On September 14, self-advocates from around the world gathered in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, for the Global Self-Advocacy Summit.

This event brought together 260 participants from 45 countries. It was an incredible day of learning and connection for people with intellectual disabilities.

Self-Advocates listen to Tia Nelis talk about her experience at college.

The summit was especially meaningful because it was our first in-person global self-advocacy meeting in seven years. It opened Inclusion International’s World Congress and set the tone for a week focused on rights, inclusion, and the power of self-advocates.

Read the Global Self-Advocacy Summit Report:

What Is the Global Self-Advocacy Summit?

The Self-Advocacy Summit is a global meeting where self-advocates, people with intellectual disabilities who speak up for their rights, come together to talk about the issues that matter most to self-advocates. It was a day full of learning, connecting, and growing together.

Everything about the summit, from the agenda to the speakers, was designed and led by self-advocates.

Inclusion International’s Self-Advocate Council helped plan the event, meeting regularly for almost a year to make sure the summit was accessible and meaningful for everyone. We followed the Listen, Include, Respect guidelines so that all voices could be heard.

Self-Advocates came together to learn from each other in Sharjah.

Preparing for the Summit

Like any big event, we faced some challenges:

  • Budget: It was tough to find enough funds to bring more self-advocates to the summit. We really wanted to bring as many people as possible, but resources were limited.
  • Language: With people coming from many countries, communicating across different languages was tricky at times.
  • Time and Space: We only had one day, and the room was a bit small, so it was a challenge to fit everything in. But we made it work!

Who Joined Us?

Self-advocates from all over the world joined us. 260 people attended, representing 45 different countries.

It was amazing to see so many self-advocates coming together, sharing their thoughts, and learning from each other. Many organizations helped bring self-advocates to the event, making sure that everyone had a chance to participate.

Luis Gabriel Villarreal was the keynote speaker at the Self-Advocacy Summit.

The summit was all about self-advocacy, so the speakers were all self-advocates themselves. Some highlights included:

  • Luis, our first keynote speaker, kicked off the summit with a warm welcome.
  • We had a panel discussion on important topics like:
    • Jobs and work opportunities for self-advocates
    • Closing institutions and promoting community living
    • Political participation and getting involved in decision-making
    • Good support services and accessible education

During lunch, we had time to connect with each other, view posters from different self-advocate groups, and share our experiences.

In the afternoon, we focused on advocacy and how we can speak up and fight for our rights. Five self-advocates shared their personal strategies and stories, and we had the chance to talk about self-advocate leadership which was another area to talk about as we are focusing on building leaders.

Self-Advocates came together in Sharjah to talk about what was most important to them.

Luis’s Experience at the Summit

Luis Gabriel Villarreal shared his personal reflections from the event.

His favourite moment

One of my favourite moments during the Summit was being able to reconnect with other self-advocates whom I hadn’t seen in person since Birmingham or only virtually, while also meeting new self-advocates who were attending their first summit.

Luis Gabriel Villarreal, Vice-President, Inclusion International

He also highlighted how important it was to work together with families, saying:

The families who support us enable us to work much more effectively on autonomy and give us the chance to grow and create new experiences and opportunities.

Luis Gabriel Villarreal, Vice-President, Inclusion International

The message he shared with other self-advocates

It is never too late to make a positive change in the world, you just have to keep fighting to do so. Your talents, your skills, your voice make you truly special: don’t be afraid… The world is a very big place, and you can achieve something special and meaningful within it.

Luis Gabriel Villarreal, Vice-President, Inclusion International

His hopes for the future

Something I want and wish for the future of the self-advocacy movement is that it continues to grow around the world… events such as the Global Self-Advocacy Summit are a great opportunity to show what we are capable of and how we can make a difference in building a better society.

Luis Gabriel Villarreal, Vice-President, Inclusion International
Luis reunited with self-advocates from across the world.

A message for self-advocates who couldn’t attend

1. I hope you don’t give up on your leadership roles or feel sad.
2. Join the self-advocacy networks in your region, raise your voice, and continue to speak up for your rights.
3. Our voices will always be the best way to influence our rights…

Luis Gabriel Villarreal, Vice-President, Inclusion International

And finally, Luis reminded us of a message that guides the entire movement:

Nothing about us without us.

Luis Gabriel Villarreal, Vice-President, Inclusion International

What Made the Summit a Success?

The summit was successful because it was all about self-advocates: Everything was led by us, for us.

The speakers were amazing: They shared their experiences and expertise, making us all feel inspired.

We gathered key messages from the day’s discussions that self-advocates can use in our advocacy work moving forward. Most importantly, we connected! The summit allowed self-advocates from different countries to meet, and share ideas.

At the end of the day, we felt proud of what we had achieved. We came together, learned from each other, and strengthened our voices for the future.