Front Runners in Building a Better World
Three organisations using sports to create a more inclusive world for people with disabilities.
Sports. The word conjures more than "activity involving physical exertion and skill" as defined by the dictionary. It evokes stories of the human capacity to defy limits.
For many of us who can see, hear, move unimpeded, a cycling tour in the heights of Himalayas, or running the world's biggest marathons would be daunting enough. But what if you were blind? Or couldn't walk? Would you go deep sea diving if you were paraplegic? Three non-profits we’ve previously featured are helping people with disabilities do all of these things, reminding us all how enormous human potential is.
April 6 is International Day for Sports and Peace. This month, we highlight sports as a uniting force for good, and celebrate those leading the way forward.
All in for All-Inclusive Advocacy and Adventure
Adventures Beyond Barriers Foundation (ABBF), India
“The greatest joy? You get to go all in. You have to give it your all to overcome the challenges that lie ahead. And all in because our adventures are all inclusive.”
Divyanshu Ganatra has achieved incredible things. He lost his sight at 19, but that has not stopped him from taking on the world, and making it better for people with disabilities who want to experience the thrills of sporting adventures. Adventures Beyond Barriers Foundation (ABBF) was founded with this desire in mind.
Since it started in 2014, ABBF has organised amazing expeditions for people with disabilities, with a strong advocacy programme aimed at corporates. For the 2020 Tata Marathon, one of the largest marathon events in the world, ABBF got over 120 C-suite executives from the world's most profitable companies to commit to being inclusion allies. Then the world went into a pandemic, but despite COVID-19's crushing impact, ABBF continues to forge ahead. They are creating India's first accessibility and vocational training centre, so that all communities regardless of ability are empowered to grasp a better future.
Get in touch with ABBF to find out about their game-changing future plans.
Resurfacing for Friends with Disabilities
Society of PSP (People Support People), Malaysia
“The sea does not discriminate. The marine life don't care whether you have limbs or not, whether you are a paraplegic or tetraplegic. They don't care whether you can speak or not, because you do sign language underwater anyway.”
Established in Malaysia by EK Lim and a group of committed friends, PSP is a volunteer-run organisation that brings people of all abilities together to scuba dive and experience the richness of our blue waters in deep trust.
The pandemic has been difficult for the society. A dire lack of resources and funding, and social distancing restrictions brought all their activities to a halt.
But in 2022, as pandemic restrictions ease, they are planning to resume dives for their friend with disabilities. PSP welcomes all who have a heart to volunteer as diving buddies. Training takes several weeks.
Step by Step, Redefining Futures of People with Disabilities
Runninghour, Singapore
“The public perception of people with special needs is really focusing on what they can't do. For Runninghour, what we want... is really to change the image of how we see people with special needs. You do not see their disability. You see their ability instead.”
Relationships and trust are Runninghour’s tenets. Its founder and chairman John See Toh noticed roadblocks in infrastructure, policy and social attitudes when it came to the daily challenges of people with disabilities, and set out to address it with a group of fitness enthusiasts. In 2008, Runninghour was formed to create friendships between people of all abilities through sports and forge a sense of appreciation and solidarity.
The COVID-19 pandemic was a huge disrupter to the organisation’s many activities — running, zumba, hiking, and rock climbing among others — but Runninghour remained resilient, pivoting to virtual events such as online circuit training and yoga. In 2021, they held their Run for Inclusion virtually, and piloted their own inclusion courses for businesses and the general public.
In 2022, as pandemic restrictions ease, they are gradually returning to in-person activities that have changed the lives of so many people with disabilities, and those without as well. They are developing their inclusion workshops further, and addressing the gaps in employment for people with disabilities and special needs in Singapore. Email Runninghour to find out how you can get involved in their mission.
We are sorry!
We had previously used "differently abled" in some of our copy to describe people with disabilities. We've since learned that this term is inappropriate, and amended the relevant words to "people with disabilities." OBW fully supports people with disabilities, and the organisations and communities which advocate for them. We sincerely apologise for our poor choice of terminology, and any hurt we have caused.
Built with Shorthand