CALL FOR ACTION- DEC 3 INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

This International Day of Persons with Disabilities represents one of many efforts focused on the inclusion of all persons, including those with disabilities, to receive a quality education. Quality inclusive education is a human right, as proclaimed in Article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and international cooperation is necessary to make this a reality.
A global campaign is now underway, coordinated by the Global Campaign for Education and backed by many within the disability movement, promoting a clear message: to provide education for the 75 million children out of school, as well as achieving the other EFA goals. With the partnership of FIFA, 1GOAL will use the platform of the World Cup 2010 in South Africa to promote mass public awareness and political will on EFA.

To call attention to the need for MDG2 and the EFA goals to be inclusive, the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities, the Global Partnership for Disability and Development, Inclusion International, the International Disability and Development Consortium, and VSA arts have launched INITIATIVE24, a Global Campaign to Promote the Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Education for All. INITIATIVE24 has four elements: Networks, Legal Resource, Policy Engagement/Advocacy and Public Education and Awareness.

We invite you today to let your voice be heard and to join us by adding your signature through the 1Goal Campaign website and by working through 1GOAL to promote the call for inclusive education. Please go to www.join1goal.org to sign up now.

By signing on the 1Goal Campaign, you will add your voice along with FIFA, its international football stars, the football world, and countless others – individuals and organizations, educators, political figures, celebrities, artists– who have already given their voices to this awareness campaign.

More information about 1GOAL and Initiative 24 is available outside the conference room 4 or by contacting the partners at initiative24@vsarts.org.