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USICD News
July 2015

Before You Leave Town, RENEW Today!


Before you head off on your Independence Day celebration, cookout, or to the family cottage, please don't forget to renew your USICD membership.   

 

  

We put your membership dues to good work.  In early June, staff returned to the UN Conference of States Parties to the CRPD at United Nations Headquarters in New York to advance our advocacy and to foster our relationships within the global disability community.  More on that below.  And just last week, we attended the InterAction Forum in Washington, DC, where we participated in sessions, hosted an outreach booth, and worked to elevate people with disabilities in the international development conversation.  Your membership allows us to advocate for you and our global community! 

 

Simply GO HERE and renew on our secure site. Individual memberships are only $25.  Would you consider an additional donation of $25 to give USICD a boost?

  

Thank you!

 

Disabled Peoples' International (DPI) Convenes Leaders of the Caribbean and North America in Regional Forum 

In June, USICD staff members David Morrissey and Andrea Shettle participated in the Regional Assembly of Disabled Peoples' International (DPI) for the North American and Caribbean region, held in Kingston, Jamaica. Hosted by the Combined Disabilities Association of Jamaica, eight countries and all disability groups were represented in this important venue for relationship building and visioning for the rights of persons with disabilities throughout the region.  During the meeting, USICD's David Morrissey was elected as Vice Chair for the North American and Caribbean Regional Assembly Executive Council.  This group will represent the region in the 2016 DPI World Assembly in India.
USICD at the UN Conference on the CRPD


















The 8th session of the Conference of State Parties to the CRPD commenced at United Nations Headquarters in New York, beginning on Tuesday, June 9, 2015.  The formal conference was preceded by a one-day Civil Society Forum on June 8.  USICD Executive Director David Morrissey participated in a panel discussion of the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals and advocacy efforts for greater disability inclusion in the global poverty alleviation strategy in the Civil Society Forum.  Overall, the three-day conference created opportunities for fostering USICD's relationships with global disability rights leaders and building friendships with many advocates.

The conference also featured strong representation of a variety of USICD members and affiliate networks. Women Enabled International, Handicap International, the Disability Rights Fund, Disability Rights International, Disabled Peoples' International and Rehabilitation International were leaders in sponsoring thoughtful side events throughout the week.  David Morrissey also moderated a side event titled Mainstreaming Disability into the Donor Agenda co-sponsored with Perkins International, USAID and Wellspring.  An additional highlight of the week was a side event organized by DPI, Voices of People Affected by Leprosy.
   

 

USICD Participates in InterAction Forum
USICD was very excited to participate in multiple ways in the InterAction Forum in late June.  This is one of the largest gatherings of international development and humanitarian professionals in the country. USICD hosted our first outreach booth in the vendor hall to share our work and build new relationships, pictured above.  USICD's David Morrissey also moderated two sessions in the Forum: Disability Inclusion: Strengthening International Programs through Partnerships, with World Learning and featuring a panel of great disability advocates, and Making Your Proposals Competitive: USAID Solicitations and Requirements for Disability Inclusion, with Perkins International, World Vision, and USAID.  

New USICD Training Manual on Including Interns with Disabilities

Managers and human resource personnel at U.S.-based international organizations are increasingly realizing that interns and emerging professionals with disabilities can strengthen the quality of their organization and the work they do internationally.  

  

A new resource is now able to help supervisors and other personnel consider how to ensure their organization is not losing the opportunity to bring a previously untapped pool of talented interns to their organization.  USICD has now released a training manual, Engaging Interns with Disabilities at International Organizations (Beta) May 2015

, that shares tips on making the process of recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and employing interns more proactively inclusive of people with disabilities.   

 

 

USICD invites its members and other interested parties to share feedback on the manual or to contribute "best practice" stories and success stories related to hosting interns with disabilities at U.S.-based international organizations.

 

Meet USICD's New Interns

On May 24, interns arrived to Washington DC and are settling in at a George Washington University dormitory for an eight-week long internship at various international NGOs based in the DC area and the Department of State.  After arriving on Memorial Day weekend, they have participated in USICD's orientation program before starting at their host organizations.

 

Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation has generously funded USICD's Youth in International Development and Foreign Affairs internship program for the last three years, offering opportunities to youth with disabilities from across the United States who are interested in careers in the fields of international development or foreign affairs.

 

The last newsletter mistakenly provided a broken web link for the interns' bios.  The corrected web link is provided below:

 

The Zero Project Seeks Innovative Practices in Education, ICT
    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once again, the Zero Project team would like to invite leading experts and organizations to nominate innovative practices and innovative policies concerning this year's topics:

Inclusive Education and/or ICT (Information and Communication Technology)

 

The "Innovative Practices and Innovative Policies 2016" will be selected by the Zero Project network of experts in a multistep process. These practices and policies will be featured in the Zero Project Report 2016, on its website at www.zeroproject.org, and on social media platforms.  Representatives will be invited to speak at the Zero Project Conference in Vienna (Austria) in February 2016.

 

Submitting a nomination is easy: Read the instructions first and then complete the nomination form (also available in other languages soon): http://zeroproject.org/downloads/.

 

Anyone can nominate any project, and self-nominations are also accepted! Please send the completed nomination form to [email protected] by July 10, 2015; 23:59 (CET)

 

We are looking forward to receiving your nomination!

 

The Zero Project Team  

 

CRPD Ratification Watch
As of June 2015:
  
CRPD:
  • 159 Signatories
  • 155 Ratifications
Optional Protocol:
  • 92 Signatories
  • 86 Ratifications
Recent Ratifications:

Madagascar Ratified the Convention on June 12, 2015

Kazakhstan Ratified the Convention on April 21, 2015

Turkey Ratified the Convention on March 26, 2015

Marshall Islands Ratified the Convention on March 17, 2015

Vietnam Ratified the Convention on February 5, 2015

Samoa Ratified the Convention on September 24, 2014

Guinea Bissau Ratified the Convention on September 24, 2014

Guyana Ratified the Convention on September 10, 2014

Republic of the Congo Ratified the Convention on September 2, 2014

Grenada Ratified the Convention on August 27, 2014

Burundi Ratified the Convention on May 22, 2014

Angola Ratified the Convention on April 19, 2014

Switzerland Ratified the Convention on April 15, 2014
 
Palestine Ratified the Convention on April 2, 2014 
In This Issue
Article Headline
Article Headline
Article Headline
Article Headline
Article Headline
Article Headline
Featured Article

Events and Opportunities


opportunity
USICD
Board of Directors

Patricia Morrissey - President

Lex Frieden- Vice President

David Hutt - Treasurer

Glen White - Secretary

Marca Bristo - Past President

Candace Cable

Jennifer Dexter 

Jill Houghton

Axel Leblois

Barbara LeRoy

Susan Mazrui

David Oaks

Stephanie Ortoleva

Debra Perry

Neil Romano 

Jeff Rosen

Eric Rosenthal

Diana Samarasan

Betsy Valnes

John Wodatch 

Tom Zampieri

 

Government Representatives

David Baquis (US Access Board)

Joan Durocher (NCD)

Meredith DeDonna (ODEP)

MarcieRoth (FEMA)

Sue Swenson (OSERS)

WORLD HEADLINES

USICD
Board of Directors

Patricia Morrissey - President

Lex Frieden- Vice President

David Hutt - Treasurer

Glen White - Secretary

Marca Bristo - Past President

Candace Cable

Jennifer Dexter 

Jill Houghton

Axel Leblois

Barbara LeRoy

Susan Mazrui

David Oaks

Stephanie Ortoleva

Debra Perry

Neil Romano 

Jeff Rosen

Eric Rosenthal

Diana Samarasan

Betsy Valnes

John Wodatch 

Tom Zampieri

 

Government Representatives

David Baquis (US Access Board)

Joan Durocher (NCD)

Meredith DeDonna (ODEP)

MarcieRoth (FEMA)

Sue Swenson (OSERS)

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