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Presented at the Disability Innovation Summit: Inclusive Interactions conference organised by the GDI hub on 13 Sept 2023

The development of SEEDS (Scalable Educational Experiment with Digital Empowerment) by a collaboration of Microsoft Research India, Vision Empower and the Centre of Accessibility in the Global South, IIIT Bangalore, is described. India has over 240,00 children with visual impairment. The system uses feature phones rather than smart phones, IVR (Interactive Voice Response) - to enable the child to be rung back and HEXIS for braille. The use, piloting and challenges of the system are briefly outlined.

This is the second of six case studies analysing the state of accessibility and inclusive design in low-resource contexts around the world. The six independent case studies will be analysed to develop a comparison report and finally a global action report that will offer evidence and recommendations that support making infrastructure, the built environment and urban development in low-resource settings more accessible and inclusive.

This purpose of this case study is to explore the state of inclusive and accessible environments for persons with disabilities in Varanasi, India, through engagement with policy, industry and community stakeholders (policy, practice and people). Through this engagement, the case study is developing evidence on the challenges and opportunities for implementing inclusive and accessible design in Varanasi and makes recommendations on local actions towards becoming a more inclusive city.

Persons with disabilities are invisible and almost silent in the Indian media. This paper examines the emergence of articulate expressions of persons with disabilities (pwd) in the social media over the months March to June 2020 during COVID Lockdown. While technology has been seen as a great leveller for persons with disabilities, the digital divide, however, remains very real for masses of disabled persons, whereby it is largely the educated middle class who have access to internet facilities and presence on social media. This paper draws from observation and analysis of posts on Facebook by different categories of persons with disabilities. There appear to be a number of discourses emerging and imageries running almost parallel. Accessibility and support appear to be very important issues especially in terms of access to domestic workers, regular medical checkups, and procuring daily provisions as well as access to online teaching. On the other hand, little concern is being paid to the huge humanitarian crisis of returnee workers from cities to villages. Interestingly, disabled persons appeared more connected, participating in discussions and Webinars and voicing out their experiences with greater clarity and also analysing the COVID situation through Disability Studies (DS) perspectives.

As we move towards a more digital society, it is critical that digital technologies are inclusive of everyone, including persons with disabilities. However, research conducted by the GSMA Assistive Tech programme suggests that a disability gap exists in mobile access and use.

Driving greater inclusion of persons with disabilities requires data and evidence to inform actions from multiple stakeholders. This report looks to understand the digital divide experienced by persons with disabilities, identify existing barriers to digital inclusion and define strategies and actions to close the mobile disability.

This report uses data from the GSMA Intelligence Consumer Survey 2019 to explore the digital inclusion of persons with disabilities in eight LMICs: Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan and Uganda. This report looks at key stages and milestones in the journey to mobile internet use that can pose barriers to regular and diverse mobile use

This report is a collaborative initiative of Rising Flame and Sightsavers to respond to the urgent needs of women with disabilities in India during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The aim of this research was to capture and amplify voices and narratives of women with disabilities  and to make strong recommendations to ensure inclusion of women with disabilities in social, legal, policy and systemic responses.

Online and telephonic research consultations were carried out in May 2020,  within the barriers faced or accommodations needed by participants, including access to internet, the need for sign language interpretation and the establishment of a safe space. A total of 82 women with disabilities and 12 experts across 19 states and nine self-identified disability groups participated in the research.

Broadly, the study is divided into access, food and essentials, social protection, health, hygiene and sanitation, education, employment and livelihood, domestic violence and emotional well-being. The study explores the ongoing barriers experienced by women across disabilities and makes recommendations to build back a better and more inclusive world.

Purpose:  The predominant mode of human communication is speech, and whenever it is hindered, humans resort to the tactile-kinaesthetic mode.  Use of sign language by persons with speech-hearing impairments is a classic example of such adaptation. The Demonstration School at the Regional Institute of Education in Mysuru, South India, undertook training of typically-developing students in Indian Sign Language (ISL), so as to facilitate communication and instruction of students with hearing impairment who are in mainstream learning environments. 

Method: Training in ISL was imparted to140 typically-developing students in higher primary classes. Twenty-four 40-minute sessions were conducted over a month. After theoretical orientation in logical bases of manual communication, practical training commenced with elementary manual alphabets, progressed through essential daily-life vocabulary necessary to construct simple sentences and carry out general conversations, and culminated in signing the Indian National Anthem.

Results: Typically-developing students gained primary benefits such as improved awareness about non-verbal communication modes, mastery of basic skills in ISL, and positive attitudes towards sign languages.

Conclusion: The UNCRPD 2006 authorises sign language as the linguistic identity of the Deaf, and encourages the use of sign language in learning environments. Future research should add to the findings on secondary benefits in the form of scholastic and sociometric advantages derived by students with hearing impairments who receive instructions in sign language in mainstream learning environments.

The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of older people with disabilities across a range of humanitarian settings, considering:

• whether older people with disabilities have additional needs and challenges accessing humanitarian assistance and protection
• what factors facilitate or limit access by older people with disabilities to humanitarian assistance and protection
• to what extent is humanitarian response inclusive of older people with disabilities

A systematic literature review of published studies was conducted. Key online humanitarian guidelines were explored to review how far they explicitly address older people with disabilities. Data from six population-based disability surveys comparing the living situation of older people with and without disabilities were analysed. These included databases from two crises-affected populations in Haiti (post-earthquake) and Palestine. Data from four non-humanitarian settings was also reviewed to explore more broadly the situation for older people with disabilities – India, Guatemala, Cameroon and Nepal. Interviews were held with older people with disabilities, members of their families and local key informants in two conflict-affected populations in Ndutu and Mtendeli refugee camps in Western Tanzania, and Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Eastern Ukraine to find out about their experiences. Staff of five international agencies working in humanitarian response were also interviewed. 

Findings highlight particular issues facing older people with disabilities in humanitarian crises: more risk escaping from danger;  barriers to accessing social protection and work; barriers to accessing health and rehabilitation services; barriers to accessing food and other essentials; unsuitable housing and poor living conditions;  insecurity and discrimination; threats to dignity and independence; social isolation and loneliness; risks to mental health; and missing from humanitarian response.

A table brings together the findings from the different components of the research to show the needs, risks, barriers and enablers for older people with disabilities identified in the research. Recommendations are provided to humanitarian donors, policy makers and practitioners

This guide provides practical information for people who want to improve transportation for children with disabilities in developing countries. The guide will help parents and their children, teachers, heads of schools, and education officials to improve transport to and from school for children with disabilities. It will help transportation officials and transport providers, as well as agencies promoting sustainable development in developing countries. The guide addresses a variety of circumstances found in it's case studies, ranging from children with disabilities riding on school buses in large cities to children walking to school in some rural areas where roads do not even exist. Key findings and recommendations are presented from research carried out, case studies and interviews with school heads 

This study aimed to identify operational issues encountered by study participants in using the ‘Care for Stroke’ intervention and to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. ‘Care for Stroke’ is a smartphone-enabled, educational intervention for management of physical disabilities following stroke. It is delivered through a web-based, smartphone enabled application (app). It includes inputs from stroke rehabilitation experts in a digitised format. Sixty stroke survivors discharged from hospital in Chennai, South India, and their caregivers participated in the study. The preliminary intervention was field-tested with 30 stroke survivors for 2 weeks. The finalised intervention was provided to a further 30 stroke survivors to be used in their homes with support from their carers for 4 weeks. Field-testing identified operational difficulties related to connectivity, video-streaming, picture clarity, quality of videos, and functionality of the application. Assessment was carried out by direct observation and short interview questionnaires.