Changemakers in Action: Cutting-edge technologies for disability-inclusive early warning and preparedness

Persons with disabilities make up 15% of the world’s population yet are disproportionately affected by climate change and disaster impacts. For many reasons – including information and communication barriers, social and cultural stigma, and exclusion – early warning systems are often not inclusive, preventing women, men, children and youth with disabilities from accessing timely early warning and risk information on an equal basis with others. Other reasons include the lack of accessibility of infrastructure and environment and lack or non-existence of support systems for persons with disabilities relating to impacts of climate change and disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.

UNDP and its partners have an opportunity to pilot and scale up game-changing solutions together with technology providers, persons with disabilities and grassroots organizations. We invite you to join a ground-breaking UNDP Development Dialogue which will provide a platform for an exchange of innovative ideas on early warning technology, and last mile services addressing the specific needs and rights of persons with disabilities to better manage risk and build resilience. The event will bring together persons with disabilities and their representative organizations, technology providers, global social media outlets, government, UN agencies and international cooperation partners.

Some of the topics to be discussed include the application of human-centered design to identify solutions by and for persons with disabilities, the use of collective intelligence through social media to deliver last mile services that reach everyone, successful public-private partnerships delivering technology-savvy solutions for disability-inclusive early warning and preparedness, and ensuring availability of appropriate resources, including assistive devices and support systems in times of a disaster.

Time

• 3:00 AM – 5:00 AM New York
• 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM Geneva

Speakers

• Setareki Macanawai, CEO Pacific Disability Forum (Moderator)
• Usha Rao-Monari, Under Secretary-General and Associate Administrator UNDP (Video recording)
• Haoliang Xu, Director, Bureau for Policy and Programme Support UNDP (Video recording)
• Bimal Paudel, National Project Coordinator National Federation of the Disabled-Nepal (NFDN)
• Chintamani Paudel, NFDN’s federal board member and disability activist from Dang district, Nepal (Video recording)
• Joshco Wakaniyasi, Manager Inclusive Development Pacific Disability Forum
• Charudatta Jadhav, Head of Accessibility Center of Excellence, Research and Innovation Unit Tata Consultancy Services
• Jenny Casswell, Research & Insights Director, Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation GSMA
• Armine Hayrapetyan, Sendai Framework National Focal Point Ministry of Emergency Situations, Armenia
• Mihoko Sakurai, Center for Global Communications International University of Japan
• Céline Moyroud, Resident Representative UNDP Lebanon
• Ronald Jackson, Head, Disaster Risk Reduction & Recovery for Building Resilience, Crisis Bureau UNDP