Patti's Blog - Advocate for Elders, People with Disabilities and Their Families

In France, A Renewed Push To Return Art Looted By Nazis

Excerpt from: NPR (click for full article)

 

During World War II, the Nazis plundered tens of thousands of works of art from the private collections of European Jews, many living in France. About 75 percent of the artwork that came back to France from Germany at the end of the war has been returned to their rightful owners.

But there are still approximately 2,000 art objects that remain unclaimed. The French government has now begun one of its most extensive efforts ever to find the heirs and return the art.

French law states that at art pillaged during World War II must be publicly exhibited, if its condition permits, so that it can be recognized and claimed.

"Up until now, France put the maximum information at public disposal and waited for reaction. For people to come forward. Now we're proactively tracking down the descendants and families of those who had their art stolen," says Thierry Bajou, who is coordinating the French government's efforts.

Disabled poverty figures 'shameful'

Excerpt from: World News (click for full article)

 

A report by the Australian Council of Social Service shows people with disability are more than twice as likely as other Australians to be living in poverty.

The Australian Council of Social Service's report shows more than 620,000 people with disability live below the poverty line.

That's equivalent to more than a quarter of people with a disability surviving on less than $600 a week, which is half the median household income.

ACOSS chief executive Cassandra Goldie says the figures are shocking.

"I think it's really troubling that despite 20 years of strong economic growth and the fact that we have overall relatively low rates of unemployment, we still have such significant levels of people living below the poverty line. We're one of the wealthiest countries in the world. It's absolutely shameful that this situation is allowed to continue."

Women with disabilities take a stand against violence

Excerpt from: World Council of Churches (click for full article)

 

Kamba, herself a person with a disability from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and member of the WCC Central Committee, works as a volunteer coordinator for French-speaking Africa for the Ecumenical Disability Advocates Network (EDAN), a project of the WCC.  

It was at a recent EDAN conference which took place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 27 February to 2 March, that Kamba spoke about the marginalization of women with disabilities, encouraging churches to be more proactive in protecting their rights.

MSU leads effort to address global food challenges

Excerpt from: Lansing State Journal (click for full article)

 

Michigan State University is leading an effort to help develop sustainable ways of feeding people in large metropolitan areas around the world.

The East Lansing school says representatives from the U.S., India, Kenya, South Africa, the Netherlands and Singapore met this week in Detroit. They agreed to launch an effort called The Global Innoversity. Officials from Detroit also are participating in the effort.

Participants want to promote local economic development, land recovery and food security. An aim is to ensure metropolitan regions can meet the food demands of populations projected in 2050. FoodPlus Detroit was created in June as part of the effort.

Faculty from Michigan State University’s colleges including Agriculture and Natural Resources are involved, as well as MSU AgBioResearch and MSU Extension.

Lives Changed and Lessons Learned in South Asia

Excerpt from: Autism Speaks (click for full article)

 

Five years ago, I was a relative newbie at Autism Speaks. We had just celebrated the first official World Autism Awareness Day that April. A few months later, we introduced our Global Autism Public Health (GAPH) initiative, and I made my first international trip for Autism Speaks – to India. This past week, as I returned home from my fifth and most emotional trip to the region, I have been reflecting on how the world of autism has changed in the five short years since the United Nations passed the World Autism Awareness Day resolution. In particular, my thoughts center on how South Asia may be leading the way.

With global prevalence exceeding 1 percent and rivaling that of HIV infection, autism is no longer the concern of a few. It affects whole communities and demands an appropriate public health response. The challenges around autism – its identification, treatment and even advocacy – speak to the complexity of the disorder.

“People with disabilities are not less human beings” – Chief

Excerpt from: Vibe Ghana (click for full article)

 

Nana Ansah Sasraku, chief of Mamfe and the Kyidomhene of the Akuapem Traditional Area, has observed that people with disabilities are no lesser beings and therefore society must not look down on their capabilities in the national development agenda.

He said given the opportunities on the same scale, such as educational and job opportunities, persons living with disabilities could prove their competencies and capabilities in every field just like any other human being.

The Chief who was speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Mamfe Akuapem on chieftaincy matters reiterated that disability was not inability and that people living with disabilities should be given the needed facilities to aid their education and employment opportunities.

Transforming the lives of children with disabilities through inclusive education

Excerpt from: UNICEF.org (click for full article)

 

The 2011 World Disability Report said that in 2004 the number of children up to the age of 14 with moderate and severe disabilities are at 5.1 per cent of the population. 

Despite the challenges, many countries in Central and Eastern Europe and in Central Asia, particularly Armenia, Montenegro and Serbia, have introduced progressive policies in inclusive education and launched anti-discriminatory campaigns. These efforts have changed attitudes and made positive changes in the lives of children with disabilities.

UNICEF works with governments to support education systems, families and children to reduce inequities created by social exclusion.

Ecuador’s paraplegic Vice President Lenin Moreno a major force for disability rights

Excerpt from: Media dis&dat (click for full article)

 

Lenin Moreno was once a wealthy businessman and politician. But in 1998, he was shot in the back as gunmen stole his car from a parking lot in Quito. He was paralyzed from the waist down. Moreno overcame intense pain and bouts of depression to become a motivational speaker. He’s written books about the healing power of laughter.

Finding a job was tough. But under the new law to bring disabled people into the work force, Carlosama was recently hired by an oil company. Not surprisingly, she’s full of praise for Moreno.

“He has achieved so much,” Carlosama says. “But even if he hadn’t done anything, just the fact that the vice president is in a wheelchair changes perceptions about disabled people.”

“It’s by far one of the best things this government have done,”Almeida says. “I think that whatever government that will come will really have to follow that path that Moreno have initiated.”

It seems likely that Ecuadorians will see more of Moreno. He was nominated last year for the Nobel Peace Prize. And there’s speculation he will run for president in 2017.

Attacks On Health Workers Put Fight To End Polio Under Fire

Excerpt from: NPR (click for full article)

 

The global effort to eradicate polio has reached a bizarre stage: More people have been gunned down recently over the disease than actually infected with it.

On Friday, nine polio vaccinators in northern Nigeria were shot dead and their clinics were torched. The BBC reported on Tuesday that two journalists have been arrested for inciting the attacks through a radio program. A police chief said the men denounced the polio vaccine on the air two days before the killings.

Inclusive education for children with disabilities can transform lives, says UNICEF

Excerpt from: United Nations Radio (click for full article)

 

Progressive policies in inclusive education have made positive changes in the lives of children with disabilities in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, according to UNICEF – the UN children's agency.

UNICEF says more schools are welcoming first grade children with disabilities in Serbia as a result of years of policy advocacy. It says huge nationwide awareness raising campaigns in Montenegro and strong engagement of civil society in promoting inclusion in Armenia have led to increased public demands for inclusive schools.

At a briefing focusing on the issue of children with disabilities this week during a meeting of UNICEF's Executive Board in New York, other governments and donor communities were urged to support policies that realized all children`s right to quality education as one way to reduce inequities created by social exclusion.