Innovation key to a fairer world for persons with disabilities: UN Chief

© UNICEF/Jannatul Mawa A disabled teenage boy plays badminton in front of his house in Bangladesh.

In his message, Mr. Guterres noted that greater public-private sector collaboration is needed, in order to develop strategies that benefit persons with disabilities, who should also be involved in their development.

The UN chief pointed to the UN’s internal efforts to make the Organization more accessible to persons with disabilities, describing the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy as a road map to achieving this aim.

“From headquarters to the field”, he said, “we are working to assess, address and promote digital accessibility and lead by example on disability inclusion”.

Innovation and technology, he continued, can be powerful tools for inclusion, enhancing access to information, education, and lifelong learning, opening new avenues for persons with disabilities to participate in the workforce and society at large on an equal basis.

Breaking barriers, one brushstroke at a time

The United Nations estimates that 15 percent of all people – one in seven – has a disability. Understanding is key to ensuring that these more than one billion people lead fulfilling lives where they are fully integrated into a society that respects their rights and benefits from their contributions.

A newly released UN documentary illustrates this vision of integration, through the eyes of two South Korean artists with disabilities, and reveals a new perspective on the true meaning of inclusion, in today’s diverse world.

“Breaking Barriers One Brushstroke at a Time” takes viewers inside the homes and lives of the artists, who communicate through their paintings and, in the process, teach audiences to listen with their eyes.

Far more than an exercise in social development, the works of these artists with autism carry intrinsic artistic value, and have been exhibited at the Seoul Arts Center, the largest and most prestigious venue of its kind in the country.

Through interviews with the families and intimate glimpses of the lives and loves of two artists, Hansol Kim and Hyeshin Park, the documentary tells a specific story of struggle that also has universal themes: finding our voice in a world that doesn’t listen, expressing truths that rise above the noise, and coming of age by accepting who we are and what we have to contribute to society.

With a temperate pace and imaginative sensibility, “Breaking Barriers” shows that inspiration is everywhere, disability is a matter of perspective, and that all of us share a common humanity that can be captured and comprehended through art.