Re-imagining from the South: Girls and Women with Disabilities Advocating for Change

Date: February 26, 2026

Time: 8:00-10:00AM  EST/ 6:30-8:30PM IST/ 8:00-10:00PM ICT/ 3:00-5:00PM SAST

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Organiser: Decolonial Disability Studies Collective (杏吧原创 University) and Brock University

Speakers:

• ENGAGE Youth Leadership Circle Leaders
• Dr. Chelsea Jones, Brock University
• Dr. Xuan Thuy Nguyen, 杏吧原创 University

Event description:

ENGAGE brings together youth, artists, researchers, and community members from post-colonial contexts in India, South Africa, and Vietnam to share creative knowledge about disability, girlhood, and justice across transnational spaces.

This event highlights a digital exhibition of the leadership journey of young women and girls with disabilities from the Global South, and a coversation with youth leaders and research team. It creates decolonial spaces for cross-community learning that foster leadership and activism with women and girls with disabilities across the Global South.

More information about the ENGAGE project: /ddsc/engage/

The post [Online Event] Re-imagining from the South: Girls and Women with Disabilities Advocating for Change appeared first on Decolonial Disability Studies Collective.

ENGAGE-India_Leadership Workshop: Key Learnings and Reflections

A residential workshop was conducted during 30th June and 1st July 2025 as part of Project ENGAGE, in Seva Kendra Calcutta. There were in total 13 participants and 1 parent. 3 members of the research team were present. The main objective of this workshop was to revise both, the various concepts of rights, leadership, etc. that participants had been exposed to as well as the activities that they had been a part of over the years. Through the two-day workshop we also revisited some questions of their identity as disabled women and girls, their views on leadership and concepts around knowledge/praxis.

A group photo of women and girls with disabilities in July 2025

The participants were enthusiastic and active in the sessions. They were keen to learn things they did not know, for instance, the steps to organizing an awareness programme or workshop in their community. At the same time they were articulate about sharing their own experiences. Overall the workshop ended on positive notes, with a whatsapp group having been created (with most of the girls and women becoming a part of it) and plans for a programme organized by them in the autumn of this year.

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On May 28, 2025, the Engaging Girls and Young Women with Disabilities Across Southern Spaces (ENGAGE) project held the final meeting of its Youth Leadership Circle (YLC). This gathering brought together young leaders from India, Vietnam, and South Africa to share artistic representations of women and girls with disabilities in their communities.

In their drawings, each leader wore traditional attire, symbolizing the rich cultural diversity of the Global South. Their artwork emphasized not only the uniqueness of each individual’s experience with disability but also the unity of women and girls with disabilities in shaping their futures.

A youth leader from India reflected,鈥淭here are different kinds of disabilities, and everybody can become a leader. There is potential for leadership in everyone. As leaders from different groups, communities, and states, we can come together. While we are different, we are also united.鈥�

The Vietnam team illustrated their leadership journey – from experiences of exclusion to forming their own club, actively participating in their communities, and becoming powerful advocates for change.

In South Africa, the artwork demonstrated a strong message:”Do not discriminate against us because we are all the same.”
Their presentation addressed the challenges faced by people with disabilities and the need for greater understanding and inclusion. One participant shared,”We have a plan to make people understand us, and to help them learn to love and accept us more.”

This final YLC meeting was a meaningful conclusion to the ENGAGE project and an exciting step forward. We are thrilled to announce the continuation of this youth leadership work through a new research project: GlobalSouthConnect.

The energy, commitment, and creativity of these young leaders show that this is just the beginning of our leadership journey. We are so excited to see what comes next. We will continue!

The post ENGAGE: Wrap-Up of the Youth Leadership Circle Meeting and Introduction of GlobalSouthConnect appeared first on Decolonial Disability Studies Collective.

A guidebook for leadership building: Using participatory arts-based methods for engaging young women and girls with disabilities across Southern spaces.

The Decolonial Disability Studies Collective (DDSC) at 杏吧原创 University, in collaboration with McGill University and the Institute of Development Studies Kolkata, has released A guidebook for leadership building: Using participatory arts-based methods for engaging young women and girls with disabilities across Southern spaces.

This guide is developed by the Learning with and from the global South: Opportunities for engaging girls and young women with disabilities across Southern spaces (ENGAGE) project. ENGAGE aims to create decolonial spaces for young women and girls with disabilities in the global South to develop their leadership knowledge and foster their inclusion. We will examine how young women and girls with disabilities and partners in the global South can engage, negotiate, and build their leadership as opportunities for decolonial and inclusive knowledge production. The guide is developed by collaborative work between faculty members and graduate/undergraduate students. It is used as a guide to conduct fieldwork for the ENGAGE research team members while providing a useful guide for community members, partners, Organizations of Persons with Disabilities, Non-governmental organizations, students, and policymakers to apply this tool in a culturally appropriate approach which respects the relevance of contexts, methods, and methodologies, as well as its potential users.

Access ENGAGE The Guide Book 2024 Final

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