Institute on Disability and Public Policy (IDPP) and American University Internet Governance Lab (IGL) graduate research associates, Juliana Woods and Theodore Ochieng, recently presented their research at the U.S. Department of State’s Center for Analytics (CfA).

Their presentation highlighted findings from a study led by Dr. Derrick Cogburn, Executive Director of IDPP, titled “Understanding National, Regional, and Global Priorities for the Social Justice and Economic Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities.” The paper, presented at 2025 Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS), analyzes over 170 United Nations CRPD State Reports using a hybrid methodology that combines traditional text mining, Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. The research identifies how countries frame their disability inclusion priorities, examines regional differences, and evaluates the shift from a medical to a rights-based model of disability in global reporting.

The team also discussed the role of AI in expanding access to implementation monitoring and evaluation tools for civil society and governments, which intrigued the CfA staff and Director of Analytics John Silson. CfA staff also expressed enthusiasm about the research’s policy relevance and its potential to support data-driven international engagement. IDPP looks forward to future collaboration with the CfA to continue exploring AI’s role in advancing inclusive global policy.