According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 15% of the world’s population (more than 1 billion people) live with some type of disability, and trends show that this number is currently increasing.
Disability was traditionally seen as a problem and a disease, establishing a path towards segregation, discrimination, and the exclusion of those who experienced it. Eventually, (and unfortunately still in force) it migrated towards the rehabilitation paradigm, which considers that disability was a deficiency of the person as an individual and it is this person who had to adapt and integrate into the environment to be part of society. This vision places people in a patient position and focuses on limitations, in relation to others that are arbitrarily taken as reference.
Fortunately, presently the paradigm of personal autonomy is emerging which values the person with a disability as a subject of rights.
This reference model proposes to respect their autonomy to decide about their own life, simultaneously that works to eliminate barriers derived from prejudices and stereotyped views. It is no longer a linear but an interactive scheme that considers not only a person’s health condition but also the personal and environmental factors to which he or she is exposed.
Today the exclusion/inclusion of people with disabilities does not lie in the deficit of the individual, but the inaccessibility of the environment and the provision of the necessary support in the community (COPIDIS).
Furthermore, a person living with a disability is a person more than capable of learning, working, and having a fulfilling work/professional life. What do you need? Opportunities and contexts that promote their development.
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) warns that 80% of people with disabilities of working age are without work. Companies, states, and organizations are considered key social actors to reverse this situation; on the one hand, to reach the social balance and create a fairer and more egalitarian society and, on the other hand, to take advantage of the multiple benefits of including a diversity perspective in organizations. We spoke with three organizations, Incluyeme, Ikigai, and SOSias Ocio Valioso that work for the inclusion of people with disabilities from different angles, breaking down barriers or obstacles that prevent access and development in the workplace and also, to enjoy spaces that facilitate their well-being and development.
- Incluyeme
Incluyeme is a social impact organization that has been supporting companies in developing comprehensive diversity programs since 2013. In addition, it offers a platform where people with disabilities can find job opportunities and inclusive companies can find candidates.
Currently, Incluyeme.com has a digital presence in 9 Latin American countries, has worked with more than 500 companies, has included more than 2,000 people with disabilities in the labor sector, and has more than 220,000 people with disabilities registered on its website of job listings.
In 2015 Incluyeme was recognized by Ashoka and New Ventures México as one of the 10 startups with the greatest social impact in Latin America, and in 2018 by MIT, as one of the top 3 Latin American organizations that use technology in an innovative way to solve social problems. They are currently working with international organizations such as the UN, IDB for the development of high-impact projects in the region.
And success also accompanied them in 2020, with the launch of the first Latin American regional forum on disability and free employment, which aimed to bring together companies, public organizations, universities, and NGOs to share good practices.
- Ikigai
In Argentina, the population of people with disabilities exceeds 5,000,000, of which only 25% are employed. In recent surveys of Argentine companies, 86% affirm that they would employ people with disabilities, but only 25% actually do so.
Ikigai is a triple impact company that was born to reverse this situation in the country so that there are more people with disabilities included on a social and labor level. To achieve this, they provide Contact Center, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), and Digital Marketing Services.
From the beginning of the project until now, they have trained more than 20 people with disabilities in soft skills and in digital marketing, social media, sales, and omnichannel customer service, of which 8 are currently working in the company in the areas of contact center and digital marketing.
It is noteworthy to comment that Ikigai obtained third place in the category “Traditional Projects” of the University Olympics for entrepreneurs organized by the Government of the City of Buenos Aires, in which more than 60 projects participated.
- SOSias Ocio Valioso
Inclusion is not just about work. Leisure is also a basic human right and is very important for the quality of life of all people.
SOSias Ocio Valioso is a social enterprise that creates and strengthens leisure and recreation spaces for people who live and coexist with disabilities.
Its mission is the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in Mexico, because according to figures from the Institute of Statistics (INEGI) of 2014, in the Mexican republic there are approximately one million 420 thousand people with intellectual disabilities.
SOSias Ocio Valioso takes advantage of the natural environments in the communities to develop and strengthen social skills. Also, prioritizes valuable leisure as an engine to promote social inclusion through workshops on its website, and a group of mothers, which creates a space of containment for other moms who live and coexist with intellectual disabilities. As a result, these mothers become change makers.
From SOSias Ocio Valioso they say: “The only thing we are the same is that we are different”, and we could not agree more. Efecto Colibrí sees in these differences a world of talents just waiting to be discovered, and on the other hand, a society in which disability would have to stop being labeled a stigma that isolates and deprives a person of expressing their full potential. Overall, it is time to take action, remove the blindfold of prejudices, and begin to truly see the other person for who they are.
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