literature and theatre) of and media power their as storytellers. The recordedsession explore will different Week Two on focus voices will of disabled people representation –their invarious forms Disabled People Stories and Representations of
Reshma Valliappan,Door TheRed Paul Alford, Inclusion Ireland Talila “TL” HEARD&Freedom Lewis, Mapping LLC Shreya Anasuya, Skin Stories Nidhi Goyal, Rising Flame Kieran Coppinger and Charlene Kelly, Sanctuary, Actors Jones,Rosie Comedian Vásquez,Alberto Human Rights Lawyer –delegates again meet will ingroups with mentors their to develop 4 5 Artist /Initiative of Drag theweek Syndrome and include we will as many stories as we can within allowed time the and connecttrue with theme. the Participants can up sign inadvance or during session, the stories funny, can be sad, shocking, delightful or anything –as long inbetween are as they of ‘no work and play’ all and share that participating with those story session. inthe The from own their lives, that something personally experienced, relates they to theme the live, without notes, to an audience. Delegates would who astory like choose to part take sessionThis provides an opportunity for delegates to a tell short (5-7minute) story,true Master Anna ofCeremonies Arstein Kerslake MicStorytellingOpen ‘No work play’ and all Friday 11thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time
PROGRAMME PROGRAMME recreation, leisure and inpractice. sport UNConventionthe on right the of persons with disabilities to participate incultural life, differentthe sections the draftof guidancedocument forStates in interpretingArticle 30 of Activity Participation Thursday 17th June 202114.00–15.00 Irish time Panel Chair of Artists session: Disabled Live Experiences Wednesday 16thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time Panel Chair Recorded Discussion: Supporting Artists Disabled Monday 14thJune by at email 2021(released 9am Irish time) comedians. groups, and interactive the week activity this is astand-up comedy panel involving disabled differentsections the draftof guidancedocument developedArticle 30 on the by working impairment. delegates All have will opportunity the week this to give feedback on the (including and arts visual literature) and with different experiences of disability and on focus session real-life of the will experiences disabled artists indifferent disciplines commissioners and funders of on art, supporting disabled artists inpractice. The live spaces. The recordedperspectives thesession highlight of will artists, thatand of potentialexperiences, and supports the required to enable to them flourish increative Week Threepeopleon disabledfocus will as artists and creators culture,of their Disabled and Artists Creators Week June 3:w/c14th 2021
Danny Lane, Music andDeaf The Naoise Dolan, Writer Shivangi Agrawal, Movement Art Determined Adam Pearson, Actor Jess Thom, Touretteshero Nealon,Louise Writer Morwenna Consultant Arts Collett, Eleanor Walsh, Actor – all delegates –all finalise and submittheir feedback and comments on 6 7 Artist /Initiative of Action theweek Space audience. by abrief panel discussion with comics, the and aquestion and answer session with the andactivities exercises encouraging delegates the be followed to Thiswill join fun. inthe In session, this arange of disabled comedians performstand up, will with some interactive Master Simon ofCeremonies Minty PanelComedy Abnormally Funny People Friday 18thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time
PROGRAMME PROGRAMME practice, before submitting final the versions Kayess. Chairto Rosemary implementing 30of Article UNConvention the on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities in make final their changes the variousto sections the guidanceof document for States on Activity Participation Thursday 24th June 202114.00–15.00 Irish time Panel Chair session:Live Sport and Human Rights Wednesday 23rd June 202114.00–16.00Irish time University of Leeds A conversation Martin, CRPD Committee Robert between Member and Angharad Beckett, Recorded Discussion: Representations of Disability inMedia Monday 21st June by at email 2021(released 9am Irish time) an be online weekactivity this DJ’d will dance party. document for States inimplementing 30of Article UNConvention, the and interactive the participate The insport. workinggroupssections their the of finalise will guidance overall intersections disability between and other identities inunderstanding ahuman right to human rights, considering different the approaches ininclusivepara-sport, sport, theand and play into from childhood adult life. The livesession examine will disability, sport and Convention. The recordedsession people’son disabledfocus will experiences of sport Week Four explore will leisure sport, and play, elements as crucial of 30of Article UN the Week 4:w/c21st June 2021 Sport, Leisure and Play
Eli Wolff,Eli Director, Disability in Sport International Payoshni Mitra, University London College Dominique Bizimana, Paralympian Maria Ní Fhlatharta, Centre for Disability Law &Policy, NUIGalway –working groups with meet mentors their fortime final the to 8 9 Artist /Initiative of Wheelchair theweek Hurling –with DJ Disco Online Bruton Louise Friday 25thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time
PROGRAMME 10 11 Craftivism We are delighted to have Roísín Power Hackett curate our craftivisim. Craftivism is the Week 5: w/c 28th June 2021 combination of the two words ‘craft’ and ‘activism’. It is a visual handmade form of activism that usually includes elements of anti-capitalism, environmentalism and feminism. For Access to Arts and Culture example in Ireland in the 2018 Together for Yes Repeal the 8th campaign craftivism played a huge role similarly to the Black Lives Matter movement. Craftivism has a significant role in Week Five will explore access to arts and culture for disabled people. The recorded session campaining for human rights. will consider the experiences of disabled people and unique forms of disability culture, including Deaf culture, the experiences of Little People, and Albinism. The live session will For the Craftivism aspect of the International Disability Law Summer School we invite you to discuss how disabled people access and participate in arts and culture more broadly, both as make a craftivism piece inspired by disability and culture, art or sport. You can make words, artists, creators, performers, and as audience members. This week will conclude with a final slogans, images or patterns using any materials you have with you at home. session from the Summer School Directors and Craftivism Co-ordinator, sharing what we have learned and created throughout the previous five weeks. Craftivism is about being creative with what you have. Craftivism is about investing time and effort into what you are making and its message. When you invest time and effort into the making, you are investing time and effort into the cause. Our cause at this year’s International Disability Law Summer School is to make culture in all its forms inclusive and accessible Monday 28th June 2021 (released by email at 9am Irish time) for disabled people. Craftivism can include any visual art or design work including but not limited to drawing, painting, street art, collage, embroidery, crochet, knitting, posters and Recorded Discussion: Accessing Our Culture digital art. Chair Rebecca Cokley, Ford Foundation There will be a thread on the Discord for Craftivism – so you can share your ideas and Panel Ikponwosa Ero, UN Independent Expert on Albinism progress. Eva Þórdís Ebenezersdóttir, University of Iceland Majella McAteer, British Deaf Association You must submit your pieces by 25 June – but the earlier you submit the better. So please get your creativity on and start making! Wednesday 30th June 2021 14.00 – 16.00 Irish time Image descriptions Live session: Access to Culture for All We ask that you all include a written description of your image: Chair Betty Siegel, John F. Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts Panel Pádraig Naughton, Arts and Disability Ireland An image description is a written caption that describes the essential information in an image. Cymie Yeung, West Kowloon Cultural District Authority We will post more info on writing a good image description in the discord. Ruth Fabby, Disability Arts Cymru Image descriptions can define photos, graphics, pictures — basically anything containing Friday 2nd July 2021 14.00 – 16.00 Irish time visual information. It should be objective so that people using the description can form their own opinions about what the image means. It should be concise so that it doesn’t take too Wrap Up Session: Law, Craft and Change long for people to absorb all the content, especially if there are multiple images. And it should be descriptive enough that it describes all the essential aspects of the image. In this session, the delegates will hear from the summer school directors Eilionóir Flynn and Maria Ní Fhlatharta on the key lessons learned throughout the last five weeks, along Submitting your craftivism with a recorded reflection from Rosemary Kayess on the guidance document for States on interpreting Article 30 of the UN Convention in practice. Róisín Power Hackett will share • Please scan or take a photograph of your finished craftivist project with the best camera the final results of the Summer School Craftivism and delegates will learn how to keep in you have using the best lighting you have available. touch after the summer school has ended. • The best lighting is often natural sunlight. • Please send your photographs attached to an e-mail in a jpg format to Artist / Initiative of the week Croí Glan Integrated Dance Ltd [email protected] with the subject line Craftivism • In your email please include your full name and your written image description. • Your image should be a maximum of 25 MBs. • Your image will be uploaded to the International Disability Law Summer Schools Craftivism web page and will be a part of a collage of other craftivist images. CRAFTIVISIM PROGRAMME 11 12 Shivangi Agrawal Angharad Beckett Shivangi is a queer and disability activist. She works as an accessibility Dr Angharad Beckett FRSA is joint Director of the Centre for Disability consultant, policy advisor, research facilitator and artist with a collective Studies, University of Leeds. She is the Programme Leader for their Masters in called Determined Art Movement (D.A.M.). From New Delhi, India, she loves Disability Studies. Her two main areas of research are: (1) Disability Politics; travelling around for work, making silly forms of art, getting tattoos, doing (2) Disability, Childhood and Inclusion. She was a core group member of a witchy things and graffiti all over her room. Her chosen family consists of large, EU-funded interdisciplinary research network, focused on facilitating her cat Mia and her partner Nikita who is neurodivergent, trans and a super play for children with disabilities. She has carried out research in East Asia, exploring barriers witch! to play for disabled children and understanding the impact of context and local formations on children’s lives. She is the founder and co-Chair of the Executive Editorial Team for the International Her art practice involves writing, creating zines, painting on big canvas, walls or unique surfaces like Journal of Disability and Social Justice. Currently, she is co-authoring a book on Alternative Care for my prosthetic shoes and making a mess! She didn’t grow up with art around me except in her own Disabled Children, with a number of leading international disability rights advocacy organisations imagination. She didn’t study or learn it either. Art came to her from a place of desperation, survival, (forthcoming 2021, with Routledge). wanting to be heard and wanting to be in community. She is constantly growing and learning as an artist. She believes that art and art tools should be accessible and affordable specifically for Louise Bruton underrepresented and marginalized communities. She likes to use the various forms of art for social justice, collective organising, live documentation of political narratives and radical thoughts. Louise Bruton is a journalist, DJ, disability activist, playwright and pop lover. She regularly writes about music, travel, access and life as a wheelchair user for Follow @DisabledSpice on Twitter the Irish Times, the Irish Independent, the Sunday Business Post, Lonely Planet and Image Magazine. She made her theatre debut in 2017’s Dublin Fringe Festival as a playwright and a performer with a sold out run of Why Won’t You Paul Alford Have Sex With Me?, a show that looks into disability, relationships and sex. As a DJ, she co-runs the club night Pure Shores and hosts the Thirst Trap on Dublin Digital Radio. Paul Alford has worked for inclusion Ireland for the last 16 years as an advocate. Part of this work is going out and giving talks on rights, on independent living and the work inclusion Ireland does. Paul has spoken at many events and conferences about his life experiences and recently addressed Sinéad Burke the UNCRPD Committee on employment. Paul also engages in general office Sinéad is an educator, writer, and Founder of Tilting the Lens, a work and facilitating meetings and consultations. consultancy that continually asks, ‘is this accessible?’
After spending many years living in and attending day services in congregated settings Paul moved Sinéad starts conversations in every room to bring visibility to into his own home in Navan with support from friends and Possibilities Plus. He recently shared inaccessibility and partners with clients and stakeholders to build this journey in a book about his life and on the TV show ‘All walks of life’ with Mary McAleese. collaborative solutions that have impact today, tomorrow, and forever. Through an education, advocacy, and design approach, Tilting the Lens works to create more Anna Arstein-Kerslake accessible practices, products, and places, building a more equitable world. Sinéad has been hosting conversations with leaders for over a decade, first through her blog, then Dr Anna Arstein-Kerslake is an Associate Professor at Melbourne Law through the ‘As Me with Sinéad’ podcast which has included conversations with a diverse slate of School, University of Melbourne. She is an internationally recognised legal activists and thinkers including Samantha Power, DeRay McKesson, Lonnie Bunch III, Riz Ahmed, academic in the fields of human rights, disability rights, and gender justice. and Glenda Jackson. She has published widely in these areas, including her recent books, Restoring Voice to People (Cambridge University Press 2017) and Legal Capacity and Sinéad is the author of ‘Break the Mould’, a book that encourages children to find their place in the Gender (Springer 2020). She has led several large scale research projects world. The book is a number one bestseller and was awarded the ‘Irish Children’s Book of the Year as well as law and policy reform initiatives. For example, she was a Chief (Senior)’ Award at the An Post Irish Book Awards in 2020. Investigator on the Unfitness to Plead Project, funded by the Australian Government, which applied a human rights framework to investigate the indefinite detention of people with cognitive She is the first little person to appear on the cover of Vogue as she featured in British Vogue’s ‘Forces disability after being found ‘unfit to plead’. She has also been a leader in interdisciplinary and for Change’ issue; guest-edited by Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex. She is a member of the cross-sectorial research development. From 2014-2017, she was the Academic Convenor of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders and she is a member of the President of Ireland, Hallmark Disability Research Initiative (DRI) across all faculties of the University of Melbourne. Michael D Higgins’, Council of State. Appointed by Taoiseach Míchael Martin, she is a member of Prior to joining the University of Melbourne, she held a Marie Curie Research Fellowship at the the Future of Media Commission and is also a member of Gucci’s Global Equity Board. Centre for Disability Law and Policy (CDLP) at the National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG). During her fellowship, her work focused on the right to equal recognition before the law and she She is responsible for the introduction of the term ‘duine beag’ (little person) into the Irish language travelled across Europe, USA, Asia, and Australia to engage with governments, international bodies, dictionary. communities, and academics to better understand violations of the right and explore solutions. The results are published in her 2017 book. She holds a PhD in Law from NUIG, a JD from the Follow @TheSineadBurke on Twitter BIOGRAPHIES City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law, and a BA in Sociology from San Diego State BIOGRAPHIES University (SDSU). 13 14 Rebecca Cokley Rebecca Cokley joined the Ford Foundation in January of 2021 as the Eva Þórdís Ebenezersdóttir first U.S. Program Officer to oversee a Disability Rights Portfolio. Prior to Eva is a Ph.D. candidate in folkloristics at the University of Iceland, her joining Ford, she served as the co-founder and Director of the Disability advisor is Dr. Ólafur Rastrick. Her Ph.D project, Different bodies in Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress. A three time Icelandic folklore, is a part of the multidisciplinary project: ‘Disability Presidential Appointee for President Barack Obama, Rebecca served at the before disability’ funded by the Icelandic Research Fund’s Grant of U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Excellence 2017-2020. She holds an MA in folkloristics from the Services, and at the White House where she oversaw diversity and inclusion efforts in the first term. University of Iceland. Her research field connects folkloristics and In 2020 she was awarded the Richman Distinguished Fellow in Public Life for Brandeis University. disability studies, she has published articles on disability in changeling Rebecca has spoken at Netroots Nation, New York City Comic-Con, Yale University, the Women’s stories and on disability and humor, pending publication on folkloric March National Conference and given a TedX talk and been a guest on MSNBC and Last Week narration of disability. Tonight with John Oliver. She was a Karl Pister Scholar at the University of California, Santa Cruz where she graduated with a B.A. in Politics. She is the proud spouse of Patrick and mother of 3, and is currently working on her first book. Ikponwosa “I.K.” Ero
Morwenna Collett Ms. Ikponwosa “I.K.” Ero was designated in June 2015 as the first UN Morwenna is an Arts Consultant, specialising in diversity, access and Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with inclusion. An accomplished leader and facilitator with experience in albinism. The vision of Ms. Ero’s mandate is driven by the cross-cutting arts, government, not for profit and university sectors, Morwenna has principle of the UN Sustainable development goals: “leaving no one contributed as a consultant, CEO, Board Director, leadership team behind…starting with the furthest behind first.” Ms. Ero, a lawyer by member, project manager, lecturer and advisor. training and has over a decade of experience in the research, policy and practice of human rights, particularly concerning persons with albinism. Based in Sydney, Morwenna’s work is informed by her own lived experience as a musician with a disability and she is sought after nationally and internationally for In this context, she has worked with and advised multiple organizations and governments around her expertise. the world. Ms Ero is also the author of numerous papers and articles, particularly with regards to applicable legal frameworks as well as the development and implementation of specific measures to Morwenna has developed arts funding programs and initiatives, contributed to significant pieces facilitate the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism. In 2015, Ms. Ero was listed by of national arts and disability policy, raised funding from new revenue streams and expanded UNESCO as one of the top 70 women speakers worldwide. In 2017 she was listed among the 100 organisations into new geographic and programmatic areas. She has made an impact working with most influential Africans and recently, in March 2020, she was named the International Advocate of a wide range of arts organisations to produce Disability Action Plans, inclusive arts programmes, the year by the United States’ International Council on Disabilities. research/evaluation projects, Board Diversity strategies and is in demand as a speaker and trainer.
Morwenna has recently undertaken a Churchill Fellowship, investigating inclusive music programs, venues and festivals which actively engage disabled people across the USA, UK and Ireland. Ruth Fabby
Ruth Fabby [formerly Gould until October 2019] is the Director of Kieran Coppinger Disability Arts Cymru (DAC) since August 2019. Now residing in Cardiff, Ruth is leading the organisation to support a creative and equal Cymru Kieran has been with Blue Teapot since 2003, appearing in a variety of shows where disabled and Deaf people are pivotal to the arts of the nation. and street parades. More predominantly, in 2010, Kieran took on the roles of Lysander, Francis Flute and Cobweb in a full production of Shakespeare’s Previously she was the founder and Artistic Director of DaDaFest, one of A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Petal Pilley, and demonstrated his the most successful disability arts festivals in the world. technical ability and emotional range. In 2012, Kieran took the co-lead role in Christian O’Reilly’s stage play Sanctuary, playing lover Larry, a role of which Ruth initially trained in performance arts, speech and drama at Liverpool Theatre School, and has Kieran reprised in the feature film of Sanctuary (2016) along with Charlene Kelly, both of whom worked in the arts / disability arts all her professional life. were nominated in the Best Irish Performance category of The Irish Times 2017 Ticket Awards. Kieran also featured significantly in the IFTA award winning RTE Documentary Somebody To Love Ruth sees disability rights as human rights and is a passionate and knowledgeable speaker. (Wildfire Films) alongside his Blue Teapot colleagues. Kieran also appeared in an episode of the American TV series Into The Badlands. Most recently, Kieran plays the role of a Prince in Charlene Kelly’s debut play Into the Dark Woods. BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 15 16 Amy Farkas Nidhi Goyal Amy is an internationally recognized leader in human rights, sport and Nidhi Goyal is a disabled feminist activist from India working on disability inclusive development. With over 20 years of experience, Amy has worked rights and gender justice. As India’s first female disabled stand up comedian, with a variety of inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations, she has performed extensively in South Asia and in parts of Europe. She uses including the United Nations Development Coordination Office (UNDCO), humour to challenge misconceptions and stigma, behaviours and attitudes UNICEF, International Disability Alliance (IDA), Centre for Sport and Human around gender, disability, and sexuality. Comedy is a tool for her activism. Rights, Global Action on Disability Network (GLAD), Global Partnership on Children with Disabilities, International Paralympic Committee (IPC), Special Olympics, ATscale She is also the founder and Executive director of the National Award winning Indian non profit The Global Partnership on Assistive Technology, Motivation UK, Women’s Refugee Care, and the organisation Rising Flame which works for women and youth with disabilities. Since a decade, National Center on Health, Physical Activity and Disability (United States). Amy has led dozens of Nidhi has been committed to changing lives of persons with disabilities and has worked with a trainings, authored numerous publications, has a Masters in Disability Studies from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Bachelors in Kinesiology from Pennsylvania State University. range of National and global women’s rights, disability rights, and human rights organizations, including Point of View, Human Rights Watch, Sight Savers, and CREA.
As a changemaker in national and global spaces, she influences inclusion and human rights Delia Ferri through her various boards, committee and other leadership positions. She sits on the civil society advisory group of UN Women’s Executive Director, has been invited on the multi-stake holder Delia is a Professor of Law at Maynooth University, where she lectures steering committee of the Generation Equality Forum, has been elected globally to Association for primarily in the fields of EU law and International and European Disability Women’s rights in Development where she is currently the president, and has been appointed on Law and acts as Director of the Postgraduate Research (PhD) Programmes the advisory board of VOICE -a grant making project by the Dutch ministry. in Law. Since March 2020, she is the co-Director of the Assisting Living & Learning Institute. Delia is also affiliated researcher at the DIRPOLIS Institute In India she has been appointed as a member of the core group on persons with disabilities and of Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna Pisa (Italy) within the research cluster on social inclusion and elderly persons by the National Human Rights Commission and also has been invited to the disability, and a fellow at the Burton Blatt Institute of Syracuse University (USA). Since 2018, she diversity and Inclusion task force by FICCI. has been a member of the Royal Irish Academy Standing Committee in International Affairs. In addition, Delia is a qualified lawyer and member of the Italian Bar since 2008, currently enrolled in the Special Roll for full-time academics. Delia has published extensively in the fields of International Her work on disability, gender, diversity and inclusion have made way into many corporate and Comparative Disability Law and EU Law. She is Principal Investigator of the project “Protecting offices and policy spaces. Nidhi’s work spans research, writing, training, campaigns, advocacy, the Right to Culture of Persons with Disabilities and Enhancing Cultural Diversity through and art. She works to raise the profile of issues at the intersection of disability and gender through European Union Law: Exploring New Paths (DANCING)”. She is part the project “SHAPES”, and performances, op-eds, journal articles, and lectures in national and international forums. She holds a position of co-investigator in the project “Rethinking Digital Copyright Law for a Culturally influences organisations, systems and structures, policies and human rights discourses to be more Diverse, Accessible, Creative Europe”, led by Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna Pisa, and funded by the EU inclusive in national and global spaces Horizon 2020 programme. You can follow Nidhi’s work on Twitter @saysnidhigoyal Eilionóir Flynn Eilionóir Flynn is an Established Chair in Law and Director of the Centre Shreya Ila Anasuya for Disability Law and Policy, National University of Ireland Galway. Her Shreya Ila Anasuya is a writer, researcher and community organiser in research focuses on disability and social justice, with a particular emphasis India. They edited Skin Stories, a digital publication on sexuality, disability, on legal capacity, advocacy and reproductive justice. Her first book, “From and gender, as well as the print anthology of the same name, as part of the Rhetoric to Action: Implementing the UN Convention on the Rights of Sexuality and Disability programme at Point of View. They are an Otherwise Persons with Disabilities” was published by Cambridge University Press Fellow 2020. in 2011) and since then she has gone on to publish extensively in the domain of disability rights. Eilionóir is the Scientific Co-ordinator of the Disability Advocacy Research in Europe (DARE) Marie Curie Training Network, made up of 15 PhD researchers across seven European countries. Her work has attracted significant research funding, including a Starting Grant from the European Research Council, and an Investigator Award from Wellcome Trust. She has acted as a board member and advisor in a range of local, national and international bodies working on the rights of disabled people, and regularly advises policy-makers at national and international levels, including providing support to the Secretariat of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and in particular the working group which developed General Comment 1. BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 17 18 Rosie Jones Charlene Kelly Until recently, Charlene is perhaps best known as an actor with Blue Teapot With her infectious laugh and high energy, Rosie Jones has quickly become Theatre Company, having been with the company since 2008, performing a must-see act on the UK comedy circuit. The ex-television researcher in many stage productions most notably as Helena in Shakespeare’s A was awarded second place in the Leicester Mercury’s New Comedian Of Midsummer Night’s Dream (2010), Sophie in Sanctuary (Christian O’Reilly, The Year Award 2018 and has gone on to star on Live At The Apollo, The 2012) and Elizabeth in Waiting For Elvis (Eileen Gibbons, 2016). Charlene Jonathan Ross Show, 8 Out Of 10 Cats, 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown, reprised her role as Sophie in the feature film version of Sanctuary (2016) The Last Leg, Rosie Jones Tries To Help, Live From The Comedy Store, Joe to critical acclaim, along with her fellow cast members, winning the Dublin Film Critics’ Choice: Lycett’s Got Your Back, Comedy Central UK’s Roast Battle, Mock The Week and Hypothetical. Rosie The Michael Dwyer Discovery Award at the 2017 Dublin International Film Festival. Charlene has completed two sell-out runs at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with both Fifteen Minutes and herself was also nominated in the Best Irish Film Performance category in The Irish Times 2017 Backward receiving critical acclaim, included the Scotsman describing her show as “both elegantly Ticket Awards along with co-star Kieran Coppinger. Into the Dark Woods is Charlene Kelly’s debut crafted and mischievous to its bones”. play, having brought to fruition a long held desire to become a writer. Inspired from within creative writing workshops with dramaturg Eileen Gibbons, Charlene has worked towards her debut Not forgetting her comedy writing roots, Rosie is busy working on sitcoms and wrote on the hit stage play since 2019. While the production currently remains a work in progress, it is hoped for Netflix series Sex Education. Rosie is also an incredible actor, making her primetime debut in a Into the Dark Woods to premiere as soon as it’s safe for theatres to re-open. Charlene is a proud Silent Witness two-part-special and most recently starring as Paula in BBC’s Casualty. spokesperson for her work having been a subject in RTÉ ONE/Wildfire Films IFTA winning documentary Somebody To Love (2014), a guest on The Ray D’Arcy Show (RTÉ Television) and Follow @josierones on Twitter many other media outlets.
Rosemary Kayess Danny Lane Rosemary Kayess was elected to the chair of the United Nations (UN) Danny Lane is a profoundly deaf pianist and is the Artistic Director for Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2018. a unique UK-based charity called Music and the Deaf. Music and the Deaf’s mission is to open up music opportunities for deaf people and Professor Kayess, a human rights lawyer, currently teaches in the Faculty helps to reduce the barriers that they face in reaching their full potential of Law at the University of New South Wales. Convening international law through music-making. For twenty years, Danny has designed and and human rights subjects, she focuses on the equality provisions within delivered ground-breaking projects including the National Deaf Youth international instruments and their translation into domestic law and Orchestra and Frequalise, a music technology project designed to engage young people in the policy. She is also a Senior Research Fellow with the Social Policy Research Centre UNSW and latest music software and technology. He recently led the national Modulate project (UK) with has extensive research experience working and advising on a variety of social research projects seven music education services to increase investment in music-making for deaf children. Danny including access to justice, social inclusion, human rights, disability, and the implementation of is now developing a digital programme of resources, online concerts and vlogs which are helping CRPD in Australia, Asia/Pacific and Europe. Rosemary was an external expert on the Australian to increase further awareness of music and deafness and he is providing platforms for professional Government delegation to the United Nations negotiations for the Convention on the Rights deaf musicians to perform either solo or within ensembles. In addition to projects, Danny provides of Persons with Disabilities. During the ad hoc Committee she facilitated the negotiations on highly specialised and inclusive music workshops, performances and educational resources in order Education (Article 24). She is currently a member of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs that deaf people can be fully involved with music. He believes that hearing loss should never be a and Trade Disability Inclusive Development Reference Group and Chairperson of the Australian barrier to accessing and enjoying music, which plays a crucial role in a person’s development and Centre for Disability Law. enriches lives. His work has taken him around the UK and the world including Malta, Hungary and Australia. BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 19 20 Robert Martin Talila “TL” Lewis Sir Robert has spent his life advocating on behalf of disabled people and in particular people with learning disability, both in New Zealand and around Talila “TL” Lewis is an abolitionist organizer and community lawyer who the world. Sir Robert spent most of his childhood in institutions. This works to ground social justice movements in disability justice by helping experience has given him a great interest in ensuring that all disabled people people recognize the links between ableism and all forms of systemic/ get the opportunity to live in the community from birth. structural inequity and violence. Lewis’ work primarily focuses on abolishing the medical-carceral industrial complex; correcting wrongful convictions of deaf/disabled people; Working for IHC New Zealand for some years, Sir Robert assisted the and supporting multiply-marginalized disabled people affected all forms of incarceration. Lewis, organisation to bring self-advocacy and People First to New Zealand. He is now a Life Member of who taught at Northeastern University School of Law and Rochester Institution of Technology, co- the Disabled People’s Organisation, People First New Zealand Ngā Tāngata Tuatahi. founded the cross-disability abolitionist non-profit HEARD and co-created #DisabilitySolidarity. Sir Robert was a long-standing member of the Inclusion International Council and was Follow @Talilalewis and @behearddc on Twitter Chairperson of the Self- Advocacy Taskforce from 1996 to 2008. Through his roles in Inclusion International, he took part in negotiations around the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Sir Robert is a recognised role model for people with learning disability and a sought-after Janet E. Lord international speaker and advisor on self-advocacy. Over the years, Sir Robert has travelled the Janet is currently senior research fellow at the Harvard Law School Project on world speaking to organisations, families, and people with learning disability about many topics, Disability and senior legal advisor for rule of law and inclusive development including the right to live in the community, deinstitutionalisation, the right to work, and having programs at New-Rule LLP. the life of your choice.
A practicing international disability rights lawyer and disability inclusive His words have effected change in policies and practices which have made a positive difference for development practitioner, she has worked with a variety of inter-governmental disabled people around the world. and non-governmental organizations and donors, including the World Bank Group, Special Olympics, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Sir Robert has had a book written about his life called Becoming a Person. Rights, the UN Disability Program, UNAIDS, UNDP, the International Labour Organisation, and international the United States Agency of International Development. She holds an LL.B. Sir Robert was New Zealand’s nominee for the Committee for the United Nations Convention of and LL.M. in law from the University of Edinburgh (Scotland), an LL.M. in international and the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and was successfully elected to this role in June 2016. He comparative law from the George Washington University Law School and a B.A. in History from has just completed his first four-year term as an Independent Expert and has been reelected for a Kenyon College. She is a member of the New York Bar. second term. Sir Robert received his knighthood in January 2020 for his achievements and it is believed that he is the first person with a learning disability to have received such an award.
Majella McAteer Majella has worked in British Deaf Association Northern Ireland (BDA NI) for 24 years, overseeing a variety of domains including health, civic rights, early intervention, justice, and advocacy. Since 2011, she has been in the post of Community Development Manager for Northern Ireland, which encompasses a wide range of responsibilities including developing new initiatives and managing existing annual budgets and members of staff within the NI office. BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 21 22 Rosaleen McDonagh Geetanjali Misra Rosaleen is a Traveller woman with a disability. Originally from Sligo, she Geetanjali Misra is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of CREA. She is the fourth eldest in a family of twenty children. She worked in Pavee is a feminist who has worked at the activist, grant-making, and policy Point Traveller & Roma Centre for ten years, managing the Violence levels on issues of sexuality, reproductive health, gender, human rights, Against Women programme, and remains a board member. She is a and violence against women. Before joining CREA, she was Program regular contributor to the Irish Times and has written ostensibly within the Officer, for the Ford Foundation in New Delhi and and made grants in framework of a Traveller feminist perspective. McDonagh’s work includes the fields of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, Violence Against Mainstream, The Baby Doll Project, Stuck, She’s Not Mine, and Rings. Women and Women’s Human Rights. She has served as Co-Chair, President, and Advisor for many organizational Boards including Mama Cash, Association for Women’s Rights in Development Rosaleen was commissioned for a feature article in the Irish Times in 2012 responding to Channel (AWID) where she led a strategic planning and organizational development process leading to 4’s series My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. In 2013/2014, she worked with Graeae Theatre on its WTP changes in leadership roles and structure, Global Fund for Women, and American Foundation programme. As part of this project, she spent two weeks on attachment in The Royal Court Theatre. for Aids Research (AMFAR) among others. She is currently on the Astraea Foundation Board Her play Mainstream was directed by Olivier Award winner, Jim Culleton, for Fishamble and Project and member of the Amnesty International Task Force- Gender and Diversity. She also co- Arts Centre in 2016. In 2018, Fishamble produced Rosaleen’s play Running Out of Road in the RHK founded SAKHI for South Asian women in New York and has taught as an adjunct professor to mark the first anniversary of Traveller Ethnicity recognition. Rosaleen has a BA in Biblical & at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. In addition, Geeta is an author Theological Studies, an MPhil in Ethnic & Racial Studies & an MPhil in Creative Writing, all from and regularly writes on issues of sexuality, gender, and rights. She holds Master’s degrees in TCD. She holds a PhD from Northumbria University. Rosaleen was writer in residence with Tuti International Affairs from Columbia University and in Economics from Syracuse University. Theatre Company in Adelaide, Australia in 2019. Corrib Theatre Company in Portland Oregon, USA, produced The Prettiest Proud Boy.
Rosaleen was appointed to The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission in May 2020. She Pádraig Naughton is also a member of Aosdana. Presently Rosaleen’s piece Walls & Windows is being commissioned for a production in The Abbey Theatre. Contentious Spaces has also been commissioned by The Pádraig became Executive Director of Arts & Disability Ireland in 2005. ADI Projest Arts Centre for production in 2021. With Skein Press Rosaleen’s collection of essays will be is the national resource and development organisation for arts and disability. published September 2021. Part of the BBC’s Writers Rooms Hothouse 2021. (June/July). Working strategically in partnership with the arts sector ADI champions the creativity of artists with disabilities and promotes inclusive experiences for audiences with disabilities. Activities include commissioning, providing audio description and captioning and support for artists in creating new Simon Minty work through funding, residency, mentoring and training opportunities. Simon has delivered consultancy, training and public speaking in the field of diversity, specialising in disability, since early 2000s. Based in London, Pádraig is currently undertaking an LLM in International & Comparative Disability Law & Policy his work is international. He works with many clients from a small NGO at NUI Galway (2020/22). He holds a PGCE in Arts & Design Teaching, Bretton Hall College, to a multinational corporation. This international work has helped Simon University of Leeds West Yorkshire (1998) and a Degree in Craft Design Ceramics, National develop a broader understanding of different cultural approaches to College of Art & Design Dublin (1993). Pádraig established a studio practice focusing on tactile disability. He also has a creative side, helping improve the portrayal of experimental sculpture and landscape drawing. Subsequently he became Artistic Director with disabled people in media and has worked with BBC, Channel 4, Endemol Shine, All Three Media, Equata: Disability Arts Development Agency for South West England (2003). Pádraig has served Warner and Sky. He’s produced numerous videos and co-produced and performed in the sell-out on the Boards of the Arts & Disability Forum (2002-2003 & 2007-2009) and Kildare Arts in Edinburgh Fringe comedy show Abnormally Funny People in 2005 and 2015. Context (2010-2012) and Pádraig is the former Chair of the VSA Affiliate Council (2015-2018), a global network of arts and disability organisations. He co-hosts two podcasts, BBC Ouch! and The Way We Roll. His client list is substantial and includes BBC, Barclays, British Council, Buckingham Palace, Google, Lloyds Banking and Open Society Foundation. In addition, Simon is a Non-executive director of Motability Operations. He is on the Louise Nealon board of The National Theatre and is a trustee of Improbable Theatre and of StopGap Dance. He is an Ambassador to the Business Disability Forum and Business Disability International. He also Louise is a writer from County Kildare, Ireland. In 2017, she won the Seán helped establish the Disability Media Alliance Project in California. Simon has a Post Graduate Ó Faoláin International Short Story Competition and was the recipient of diploma in Disability Management at Work and a BSc (Joint Hons) in Philosophy and Sociology, the Francis Ledwidge Creative Writing Award. She has been published in the both from City University in London. A keen traveller, he won the Travel X Travel Writer of the Year Irish Times, Southword and The Stinging Fly. 1999 – Best Television Feature for his Channel 4 travel programme in China. In 2016 GQ named him as one of the 100 best connected men in the UK. He has featured on the Power 100 List of She received a degree in English literature from Trinity College Dublin disabled people for many years. He has personal experience of disability being of short stature and in 2014 and a master’s degree in creative writing from Queen’s University limited mobility. He uses a mobility scooter for distance. Belfast in 2016. She lives on the dairy farm where she was raised. Snowflake, her first novel, will be published in May 2021. Follow @simonminty on Twitter BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 23 24 Maria Ní Fhlatharta Róisín Power Hackett Maria Ni Fhlatharta is Co Director of the #12thDSS and works on the Re(al) Róisín Power Hackett is a visual artist, writer, and curator. She graduated with Productive Justice Project at the CDLP. Maria has a particular interest in legal am MA in Art, Research Collaboration from IADT in 2021, an MA in Art in capacity and reproductive decision making, as well as access to reproductive the Contemporary World from NCAD in 2013 and with a BA in Fine from health care for marginalised groups. Maria has addressed a number of NCAD in 2012. During her recent Masters, Róisín amassed a body of research conferences on issues relating to reproductive rights and disability, both in on the inclusion in and access to the arts for disabled people. She has been Europe and internationally. Maria has a keen interest in reproductive justice awarded the ARC LAB Curatorial Scholarship (2019), the Waterford County and worked on the campaign platform for “Together For Yes”. She has also Council Tyrone Gutherie Bursary (2019), the Arts Council Visual Arts Bursary spoken on a number of TV and radio panels on issues of human rights and equality. In 2018 she was Award (2018), the Waterford County Council Artlinks Bursary (2017, 2016), involved in the negation of the Nairobi Principles on prenatal testing. She is a board member of the the Kennedy Wilson NCAD Access Studio Residency (2016) and the Arts and Disability Connect Disability Rights Fund. She holds an LLM in Comparative International Disability Law and Policy Training Award (2015). and is a graduate of the BCL in NUI Galway Law. Her other research interests include prisoner rights and access to justice.
Adam Pearson Betty Siegel Adam Pearson is an award-winning disability rights campaigner, actor, As Director of the Office of Accessibility and VSA at The John F. Kennedy presenter and speaker. Adam was nominated as UK Documentary Presenter Center for the Performing Arts, Ms. Siegel believes that cultural experiences of the Year at the 2016 Grierson Awards. inclusive of people with disabilities of all ages is a critical civil and human right. She champions, defends and leads national and international disability, arts, Adam’s most recent documentary, Eugenics: Science’s Greatest Scandal, was education and cultural practices. broadcast on BBC Four. He has previously fronted the critically-acclaimed documentaries Horizon: My Amazing Twin (BBC Two), Adam Pearson: She is especially proud of the Kennedy Center LEAD® and VSA Intersections Freak Show (BBC Three) and The Ugly Face Of Disability Hate Crime (BBC conferences that collectively convene over 900 professionals and arts workers Three), as well as being a reporter on Tricks Of The Restaurant Trade (Channel 4) and The One Show in the cultural access sector. She is a respected speaker, delivering presentations around the world (BBC One). His other credits include Question Time (BBC One), Celebrity Mastermind (BBC One), and across the United States, on disability, civil and cultural rights, and federal disability laws and Pointless Celebrities (BBC One), Celebrity Eggheads (BBC Two), Breakfast (BBC One), Songs Of regulation. Her JD is from the Columbus School of Law in 2009. Praise (BBC One), Sunday Morning Live (BBC One), Newsnight (BBC Two), Loose Women (ITV), Lorraine (ITV), This Morning (ITV) and Front Row (BBC Radio 4). Follow @VSAIntl on Twitter Adam worked as a researcher for the BBC and Channel 4 before becoming a strand presenter on the first series of Beauty & The Beast: The Ugly Face Of Prejudice (Channel 4). He was also one of the team who developed the series and he consulted on the Dutch version. Adam has also worked on The Undateables (Channel 4) as a casting researcher.
Adam appeared in the BAFTA-nominated film, Under The Skin, directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Scarlett Johansson. He also played himself in the independent feature, DRIB, which premiered at SXSW in 2017. Adam stars in Chained For Life which has been released theatrically in the UK and and US as well as being shown at film festivals around the world. Of his performance, The New York Times described him as “an actor of great charm.”
Adam has spoken at a number of events for companies and organisations such as the World Health Innovation Summit, Public Service & Criminology Conference and British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy. He has also given a TEDx talk.
Adam is an ambassador for Changing Faces, Us In A Bus, Jeans For Genes and The Childhood Tumour Trust. He also won a RADAR Award and a Diana Award for his campaigning work. Adam was named in The Shaw Trust Power 100 List of 2020 – a list of the UK’s most influential disabled people.
Follow @Adam_Pearson on Twitter BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 25 26
Jess Thom Reshma Valliappan Writer, artist and part-time superhero, Jess Thom co-founded Reshma Valliappan aka Val Resh is the founder-director of The Red Door, an Touretteshero in 2010 as a creative response to her experience of living organization that kickstarted the idea of using creativity as a form of personal, with Tourettes Syndrome. psycho-spiritual, social and legal tool to bring change in how madness is perceived by others & experienced by those labelled by it. She received the Jess has written in the mainstream and disability press including The recognition as an Ashoka & Ink Fellow for the same. Her personal journey Guardian, The Observer and Disability Now. In 2012 she published became the subject of an award winning documentary “A drop of sunshine” Welcome to Biscuit Land – A Year In the Life of Touretteshero, with a of living without medication with paranoid schizophrenia using art. From late foreword by Stephen Fry. 2015 onwards, The Red Door became a lesson plan that she personally taught in Government community schools that were dealing with issues of violence and assault. The Jess is a regular performer at Glastonbury, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, DaDaFest, Unlimited program became a ground changing module in partnership with an Ashoka Changemaker school Festival and Shambala. She made Broadcast from Biscuit Land as part of On Stage: Live from where it addressed mental health issues through the lens of social-emotive-sexual identities and Television Centre for BBC4 in 2015. In 2018 her one-hour film Me, My Mouth and I was broadcast on BBC2 and went on to be screened in the USA, Russia, Chile, Switzerland and Canada. not through the lens of psychopharmacology model.
In 2016 Jess took her award-winning stage show Backstage in Biscuit Land on an extensive national Val has authored her memoir, written several articles in academia journals included, is affiliated and international tour including the USA and Australia. In the same year she received a Wellcome to Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth as a continuing student of Science, Philosophy and Religion. She has Engagement Fellowship, became an Arts Council England Change Maker and received an completed 3 Master Degrees although does not hold the degrees. One alter ego is a mime artist honorary degree from the University of Wolverhampton. named Skii, another is an initiate of Vajrayana Tantric Buddhism, another is known for being a self-taught fine artist. When she isn’t doing all that she does, she’s likely to be seen amusing herself In 2017 Touretteshero hosted Adventures in Biscuit Land at Tate Modern as part of their Tate with her imaginary friends, counselling ghosts, kids and real people and attempting to take over Exchange programme, and curated Brewing in the Basement at the Barbican Centre. She also the world ‘One atom at a time’. In short, she’s an alien just waiting to get back to her planet thus just débuted her critically acclaimed performance of Samuel Beckett’s short play Not I. In 2020 Jess wiling her time away on Earth with all of the above. took Not I to New York City as part of the Public Theater’s prestigious Under The Radar Festival where it received a glowing review in the New York Times. Alberto Vasquez In 2018 Jess took her stand-up show Stand Up, Sit Down, Roll Over to the USA and Europe, hosted Alberto is a Peruvian human rights lawyer and disability rights advocate. He Heroes of the Imagination at the Southbank’s Imagine Festival, and Brewing in Battersea at Battersea graduated in Law from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru and holds an Arts Centre. The year ended with Hacks for the Future, a residential theatre project for disabled LL.M in International and Comparative Disability Law and Policy from the young creatives in the Highlands in association with National Theatre Scotland. National University of Ireland, Galway.
In 2019, Touretteshero received Elevate funding from Arts Council England, a programme which He works as a consultant on disability rights and mental health law, and aims to strengthen the resilience of diverse arts organisations. Jess deepened her advocacy work has served in that role at various United Nations entities. He worked as Research Coordinator at and hosted several facilitated conversations around access for senior managers or organisations the Office of the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities during Catalina such as the Barbican and Shakespeare’s Globe. Devandas’ mandate. In Peru, he has been actively involved in the drafting, advocacy and monitoring of laws and policies concerning disability and mental health. He is the president of SODIS -- During the 2020 Coronavirus lockdown, Jess devised and delivered Digital Heroes of the Sociedad y Discapacidad. Imagination with the National Youth Theatre and created a Pandemic Postcard for the Harbourfront Theatre in Toronto. Eleanor Walsh Jess has spoken widely in the media about her life with Tourettes, including on Woman’s Hour, This Morning, and Russell Howard’s Good News. She has given a TEDx talk at the Royal Albert Hall and Eleanor Walsh is a performer based in Dublin. She graduated from TU Dublin features in the Annalisa is Awkward documentary on BBC Radio 4. Conservatory of Music and Drama with a BA in Drama (Performance), and wrote her undergraduate dissertation on relaxed performance and sensory-friendly Jess is a visual, performing, and participatory artist based in London. She graduated from The theatre. She consults on facilitating relaxed performances, autistic representation, Royal College of Art in 2005. She campaigns for disability rights and social justice and is on a and making theatre more inclusive for autistic and disabled people. Recent mission to change the world ‘one tic at a time.’ performing credits include Home: Part One (Abbey Theatre), Dear Ireland: These Four Walls by Sinéad Burke (Abbey Theatre), What I (Don’t) Know About Autism by Jody O’Neill Follow @touretteshero on Twitter (Abbey Theatre), and Veiled (National Leprechaun Museum). She has also performed as a Storyteller in the National Leprechaun Museum and currently produces their podcast, National Leprechaun Museum Talking Stories. Eleanor is an AsIAm Youth Ambassador, a former member of the charity’s Board of Directors, and most recently held the position of Information Officer in the organisation. She is also a member of Disabled Women Ireland. BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES 27 28 Eli A. Wolff Cymie Yeung Eli A. Wolff directs the Power of Sport Lab, a platform to fuel and magnify Cymie believes everyone has the rights to learn, appreciate and enjoy the creativity, diversity, connection and leadership through sport. Eli is also arts. She started her career in equal rights of arts participation and inclusion an instructor with the Sport Management program at the University in Hong Kong since 2008, participating in advocacy, development and of Connecticut, the Sport Leadership program at UMass-Boston, and coordination of accessible events and information in various settings, such as is co-founder and advisor to the Sport and Society initiative at Brown theatre performances, exhibitions, outdoor festivals, etc. University. She joined the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority in 2016, assisting the development of policy Eli’s work has been at the intersection of research, education and advocacy in and through and guidelines on universal accessibility for the cultural district. With enormous interest in anti- sport, with a focus on sport and social justice, diversity, disability and inclusion. Eli has co- discrimination law and rights of persons with disabilities, she focused her research on equality and founded Disability in Sport International, Athletes for Human Rights, the Olympism Project, and cultural rights of persons with disabilities and completed an LLM in Human Rights at the Faculty of Mentoring for Change. Law of the University of Hong Kong with distinction in 2019. In the same year, she became the first international recipient of the LEAD® Award for Emerging Leaders from The John F. Kennedy Center Since 2004, Eli has been an advisor to the United Nations Sport for Development and Peace for the Performing Arts. initiatives and activities. Eli worked with colleagues from 2007 - 2013 to establish the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) on April 6 of each year as recognized by the United Nations and an official day on the international calendar, and he has been a co-coordinator Abnormally Funny People of the global organizing team for the IDSDP. Abnormally Funny People is a group of gifted stand-up comedians strutting their funny stuff. Eli has been the co-organizer of the annual Athletes and Social Change Forum with the Some sit down and stand-up, others stand on chairs and stand-up, others simply stand up and Muhammad Ali Center from 2013 to the present. Since 2015, Eli has also worked with stand-up. Abnormally Funny People started in August 2005 at The Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Since the Muhammad Ali Center and the National Mentoring Network to establish Ali Day and then, they have had four runs at the Soho Theatre, did a 2012 Paralympics Show, and went back to International Mentoring Day on Muhammad Ali birthday January 17, during January National Edinburgh for their 10th birthday. Mentoring Month.
In 2000, Eli helped to establish the ESPY Award for Best Male and Female Athlete with a Disability, and he organized the national disability sport organizations to support professional golfer Casey Martin in his successful case against the PGA before the U.S. Supreme Court. From 2003 to 2008, Eli led a global effort to include provisions addressing sport and recreation within the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. More recently, Eli has helped to lead national efforts for the inclusion of student-athletes with disabilities in high school and college athletic opportunities. Eli also led the educational effort in 2019 for Major League Baseball to change the term “Disabled List” to “Injured List” when describing injured athletes.
Eli was a member of the United States Paralympic Soccer Team in the 1996 and 2004 Paralympic Games. Eli is a graduate of Brown University and has an MA in Sport Studies from the German Sport University of Cologne. BIOGRAPHIES BIOGRAPHIES Using Discord 28 29
While we don’t get to all gather in Galway, we do still want to be Posting links to articles, threads, videos, calls for papers, conference details, jobs, etc. that may able to chat and discuss what we are learning. To that end we have be of interest to Summer School Delegates is encouraged. Please provide a basic information set up a Discord. The link to download to the group will be in your as a ‘scene setter’ rather than posting a link on its own (e.g. ‘Interesting article Re Article 30 email. and Children’). This allows group members to judge whether the link is relevant and worth clicking, it promotes discussion, and it allows colleagues to search for the post later. Posts should also include a Content Warning if they contain sensitive material which others might Channels find distressing or difficult, as noted below. These are themed by week – so there are five themed channels. We also have channels for craftivism, general Article 30 stuff and to talk about interests and Searching what work you are doing. This is a place to ask questions and have other discussions about the #12thDSS. Given the size of the group and the number of posts, it is easy to miss things. You can search the channels and we encourage it. Group Purpose Duplication The Discord exists to allow us to communicate over the summer school. Please check that a comment or article hasn’t already been shared so we can keep conversations We hope it will help facilitate some of the chats that normally occur over lunch or between in one place; a quick search can find previous threads on popular items such as referencing, sessions. We hope you will enjoy being part of the group and both benefit from it and social media presence, Twitter names etc. It can be helpful to read/add to existing discussions contribute to it so others benefit. No experience is too little, and no contribution is too rather than to create new ones that inevitably repeat the same information; this helps keep small, so get stuck in advice in the same place too rather than in multiple threads.
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DISCORD Article 30 CRPD are disagreements among States as to meaning the of text. the should interpreted be by States Parties. shouldsection This address any areaswhere there This explainseach element the of text 30 in moreof Article detail and clarifies these how Content Normative in its with States dialogues and why guidance the is needed. UNCommitteethe on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities is encountering on 30 Article backgroundthe sets This forwhy the guidance being draftedis what – theare main issues Introduction Rights of Persons with Disabilities received Kayess, will which feedback from Rosemary Chair of UNCommittee the on the and collaborate to produce aconsensus document at conclusion the of Summer the School, explained below, groups the share will work, their comment and feedback on others’ work, a separate of document the section as follows. Throughoutthe weeks of schoolsummer as Delegates at into divided be summer the school will groups and each group work will on Committee on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities. isthis relevant to and supports interpretation particular the of 30made by Article UN the as UNCommittee the on and Economic, Cultural Social Rights, guidance, inthe where with Disabilities. You may ifyou wish refer to jurisprudence the of other treaty such bodies, 30onArticle Individual Complaints issued by UNCommittee the on Rights the of Persons Concluding issued Observations to States Parties on 30or Article decisions concerning Your main reference point text the of be CRPD, document the inthe will and any developed by UNCommittee the on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities. and content, you may Comments wish General to the review and Guidance documents way is which generally applicable to any and States all Parties. As aguideinterms of tone as examples of practicesor good negative practices),but rather to write guidance the ina You are not advised to single out any particular States in specific practices (eitherParties with Disabilities providing guidance to States Parties have which Convention. ratifiedthe you can imagine that you are amember of UNCommittee the on Rights the of Persons issued by UNCommittee the on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities. When drafting, This guidancebeing draftedis ina formatComments General similar the to and Guidance implementation. explains background the and drafting along history 30, of Article with issueskey for its recorded the should review also panel presentation you received on 31May which obligations 30CRPD. under Article The text canbe the foundof Article here and you on development the of guidance for States inunderstanding and implementing their The participationthis goal of activity is to facilitate collaboration amongthe delegates Applying 30CRPD Article on Interpreting and Draft Guidance for States
32 33 Thursday 10th June 202114.00–15.00 Irish time guidance final inthe week of school.summer Kayess, Chair Rosemary providesection. will feedback to delegates the on completed the draft delegates for comment inweekgroup 3,with final the in meeting week four to completetheir again meet will inweektheir two draft, to be finalise will the draftscirculated all and to amentorallocated and given direction on how to of write guidance. the section their Groups States ininterpreting right the contained 30of Article UNConvention. the group Each be will Participation Activity –delegates split be will into groups to develop written guidance for Friday 4thJune 202114.00–16.00Irish time nolonger be of should than 1000 words thedocument section (including footnotes).Each provisions of CRPD the and describing relationship their to 30. Article interrelated, you have limited spacehere, we no so suggest more selecting than 5-6related than undermine, human rights 30.While the inArticle all rights are interdependent and CRPD,in the and how interrelationship the should work inpractice to support, rather thesection clarifies mostThis important whicharticles are closely relatedArticle 30 to The interrelationship of withArticle 30 other Articles of theConvention andpolicies abolished, to practices need be and what should created be instead. implement elements the all of text 30.It the inArticle provides guidance on what kinds of laws, sets This out in morewhatactions detail specific States Parties arerequired take to to Obligations States Parties Convention inpractice. KayessRosemary on guidance the document for States on interpreting 30of Article UN the As of part wrap-up the session, delegates have will access to arecordedfrom reflection Friday 2nd July 202114.00–16.00Irish time leisure and inpractice. sport Convention on right the of persons with disabilities to participate incultural life, recreation, differentsections the draftof guidancedocument forStates in interpretingArticle 30 the UN of Participation Activity delegates –all finalise and submittheir feedback and comments the on Thursday 17th June 202114.00–15.00 Irish time overall guidance document summer with schooldelegates all for comments and feedback. in practice. By end the of week, this eachgroup share will written their draftsection the of written guidance for States ininterpreting right the contained 30of Article UNConvention the Participation Activity –delegates again meet will ingroups with mentors their to develop
Article 30 CRPD CDLP Email: [email protected] Web: http://hgrg.nuigalway.ie/centre-disability-law-policy/trainingandevents/ examples of promising practice from other countries. trainingThe is designed to challengeson focus inimplementingpractical the with Act, with people with disabilities, older people and people with mental experience. health affected the by AssistedDecision-Making (Capacity) includingAct, professionals working ADM Training [email protected]: Web: and of needs people with disabilities are met being inresponse to pandemic. Covid-19 the created by states and healthcare systems inEurope inorder to establish rights the whether byfunded Health the Research explores Board impact the of strategic decision-making ResPoNCE: People Respecting disabilities with inCrisis and and Emergency Needs rights [email protected]: Web: care practitioners,social and a“Know Your Rights” guidefor disabled people. to develop used project be then communication will guideand topic toolkits for and health contraception; abortion; pregnancy and and birth; parenting. shared The experiences the in opportunity to decisions make these relating themes including to primary and fertility oral histories from disabled people about of experience or making, their the denied being are researching law the that and governs policy decisions these inIreland and collecting considers of experiences disabled the people inIreland reproductive seeking justice. We Re(al) Productive Justice Project: gender and disabilities by funded Wellcome the Trust [email protected]: Web: dareresearch.eu collaboration of institutions. 7 partner Centre for Disability Law and Policy at National the University of Ireland, Galway, with the Europeanthe Commission’s Marie Curie programme. This network is co-ordinated the by early stage researchers field inthe of disabilityrights has fundingreceivedfrom €4.1min DARE: Research inEurope Disability is aEuropean-wide Advocacy training network for Research Galway, Ireland Law and Policy at NUI About: Centre for Disability response.ie realproductivejustice.com training is primarily for designed working those with and supporting people 34 35 http://www.nuigalway.ie/centre-disability-law-policy/research/networks/ Past projects capacitylegal reform: voices, Our our stories. Routledge Flynn, E.,Arstein-Kerslake, on Bhailís, perspectives A.,De 2018.Global M.L.eds., C.and Serra, Publications Email: [email protected] Web: http://hgrg.nuigalway.ie/centre-disability-law-policy/trainingandevents/ and reporting the process to UNCommittee the on Rights the of Persons with Disabilities. Persons with Disabilities. It covers of history the Convention, the core rights Convention, inthe people with disabilities, families and to about learn allies, UNConvention the on Rights the of Getting to Grips theUNCRPD: with What it for mean does Ireland? Is aone-day seminar for
CDLP 36 37
LAW POSTGRADUATE TAUGHT PROGRAMMES
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O E P P LLM International and Comparative U R S F D N E P O N I N I S E R Q IO T H X S A U T IG S P R D E A IO RN ER RE IS AW Disability Law and Policy QUALIFIC US INTE T LECTU ABILITY L
• A Minor Thesis is completed by The LLM in International and Course Highlights: QUALIFICATION: LLM students on a topic of their choice Comparative Disability Law and • Unique Qualification achieved as under close supervision by leading DURATION 1 year full time or 2 years part time Policy is unique in the world as an no other university offers a similar national and international experts. programme. This LLM is innovative, innovative and internationally focused ENTRY REQUIREMENTS An approved Second Class Honours Degree, Grade 1 (2.1) in law, or an pioneering and provides specialist • Career Support is provided LLM dealing with the process of inter-disciplinary degree in which law was a major component. education for our students. through professional workshops law reform in the field of disability. concentrating on students CV and In exceptional circumstances, applicants holding a degree in another discipline or a degree of less • Prestigious Internships based in The programme delivers a solid interview skills. Careers in Law Week than 2.1 standard may be considered where they have relevant professional experience in law or Geneva with the United Nations grounding for future practitioners, also provides an opportunity to meet disability rights. Special Rapporteur on Disability are partners from leading law firms. policy-makers and academics in exclusively available to our students. International students should refer to the country specific information section the field of disability reform. The interns will have exclusive access • Assessment is primarily through of the International Office website: to the UN system. research papers, presentations and http://www.nuigalway.ie/international-students/country.html The introduction of the United minor thesis rather than exams. Nations (UN) Convention on the • Expert Lecturers with national, European and international teaching Career Opportunities Rights of Persons with Disabilities and research profiles deliver the Graduates have found employment in a has resulted in significant changes programme. variety of areas, including work in the UN, in the area of disability law and WHAT OUR STUDENTS SAY... • The Centre for Disability Law senior legal appointments, as lecturers, policy. Our graduates will be and Policy (CDLP) is the only solicitors and barristers, in national, The LLM in International and Comparative Disability Law and Policy at NUI among the first to be skilled in this research centre of its kind in Ireland regional and international advocacy Galway is the only LLM programme of its kind in the world; one focussed growing area of law and policy. dedicated to producing research that organisations, in national human rights specifically on disability rights issues within a broader human rights framework. I informs the debate on national and institutions, as government advisors and will shortly begin working as a policy advisor with the Disability Discrimination This programme will be of international disability law reform with non-governmental organisations. Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission; I have no doubt interest to students who have and policy. that I would not have secured this position if it wasn’t for the LLM. completed a primary law degree, Many of our graduates are leading change • Skills development is a key focus of and reform in disability law and policy EMILY CUKALEVSKI legal practitioners, public this programme. Modules develop throughout the world. Graduates of the expertise and an ability to critically servants, disability and human programme have also secured funding appraise issues faced by law and rights advocates and people to pursue PhD research and are now policy-makers in this rapidly Contact us: Apply at: Programme information: working in disability services. working in universities around the world. changing environment. lawpostgrad@ www.nuigalway.ie/ www.nuigalway.ie/courses/taught-postgraduate- nuigalway.ie apply courses/law-intl-comparative-disability-policy.html • Guest lectures from practitioners and international experts on current challenges around disability policy and reform. Students are also encouraged to attend the conferences, seminars and events run by the CDLP. All photographs courtesy of speakers attending the Summer School
Centre for Disability Law and Policy Institute for Lifecourse and Society NUI Galway
Directors: Eilionóir Flynn & Maria Ní Fhlatharta
Email: [email protected] Web: www.nuigalway.ie/cdlp