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Spotlight

Toward Economic Growth: An abstract of convening outcomes

Highlights from the Center on Economic Growth’s Inaugural Meeting on October 28, 2011

Report on April Employment Summit in the Great Recession

On April 7 and 8, 2011, the World Institute on Disability, Mathematica Policy Research, and the National Council on Independent Living convened an invitational summit at the Mathematica offices in Washington, D.C. Participants known to hold a wide range of policy perspectives were invited, including policy analysts, advocates, government and private sector researchers, insurance representatives, along with Congressional and Administration staff. Former and current senior Social Security Administration staff from the 1980s to the present joined the dialogue, as well as officials from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

Capitalizing on Volatility: staying the asset building course through economic ups and downs

1000-point stock market gyrations, national credit rating downgrades, international financial uncertainty, continuing political gridlock, what a fabulous time to start building assets!


WID News and Announcements

Save the Date! Geri Jewell to perform at Ever Widening Circle on September 7, 2012

Join WID, our colleagues, friends and supporters at Ever Widening Circle, our premier gala celebrating WID’s work and disability culture, at the universally designed and award-winning Ed Roberts Campus in Berkeley, California. This year, Ever Widening Circle will be held on September 7, 2012, 5:30-7:30, immediately following our annual Disability Policy Summit.

WID Supports AT&T's No Texting While Driving Initiative

Drivers who are texting are 23 times more likely to be in an accident. We’re glad to see that AT&T has launched a campaign to address this serious issue. Sign a pledge to stop texting and driving: go-att.us/awx8

Hale J. Zukas honored by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)

Berkeley, CA-- Hale J. Zukas, WID Policy Analyst and tireless advocate for public transit that is accessible to everyone, was honored on April 18th by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) in appreciation of his four decades of outstanding leadership.

13th Annual Ever Widening Circle honors Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA)

October 28, 2011-- Friends and supporters joined WID at our annual gala, Ever Widening Circle, to honor Senator Tom Harkin, lead sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the ADA Restoration Act of 2008, who received WID's 2011 Disability Leadership Award for his work to increase employment and economic equity on behalf of Americans with disabilities.

Veterans Disability Navigator Project unveils blueprint for a comprehensive benefits information service

WID has produced the blueprint for a set of self-directed learning tools on employment and benefits to support planning and decision-making for veterans, family members, and the people who work with them. These products make possible the planned development of a web-based, real-time benefits information service, Veterans Benefits 101 (VB101).


Program Highlights

Access to Assets

Access to Assets (ATA) provides training and technical assistance to asset building and disability organizations seeking to improve the inclusion of people with disabilities in asset building programs; information and referral services to individuals with disabilities; and conducts federal and state policy analysis on related issues. ATA publishes EQUITY, the only asset building newsletter specifically for people with disabilities. ATA also provides a list of upcoming conferences on a wide range of disability related topics.
Learn more about EQUITY  
Learn more about ATA Conferences  

Employment and Disability Benefits Initiative

The Employment and Disability Benefits Initiative (EDBI) provides information on health coverage, work, and benefits to youth and adults with disabilities. Through Disability Benefits Information Services, EDBI provides community outreach, training and web-based services, including one-on-one technical assistance at its website, www.DB101.org, in four states (California, Minnesota, Michigan and New Jersey). The site offers easy to understand, practical information on public and private benefits, employment services, and other programs, as well as interactive benefits calculators. EDBI recently launched the Veterans Benefits Online Tools Project to support disabled veterans' transition back to employment and civilian life and also develops community based public policy recommendations.
Learn more about WID Launches The Veterans' Benefits Online Tools Project  
Learn more about DB101.org  
Learn more about Employment and Disability Benefits Initiative  
Learn more about Disability Benefits 101 Information Services  

Health Access and Long Term Services

The Health Access and Long-term Services program (HALTS) addresses health care disparities for people with disabilities by working to improve access to quality care and reducing incidence of abuse of people with disabilities, a significant barrier to independent living and full integration into the community. HALTS is currently developing MAP to Health Access, a comprehensive training curriculum using high-motivation learning tools and downloadable, web-based materials for women with disabilities to learn about their right to accessible, quality health care as required by federal law; trains doctors and medical practitioners to provide culturally competent health care and accessible services and equipment using Access to Medical Care: Adults with Physical Disabilities, a video and training curriculum for health care providers addresses key issues that influence the quality of care in outpatient clinical settings; and recently produced the Curriculum on Abuse Prevention and Empowerment (CAPE), a comprehensive, multi-media training curriculum in English and Spanish to educate people with disabilities, services providers, and family members about abuse awareness and prevention strategies, and published and Sticks and Stones, a collection of fifty stories about facing abuse and violence, told by a diverse group of people with disabilities, as well as family members, services providers, and other allies, covering a wide range of mistreatment and recovery experiences.
Learn more about Access to Medical Care: Two-DVD Curriculum on Treating People with Disabilities  
Learn more about Curriculum on Abuse Prevention and Empowerment (CAPE)  
Learn more about Sticks and Stones  
Learn more about Health Access and Long Term Services  

Proyecto Visión

Proyecto Visión provides information services to youth and young adults with disabilities from traditionally underserved populations, ages 16 – 35, so they may successfully transition from school to higher education and attain sustainable independent living and employment outcomes. Using popular Internet sites including Facebook and YouTube to reach our target population, the program hosts a website, www.proyectovision.net, featuring news, resources and opportunities for scholarships/internships/jobs; an electronic newsletter that highlights success stories about youth and young adults with disabilities who found employment; and produces Success Story video clips that are posted on YouTube. As part of the program's leadership development initiative, Proyecto Visión also hires young writers with disabilities to contribute articles and stories as part of its Emerging Writers Program and provides paid internships to University of California, Berkeley students with disabilities as part of the New Leaders Intern Program.
Learn more about Proyecto Visión/New Leaders Internship Program  
Learn more about Proyecto Visión (proyectovision.net)  
Learn more about Opportunities for Youth with Disabilities: Scholarships, Internships and Grants  

International Program

WID's International Program provides training and technical assistance to disabled persons organizations (DPOs) in developing countries to conduct effective disability advocacy, community barrier removal and public education campaigns; develops programs and national policies; and creates networks and national coalitions to promote the full inclusion of people with disabilities into all aspects of society. WID is currently funded by USAID to set up a sustainable wheelchair production and repair facility; a postural support seating and cushion service; a mobility, self-care, and advocacy skills training system for men and women who use wheelchairs; and conduct advocacy, public education, and community accessibility barrier removal activities in the Republic of Georgia.
Learn more about International Program