IDPP studies and shapes policy solutions at the global, regional and national levels. We work with international organizations to promote inclusive and accessible global governance processes, and strive toward ensuring the effective participation of persons with disabilities and the global disability community in UN processes. The impact of our applied research and practice include:

• Building and operating a Disability Inclusive Development (DID) Policy Collaboratory to support accessible global governance processes for the disability community worldwide
• Mainstreaming disability into the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) processes and the New Urban Agenda for the next 20 years
• Successfully garnering placement of persons with disabilities as an official stakeholder group of Habitat III by becoming the 16th Partner Constituent Group of the General Assembly of Partners
• Inserting and maintaining disability-inclusive language throughout the final draft language of the New Urban Agenda, including a stand-alone paragraph on disability and 15 references to persons with disabilities
• Serving as co-chair of the Persons with Disabilities Partner Constituency Group within the Habitat III General Assembly of Partners
• Supporting the Habitat III General Assembly of Partners Executive Committee via the DID Policy Collaboratory
• Coordinating and supporting the global multistakeholder Disability Inclusive and Accessible Urban Development (DIAUD) Network around Habitat III processes
• Capacity building, support and coordination of a Disability Caucus to the Habitat III Third Preparatory Committee Conference (PrepCom3)
• Serving on and helping to facilitate the United Nations Global Network for Monitoring and Evaluation for Disability-Inclusive Development via the DID Policy Collaboratory
• Serving on the United Nations Working Group on Disability and Digital Societies
• Serving on the UNESCO International Expert Group on the Establishment of a Global Category II Centre of Excellence for Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities
• Participating in the inaugural United Nations Major Groups and Other Stakeholders Workshop on Governance, Transparency and Accountability
• Directly inserting and influencing language of the NETmundial Multistakeholder Outcome Document regarding accessibility and Internet governance

Disability Inclusive Development (DID) Policy Collaboratory

The Disability Inclusive Development (DID) Policy Collaboratory, developed by IDPP with support from our founding sponsor The Nippon Foundation, works to enhance the participation of persons with disabilities and the global disability community in multiple and complex national, regional and international global governance processes.

What is a Collaboratory?

Coined by notable computer scientist Dr. William Wulf, the term 'collaboratory' blends the words 'collaborate' and 'laboratory' and is talked about as a center without walls where researchers can work together as if they are in the same physical place, but they can be spread out across the country and around the world. IDPP defines a collaboratory as a virtual organization that spans distance, and supports rich and recurring interaction oriented to a common policy goal between stakeholders that are both known and unknown to each other.

Background

We are at an historic moment in inclusive social and economic development, fueled by technological advances. At present, there is an important confluence of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) as the first human rights treaty of the 21st century and an international development instrument; 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; Habitat III and the New Urban Agenda; Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction and implementation of the 2015-2030 Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction; and World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) +10.

All of these policy frameworks present huge potential opportunities for the international community - especially persons with disabilities, their representative organizations, and the global disability community - to become more actively involved in the deliberations, decision-making, follow-up and monitoring of these major global initiatives. However, as previous experience has shown, there exist numerous challenges to enhancing the active and effective participation of persons with disabilities in global discourses and governance processes.

Objective

The DID Policy Collaboratory uses the accumulated wisdom, best practices, and lessons learned from our decades-long work building virtual organizations and global virtual teams. The Collaboratory leverages accessible cyberinfrastructure and cyberlearning environments to substantially enhance the participation of persons with disabilities and the global disability community in these important initiatives.

Current Work

The DID Policy Collaboratory began in May 2016 by facilitating capacity building and disability-inclusive development contributions to the UN Habitat III process and implementation of the New Urban Agenda. The Collaboratory works toward continuing to meet these objectives by supporting the Global Network on Disability Inclusion and Accessible Urban Development (DIAUD) in coordination with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs / Division for Social Policy and Development / Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNDESA/DSPD/SCRPD). In tandem, the Collaboratory supports the Habitat III General Assembly of Partners Executive Committee, where IDPP also serves as co-chair of the Persons with Disabilities Partner Constituency Group.

Since November 2016, the Collaboratory has broadened its scope to support disability-inclusive development contributions around the review, monitoring and implementation of the 2015-2030 Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and its seven global targets. Bridging experiences from Habitat III and the DIAUD Network, the Collaboratory is supporting the Fifth Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction hosted by the Government of Mexico in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.

In December 2016, the Collaboratory also expanded to support the facilitation of the United Nations Global Network for Monitoring and Evaluation for Disability-Inclusive Development.

Outcomes

• Rapid Prototyping and development of the DID Policy Collaboratory, cyberinfrastructure and web portal that builds capacity and supports accessible global governance via People-to-People; People-to-Resources; and People-to-Facilities
• Garnering successful placement of persons with disabilities as an official stakeholder group of Habitat III by becoming the 16th Partner Constituency Group of the General Assembly of Partners
• Inserting and maintaining disability-inclusive language to draft outcome documents of the New Urban Agenda, including a stand-alone paragraph on disability and 15 references to persons with disabilities
• Capacity building, support and coordination of a Disability Caucus to the Habitat III Third Preparatory Committee Conference (PrepCom3)
• Serving as co-chair of the Persons with Disabilities Partner Constituency Group within the Habitat III General Assembly of Partners and supporting the Habitat III General Assembly of Partners Executive Committee
• Organizing the Persons with Disabilities Stakeholder Roundtable at the Habitat III Conference in Quito, Ecuador and facilitating accessible remote participation at key disability-related sessions
• Serving as co-chair of the Working Session on Inclusive and People-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction at the 2017 Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction in Cancun, Mexico and helping to facilitate accessible remote participation at key disability-related conference sessions
• Sustained collaboration with United Nations DESA/DSPD/SCRPD, UN Habitat secretariat, UN Office of Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), World Enabled, and other key partners to build capacity of the global disability community

Research

The DID Policy Collaboratory has a research and evaluation component, including baseline and follow-up data collection instruments administered to all participants, which allow for summative evaluation and potential recommendations for further institutionalization of this collaboratory approach.