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Institute on Disability and Public Policy for the ASEAN Region (logo)
 

The IDPP Access

  May 2014 Newsletter

Executive Director's Corner

IDPP Executive Director Dr. Derrick L. Cogburn photoGreetings! We are so excited about the tremendous progress we have collectively made in the past few weeks. I recently returned from a fantastic mission to Japan and Malaysia to meet with The Nippon Foundation and University of Malaya (UM). We are delighted about solidifying our deeper formal collaboration with UM across campus led by UM Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Prof. Dr. Awg Bulgiba bin Awg Mahmud, and look forward to UM co-hosting our upcoming 2014 Annual Meeting in Kuala Lumpur. In addition, we are excited about welcoming our first cohort of IDPP Fellows to pursue the Master of Public Policy program with a focus on disability policy at UM INPUMA. We are also looking forward to attending COSP-7 and M-Enabling next month. We are proud of our continued progress together, and thank you for your continued support.
 

IDPP Fellowships

University of Malaya-INPUMA Master of Public Policy

2013 Annual Meeting group photoThe IDPP continues to accept applications for IDPP Fellowships to pursue a Master of Public Policy (MPP) degree with a focus on disability policy at UM International Institute for Public Policy and Management (INPUMA). The fellowships are funded by The Nippon Foundation with preference given to persons from ASEAN who are blind or visually impaired; deaf or hard-of-hearing; and/or mobility impaired. IDPP Fellowship applications will be accepted through 20 May 2014.

The MPP program begins 1 September 2014. Students will live in an IDPP Living and Learning Community within the 7th Residential College on the UM campus and take face-to-face classes with INPUMA and IDPP faculty. Incoming IDPP Fellows will participate in an IDPP two-week residency in August on the UM campus before the start of classes. Learn more
 

Outreach & Partnership Building

IDPP-UM Collaboration Across Campus

Dr. Derrick Cogburn and UM senior leadership photoIDPP Executive Director Dr. Derrick Cogburn visited The Nippon Foundation in Tokyo, Japan and IDPP partner University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 6-9 May 2014. The trip allowed for tremendous progress in solidifying our partnership with both institutions. At UM, in addition to meeting with our colleagues at INPUMA; Centre for Continuing Education (UMCCed); and the newest IDPP team members based at UM, Dr. Cogburn and INPUMA and UMCCed senior leadership held a fantastic meeting with UM Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Prof. Dr. Awg Bulgiba bin Awg Mahmud. This meeting subsequently catalyzed deeper formal collaboration with UM across campus. We are excited to continue working closely with UM to carry out a number of key initiatives stemming from this deeper partnership.


IDPP to Participate in UN CRPD COSP-7 

COSP participants photoAn IDPP delegation led by Dr. Derrick Cogburn will attend the Seventh Session of Conference of States Parties (COSP-7) to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities from 9-12 June 2014 at UN headquarters in New York. The delegation will include Director of Technology Mr. Clyde White, Jr.; Assistant Director of Communication Ms. Maya Aguilar; and Program Coordinator Ms. Kerry Honeycutt-Royce. This year's thematic discussion topics are: Incorporating CRPD Provisions into the Post-2015 Development Agenda; Youth with Disabilities; and National Implementation and Monitoring.

COSP-7 will be the fourth year that IDPP representatives serve as official rapporteurs for the event. This year's session will feature an election of new members to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as well as numerous side events hosted by civil society groups including World ENABLED led by IDPP Advisory Board and faculty member Dr. Victor Pineda.
 

IDPP to Attend G3ICT's M-Enabling Summit

2013 M-Enabling group photoThe IDPP will attend the 2014 M-Enabling Summit from 9-10 June in Arlington, Virginia. Hosted by the Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies (G3ict) and E.J. Krause & Associates in conjunction with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the M-Enabling Summit gathers international disability advocates; software and mobile technology developers; educators; and mobile service providers to discuss the latest innovations, research, and development in the field of accessible information and communication technologies.

IDPP representation will consist of Director of Technology Mr. Clyde White, Jr. and Strategic Communications Associate Mr. Stephane Leblois. Last year's Summit hosted over 450 participants from around the world, and featured sessions on topics such as employment access, special education and disability policy. The IDPP hosted a live briefing featuring G3ict President and Executive Director Mr. Axel Leblois; IDPP Advisory Board and faculty member Ambassador Luis Gallegos; and other prominent accessibility and disability policy experts.

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ALUMNI HIGHLIGHT

Mr. AJ Nanayakkara photo
Enabling Inclusion through Adaptive Recreation & Sports

IDPP alumnus Mr. Ajantha "AJ" Nanayakkara has long used his love for sports as a way to empower himself and those around him. His passion and prowess in wheelchair rugby helped Team USA Wheelchair Rugby win a gold medal at the 2005 World Wheelchair and Amputee Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. As impressive as Mr. Nanayakkara's accomplishments are on the field, they are equally impressive off the field. 

Mr. Nanayakkara has spent the past decade channeling his passion for sports into his work in rehabilitative medicine and disability advocacy. As the founder and executive director of the Global Abilities Foundation (GAF), Mr. Nanayakkara helps foster understanding of international disability rights issues and provides resources and accessibility tools for persons with disabilities around the world. Part of GAF's work focuses on adapted recreation, access to disability-related resources, and providing corporate diversity and inclusion training through workshops and monitoring services. GAF also works to build wheelchair-accessible vehicles, teaching vocational and life skills, and developing mentoring programs in Sri Lanka.

GAF's marquee special event is RecFest, an annual adaptive recreation exposition designed to empower persons with disabilities by providing demonstrations of adaptive sports such as adapted scuba diving, wheelchair rugby, and rock climbing, among others. As a result of the success of past years' events, GAF is premiering a second RecFest in October in addition to the originally-slated RecFest this September. 

Most recently, the Global Abilities Wheelchair Racing Team competed in the Broad Street Run in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The team led 40,000 runners in the largest annual 10-mile race in the United States. GAF also made strides in their Accessibility Improvement Program, surveying twenty-three sites to help organizations in the Philadelphia-area improve the accessibility of their buildings and open spaces.

For more information on the Global Abilities Foundation, visit their website or sign-up for their e-newsletter.

 
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ABOUT THE IDPP

Born as an initiative of The Nippon Foundation, the Institute on Disability and Public Policy for the ASEAN Region contributes to the vision of an ASEAN that is inclusive, barrier-free and rights-based. We strive to build a cadre of disability policy leaders that can make an impact at the local, regional, national and international levels.

The IDPP is led by COTELCO: The Collaboration Laboratory at American University's School of International Service and generously supported by The Nippon Foundation.

CONTACT US
Dr. Derrick L. Cogburn, Executive Director
Maya Aguilar, Assistant Director of Communication / Managing Newsletter Editor                        
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