On Friday - September 26th at Harvard University, Dr. Peter Blanck, Dr. Naomi Schreuer and Dr. Tal Araten-Bergman, along with Dr. Arie Rimmerman and others, to participate in Working Conference on Developing Disability Civil Society through the Internet.
The conference is a collaborative discussion on how disability civil society can, or should be supported in developing their human rights identity and capacity through the internet and other forms of information and communication technology. Discussants use the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as a focal point, emphasizing the inclusion of especially marginalized groups, such as persons with intellectual disabilities. The expected outcome is a white policy paper that will be disseminated for education and advocacy purposes.
The Working Conference is organized in partnership by the Berkman Center for Internet and Society; Burton Blatt Institute; Disability Law and Policy Center at the University of Ireland, Galway; Global Partnership for Disability and Development (GPDD); and NOVA Nordic Centre of Excellence in Welfare Research.
The Burton Blatt Institute of Syracuse University (BBI) fosters public-private dialogue to advance the civic, economic and social participation of persons with disabilities in a global society. The institute takes its name from Burton Blatt (1927-85), a pioneer in humanizing services for people with mental retardation, a staunch advocate of deinstitutionalization and a national leader in special education. BBI currently has offices in Syracuse, New York City, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and Tel Aviv.
The Global Partnership for Disability and Development (GPDD) is a dynamic initiative to accelerate inclusion of people with disabilities and their families into development policies and practices in developing countries. The GPDD was formed to increase collaboration among development agencies and organizations to reduce the extreme poverty and exclusion of the substantial number of children, women and men with disabilities living in poor countries. The GPDD is an unprecedented alliance of Disabled People's Organizations (DPOs), developing and developed country governments, bilateral and multilateral donors, United Nations (UN) agencies, national and international development and many other organizations.
Burton Blatt Institute (BBI)
Syracuse University College of Law
Phone: (315) 443-2863 [voice]
Fax: (315) 443-9725
Web: bbi.syr.edu
Global Partnership for Disability and Development (GPDD)
Kelly Hamel, GPDD Secretariat
E-mail: kmhamel@law.syr.edu
Phone: (202) 296-5392 [voice]