October 15, 2007
Diversity Cafe " What is disability?"
"What a diverse atmosphere!"
Society is made up of a diverse range of people, all with varying backgrounds. Similarly, "Disability" can also be seen as nothing less than a diverse element of the world we live in.
On October 15th 2007, the ICC held a themed cafe on the topic of "disability", planned and run by students with disabilities students studying at Waseda University. Participants learned more about what it means to be "disabled", and also more about life of students with disabilities at university, including the range of support and services available to them.
Three students with hearing disabilities made presentations on their everyday life, followed by a media clip of a day in the life of a student who uses a wheelchair, which gave participants an idea of what it is like to get around campus in a wheelchair. The event's hosts used three languages to cater for the varied audience: Japanese, Japanese sign language, and English. In addition to this, a simultaneous text transcription of the various narration during the event was projected onto a large screen.
Guest speaker Ms. Shimizu from Disabled Student Services (DSS) also gave an informative presentation on the types of services available for disabled students on campus. Nearly 20 students with disabilities including hearing, visual and limitation in mobility are currently receiving some kind of support through coordination with the DSS.
"Disability" is hard to define. Depending on environment and circumstance, some kinds of "disability" can increase or disappear altogether. For example, in a city where pedestrian walkways, buses and buildings are set up to accommodate for people in wheelchairs, it could be argued that using a wheelchair stops becoming a disability.
A truly diverse range of participants used a variety of different methods to communicate during the event, including sign language, lip-reading and writing. With "Diversity" as the keyword, the ICC is planning to continue to hold similar events in the future.
Comments from participants:
"What a diverse atmosphere!"
"I didn't realize there were so many barriers on campus"
""Disability" is difficult to define"
"I was impressed with the range of services available to students with disabilities at Waseda"
"Through this event I was glad to have had the chance to meet such a diverse group of people!"
Services for students with disabilities can vary greatly depending on the country
Embrace diversity! It's fun to communicate while helping each other out.
Thanks to the event supporters for all their hard work.
