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Representing Beit Issie Shapiro –
and Israel – at the UN
June 2014, New York
There are 1 billion people in the world with
disabilities. By 2050, because of the increased
number of aged people, this number will reach 2
billion. This data comes from the United Nations
where the Seventh Session of the Conference of
States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities took place in June.
Influencing Leaders
Around the
(L-R) Benjy Maor, BIS Director, International Resource
Development, Lenín Voltaire Moreno Garces, former Vice President
of Ecuador, UN Special Envoy on Disability and Accessibility
At this meeting of 191 nations united on the issue
of building an accessible and inclusive world for
people with disabilities, it was amazing to see
the interest in Beit Issie Shapiro’s models and
innovations. It’s not every day there’s such a
consensus.
Our role as Special Consultant on Disabilities to
the UN Social and Economic Council puts us on
the global map as one of the top organizations
in the field of disabilities worldwide, and means
that we represent the best of what Israel has to
offer to the world. We offer the global community
a workable model with a proven track record of
evidence-based programming to promote changing
attitudes towards people with disabilities. This
UN experience has led to an increased demand
for collaboration, including African countries and
Australia.
Due to our successful presentation last year, BIS,
represented by our Executive Director Jean Judes,
was invited back to present again on the main
podium. For as much as there is antagonism against
Israel, Judes said,
“My experience at the UN was
that there was support for Israel and the work we
are doing at the forefront of the
field of disabilities.”
