People with disabilities are among the most adversely affected during conflict situations or when natural disasters strike. They experience higher mortality rates, have fewer available resources and less access to help, especially in refugee camps, as well as in post-disaster environments. Already subject to severe discrimination in many societies, people with disabilities are often overlooked during emergency evacuation, relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts. Countries party to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities must take all necessary measures to ensure the protection and safety of people with disabilities during situations of armed conflict, humanitarian emergencies, and natural disasters. Such aid should be designed to support preparedness, response, recovery and rebuilding. This book includes perspectives from around the globe and explores the implications at the policy, programme, and personal level, discussing issues such as: How can national laws, policies, and regulations provide guidance, methods and strategies to integrate and coordinate inclusive emergency management? What should people with disabilities know in order to be prepared for emergency situations? What lessons have we learned from past experiences? What are the current shortfalls (physical and cultural) that put people with disabilities at risk during emergencies and what can be done to improve these situations (e.g. through new technologies and disaster planning)? How does disability affect people’s experiences as refugees and other displaced situations; what programmes and best practices are in place to protect and promote their rights during their period of displacement? How must disabled people with disabilities be factored in to the resettlement and rebuilding process; does an opportunity for ensuring universal access exist in the rebuilding process? What is the impact of disasters and conflicts on such special populations as disabled women, disabled children, and those with intellectual disabilities? Spotlighting a pressing issue that has long been neglected in emergency planning fields, this innovative book discusses how to meet the needs of people with disabilities in crises and conflict situations. It is an important reference for all those working in or researching disability and inclusion, and emergency and disaster management, both in developed and developing countries.

People with disabilities are among the most adversely affected during conflict situations or when natural disasters strike. They experience higher mortality rates, have fewer available resources and less access to help, especially in refugee camps, as well as in post-disaster environments. Already subject to severe discrimination in many societies, people with disabilities are often overlooked during emergency evacuation, relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts. Countries party to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities must take all necessary measures to ensure the protection and safety of people with disabilities during situations of armed conflict, humanitarian emergencies, and natural disasters. Such aid should be designed to support preparedness, response, recovery and rebuilding. This book includes perspectives from around the globe and explores the implications at the policy, programme, and personal level, discussing issues such as: How can national laws, policies, and regulations provide guidance, methods and strategies to integrate and coordinate inclusive emergency management? What should people with disabilities know in order to be prepared for emergency situations? What lessons have we learned from past experiences? What are the current shortfalls (physical and cultural) that put people with disabilities at risk during emergencies and what can be done to improve these situations (e.g. through new technologies and disaster planning)? How does disability affect people’s experiences as refugees and other displaced situations; what programmes and best practices are in place to protect and promote their rights during their period of displacement? How must disabled people with disabilities be factored in to the resettlement and rebuilding process; does an opportunity for ensuring universal access exist in the rebuilding process? What is the impact of disasters and conflicts on such special populations as disabled women, disabled children, and those with intellectual disabilities? Spotlighting a pressing issue that has long been neglected in emergency planning fields, this innovative book discusses how to meet the needs of people with disabilities in crises and conflict situations. It is an important reference for all those working in or researching disability and inclusion, and emergency and disaster management, both in developed and developing countries.

Disability studies scholars and activists have long criticized and critiqued so-termed ’charitable’ approaches to disability where the capitalization of individual disabled bodies to invoke pity are historically, socially, and politically circumscribed by paternalism. Disabled individuals have long advocated for civil and human rights in various locations throughout the globe, yet contemporary human rights discourses problematically co-opt disabled bodies as ’evidence’ of harms done under capitalism, war, and other forms of conflict, while humanitarian non-governmental organizations often use disabled bodies to generate resources for their humanitarian projects. It is the connection between civil rights and human rights, and this concomitant relationship between national and global, which foregrounds this groundbreaking book’s contention that disability studies productively challenge such human rights paradigms, which troublingly eschew disability rights in favor of exclusionary humanitarianism. It relocates disability from the margins to the center of academic and activist debates over the vexed relationship between human rights and humanitarianism. These considerations thus productively destabilize able-bodied assumptions that undergird definitions of personhood in civil rights and human rights by highlighting intersections between disability, race, gender ethnicity, and sexuality as a way to interrogate the possibilities (and limitations) of human rights as a politicized regime.

Drawing on rich empirical work emerging from core conflict regions within the island nation of Sri Lanka, this book illustrates the critical role that women with disabilities play in post-armed conflict rebuilding and development. This pathbreaking book shows the critical role that women with disabilities play in post-armed conflict rebuilding and development. Through offering a rare yet important insight into the processes of gendered-disability advocacy activation within the post-conflict environment, it provides a unique counter narrative to the powerful images, symbols and discourses that too frequently perpetuate disabled women’s so-called need for paternalistic forms of care. Rather than being the mere recipients of aid and help, the narratives of women with disabilities reveal the generative praxis of social solidarity and cohesion, progressed via their nascent collective practices of gendered-disability advocacy. It will be of interest to academics and students working in the fields of disability studies, gender studies, post-conflict studies, peace studies and social work.

This Pivot studies disability inclusion in humanitarian crises. It addresses the challenges of recognizing and including persons with disabilities and indicates the degree to which disability is being mainstreamed in international law and humanitarian action. Further, it explores how international organizations have promoted a rights-based understanding of disability in international law, and to what extent this understanding has gained acceptance in humanitarian policy and practice. Theoretically, Funke and Dijkzeul explore the robustness of the disability inclusion norm cluster during processes of institutionalization, translation, and implementation. The book examines these processes from a multi-level perspective, which involves a variety of actors beyond states, including organizations of persons with disabilities. Situating their analysis within the literature on inclusion in humanitarian crises as well as the nexus of humanitarian action and development, the authors argue for increased focus on processes “below” the international level in international relations and international law scholarship to better understand disability inclusion.

This book examines a number of critical areas within the intellectual disability field. These areas include the workforce crisis, the long-term pattern of systematic underfunding, complex regulatory and funding issues, and waiting lists. The text notes that, while the United States has made significant progress in improving the lives of individuals who have an intellectual disability, 10 years of challenging economic conditions require a re-examination of how well we are honoring our commitment to support such individuals.

Part of the popular Understanding Public Health series, this book provides an introductory overview of current health-related challenges and policy debates on appropriate responses to different humanitarian conflicts. Written by experts, it explores the context of conflict and health, the interventions used in humanitarian crises and post-conflict resolution issues. The book is packed with international case studies and real life examples, which will assist healthcare professionals and students to: Explain the political, economic and social factors contributing to conflict Interpret the effects of conflict on health Consider context-sensitive interventions for acute and chronic healthcare delivery and security Describe key issues in the transition from relief to rehabilitation, health systems strengthening, and post-conflict recovery Knowledge of humanitarian principles, actors and methods is integral to effective action at policy and field levels in conflict-affected settings. This timely book will provide the ideal starting point. Understanding Public Health is an innovative series published by Open University Press in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Series Editors: Ros Plowman and Nicki Thorogood. Contributors: Fiona Campbell, Steve Commins, Sophia Craig, Nadine Ezard, Michelle Gayer, Peter Giessen, Andre Griekspoor, Rukhsana Haider, Michiel Hofman, Mazeda Hossain, Natasha Howard, Chris Lewis, Adrianna Murphy, James Pallet, Valerie Parcival, Preeti Patel, Paul Sender, Egbert Sondorp, Jean-Francois Trani, Peter Ventevogel and Annemarie ter Veen.