“All my life, people told me my disability would not stop me from doing whatever I wanted to do. Successfully completing a trip abroad allowed me to really believe that.” –Haben Girma
The National Clearinghouse on Disability & Exchange (NCDE), a project sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and administered by MIUSA, launched the #BlindAbroad campaign to increase the participation of people who are blind or low vision in international exchange.
We made a call for ALL to participate and you have and you are!
Read some of the highlights
“I love your #BlindAbroad campaign, and hope it changes peoples’ perceptions of who can Study Abroad!”
We collaborated and presented:
- NAFSA: Association of International Educators National Convention
- American Council of the Blind Annual Convention (ACB)
- National Federation of the Blind (NFB) Annual Convention
- Overseas Association for College Admission Counseling (OACAC)
- Ohio Association of Blind Students
We built up the buzz:
- Podcast: MIUSA launches “Ripple Effects: Travelers with Disabilities Abroad” for the #BlindAbroad campaign
- “Future Reflections” magazine article from a blind student to the Caribbean: National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC), division of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB)
- Radio show interview: KRVM
- Social Media: Read the tweets and following here! https://twitter.com/hashtag/blindabroad; http://twubs.com/BlindAbroad
- Interviews: Read Personal Stories, Best Practices, and Tipsheets we compiled through a number of interviews from program participants and the professionals that supported them.
Now What?
- Tune in to Ripple Effects for upcoming #BlindAbroad podcast episodes.
- Keep building “#BlindAbroad”; never stop tweeting and sharing the hashtag.
- Share your story with us.
- Keep promoting the campaign on and off your campus and find ways to make sure everyone knows that people who are blind DO go abroad!
“Abroad With Disabilities (AWD) has been supporting #BlindAbroad since the thought has risen. We believe persons with visual impairments can and should go abroad!”
To share your story or find out more contact Monica Malhotra.
The National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange is a project of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, designed to increase the participation of people with disabilities in international exchange between the United States and other countries, and is supported in its implementation by Mobility International USA.
