The Global Disability Summit 2025 took place on 2–3 April in Berlin, convening more than 4,000 participants including governments, organizations, advocates and individuals to advance disability rights and promote inclusive development. In the lead-up to the Summit, the International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030 launched an advocacy campaign titled “Teachers with disabilities: Voices we must hear, leaders we must follow” to ensure that the experiences and leadership of teachers with disabilities were part of this global conversation.

Led by the Teacher Task Force’s thematic group on Inclusion and Equity in Teacher Policies and Practices - co-chaired by VSO and the International Council on Education for Teaching (ICET) - the campaign aimed to amplify the lived experiences and leadership of teachers with disabilities, whose insights are too often absent from education discourse and policy. Through interviews, blog posts and social media features, the campaign shared personal stories and calls to action from educators across the globe.

Looking back, the campaign not only highlighted the persistent barriers these teachers face but also showcased the vital leadership they bring to building inclusive, resilient education systems for all.
 

Teacher voices at the forefront of inclusion and change

This multi-week campaign underscored the essential role teachers with disabilities play in advancing inclusive education. It featured personal testimonies, advocacy messages and spotlights on educators who teach, lead and innovate - often while navigating significant obstacles.

Over the course of two weeks, the campaign spotlighted nine remarkable educators with disabilities from across Africa and Asia, each demonstrating that inclusive education begins with inclusive teaching workforces. From Malawi, Esther Mbite, a blind primary school teacher, shared how her classroom innovations break down barriers to excellence, while Chipulikano Balekire Ngulube, a rural teacher with a mobility impairment, championed inclusive pedagogy. Esterr Viko, also from Malawi, emphasized the need for accessible learning materials as a teacher with an upper body impairment. In South Africa, Qaphelani Dlamini, a wheelchair user with spina bifida, spoke about his dual role as an educator of learners with physical disabilities and an advocate for inclusive teacher training, while Ingrid Parkin, a deaf teacher, highlighted the importance of language and culture in her work at a school for deaf learners.

From Nepal, Shankar Upadyaya and Shrikanta Sapkota, both with severe visual impairments, described how they use assistive technology and champion disability-inclusive curricula in their classrooms. Loknath Gautam, a deaf teacher in Nepal, advocated for integrating sign language training into formal teacher education programmes. Finally, Paul Longoli from Uganda, a teacher with a mobility impairment, showed how leadership and mentorship can challenge perceptions of disability and inspire change in education systems. Together, their stories reflect the strength, diversity and determination of teachers with disabilities driving inclusive education forward.

As part of the campaign, Dr Heike Kuhn, Co-Chair of the Teacher Task Force and Head of the Education Division at Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), contributed a blog post reflecting on the importance of empowering teachers with disabilities and placing their voices at the centre of education reform. In it, she underscored the value of their lived experience in shaping education:

“Teachers with disabilities are not just role models - they are essential to building inclusive and resilient education systems.”
 

Breaking barriers, together: the power of dialogue in inclusive education

The campaign culminated in a panel titled “Transforming Classrooms: The Power of Teachers with Disabilities in Inclusive Education”, hosted by Perkins School for the Blind at the Summit’s Inclusive Education Hub. Moderated by Dr Heike Kuhn, the session brought together teachers from Uganda, Malawi, Nepal, Rwanda and South Africa.

In powerful personal testimonies, educators spoke about the systemic challenges they face - such as inaccessible training, discriminatory attitudes and infrastructure barriers - as well as the creative, inclusive strategies they have developed in response. Their collective message was unequivocal: there is no inclusive education without inclusive teaching workforces.

Key takeaways from the panel included:

1. Teachers with disabilities must have the chance to actively participate in shaping education policy   
2. Inclusion must extend beyond students to include the educators who serve them
3. Disability inclusion is a right - not a favour
    

Inclusion begins with teachers

The campaign served as both a call to action and a source of inspiration. It reminded policymakers, donors and education leaders that investing in teachers with disabilities is not only a matter of justice - it’s a path to quality, innovation and resilience. The stories we shared delivered a clear message: recognising teachers with disabilities as leaders, not just as beneficiaries of inclusion, is essential. True inclusion must extend beyond students to embrace those who teach them, and disability inclusion must be understood not only as a right, but as a powerful force for building stronger, more resilient education systems.

The Global Disability Summit concluded with renewed commitments to disability inclusion, including the Amman-Berlin Declaration, which urges that at least 15% of international development programming at the country level explicitly pursue disability inclusion.
 

From inclusion to leadership

The Teacher Task Force will continue to advocate for inclusive teacher policies and support its members in driving systemic change, including through the thematic group on Inclusion and Equity in Teacher Policies and Practices. With the world facing a projected shortfall of 44 million teachers - according to the UNESCO and the Teacher Task Force 2024 Global Report on Teachers - it is more urgent than ever to ensure that teachers with disabilities are not only included but empowered to lead.

Now is the time to act. We must:

1. Ensure teacher education is accessible and inclusive for all
2. Provide ongoing professional development and assistive technologies to support teachers with disabilities
3. Recruit and promote teachers with disabilities as part of national strategies to address the global teacher shortage
4. Include their voices in education policy dialogue and decision-making

Inclusive education starts with inclusive teaching. Let’s keep listening, investing - and above all - following the leadership of teachers with disabilities. 
 

Useful links

• Teacher Task Force thematic groups
• Global Report on Teachers 2024

Photo credits: VSO 

This blog has been authored by Dr. Heike Kuhn, Head of Unit, Education, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Co-Chair of the Teacher Task Force, as part of the advocacy campaign powered by the Thematic Group on Inclusion and Equity in Teacher Policies and Practices, led by VSO and the International Council On Education For Teaching (ICET), launched at the occasion of the Global Disability Summit 2025.

“Creating inclusive education is about fostering a culture of respect, adaptability and collaboration and not just about physical access to the classroom.” Qaphela Dlamini, South Africa, teacher.

Dear reader,

Did you have a teacher with disabilities when you were a child? No? Neither did I.

And today, I find myself wondering how our societies might look if we would have had the chance to experience lessons of inclusion from early on. Why did I learn foreign languages but not some words in sign language? Why were our curricula not inclusive? I am convinced that learning from a teacher with a disability would have been a lucky chance – for me and for everyone.

This thought stayed with me as I walked through the halls of the Global Disability Summit (GDS) 2025 in Berlin – a vibrant gathering of more than 4,000 people committed to advancing disability inclusion in all regions. As Head of Education at Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and Co-Chair of the International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030, hosted by UNESCO, I had the privilege to attend – and to listen.

Teachers with disabilities: not guests, but leaders

For me, it was clear from the start: Teachers with disabilities should not just be talked about – they must be there, front and center. That’s why BMZ supported the participation of 12 teachers with disabilities from Uganda, Malawi, Nepal, Rwanda, and South Africa. With support from the Teacher Task Force’s Inclusion and Equity group and our partners at VSO, they came not as guests, but as experts. We invited them – but in truth, it is us who owe them thankfulness.

Inclusion isn’t charity – it’s justice and enriches all of us

One message echoed throughout the Summit: “Nothing about us without us.” Disability inclusion isn’t an add-on. It’s a matter of rights. And inclusive education isn’t just a goal – it’s the foundation of equitable societies.

Teachers with disabilities embody this principle. They are not only rights-holders who deserve access to training and career development – they are also powerful changemakers. Their presence challenges stereotypes, and their practice enriches learning for all.

What struck me most was how these teachers improve education for everyone. Their classrooms are often more inclusive, more adaptive and more creative. Whether using storytelling, assistive tech, or tailored advocacy for girls with disabilities – they raise the bar for what good teaching looks like including everyone. Teachers with disabilities are role models – they lead by example showing students at an early age how societies are best positioned to thrive, allowing diversity and seeing the talents in every child, taking over responsibility for children with special needs. They show what’s possible when inclusion becomes the norm, because it is as easy as this: diversity is normality.

The Summit sparked real momentum with the adoption of the Amman-Berlin Declaration on Global Disability, defining tow important targets: (1) strive for all international development programs to be inclusive of and accessible to persons with disabilities, and (2) strive to ensure that at least 15 percent of international development programs being implemented at the country level pursue disability inclusion as an objective (15 percent for the 15 percent).

As the Summit is over, now is the time to follow the guidance. With respect to teachers, we should recruit, support and promote teachers with disabilities everywhere. Teachers are urgently needed as we miss 44 million teachers worldwide. Inclusive systems that offer accessible training and tools, targeted funding for what works, from infrastructure to mentoring, will help on this. The upcoming Global Summit on Teachers in the second half of 2025 will be key to sustaining this agenda, with platforms like the Teacher Task Force helping advance on these targets to keep us accountable.

A final comment: The teachers who joined us in Berlin reminded us: inclusion is not about doing something for others. It’s about building systems where everyone can lead, contribute, and belong. We would make the world a better place, leaving no one behind. We should finally do it, starting today.

Useful links:

• Teacher Task Force thematic groups
• Global Report on Teachers 2024

 Photo credit: VSO