Educating the disability champions of tomorrow
Opinion
UQ disability rights legal academic and 2022 Blind Australian of the Year, Associate Professor Paul Harpur, explains why universities are in a unique position to create meaningful change when it comes to disability inclusion in the workplace.
I was 14 when I lost my eyesight after being hit by an electric train on 12 October 1993. Only a matter of days after the accident, I realised society now regarded me as different.
In the weeks that followed I started to truly comprehend how my life would now be discounted – especially when it came to education. I struggled to access instructional materials when I returned to school, and my employment options seemed destined to be limited.
Associate Professor Paul Harpur with his late dog, Chester.
Even now, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Australians with disabilities who are active in the labour market are twice as likely to be unemployed, compared to people without a disability. While, according to Vision Australia, unemployment rates go up markedly for people with disabilities like blindness.
I beat the odds and completed my undergraduate and master’s degrees in law, before undertaking a Doctor of Philosophy. I was a good lawyer, but I felt a calling to make a difference in disability rights as a law academic.
Today, as an Associate Professor within UQ's TC Beirne School of Law, my teaching and research expertise span disability rights, anti-discrimination laws, work health and safety laws, and corporate social responsibility. And, as a former Fulbright Fellow and Australian Research Council Future Fellow, I have had many opportunities to work with people around the world to help promote a more inclusive society.
The ability to be gainfully employed is a basic human right, and it’s alarming that so many people with disabilities continue to be excluded from the labour market. However, universities have an opportunity to lead the way when it comes to creating meaningful change.
Associate Professor Paul Harpur with his late dog, Chester.
Associate Professor Paul Harpur with his late dog, Chester.
Responsibility to drive change
Universities educate the disability champions of tomorrow, employ the disability leaders of today, and produce research and innovation that can transform societies. This is transformational, but the relationship between these three areas creates a synergy that is unique to higher education.
Students are being trained to become future leaders. And the presence of academics with disabilities ensures that students without a disability observe how these academics can succeed in life.
Thus, those students are exposed to how society can be inclusive. Students with disabilities also benefit from the presence of academics with disabilities through mentorship if barriers to ability equality arise. Likewise, academics with disabilities also benefit from working relationships with students with disabilities.
Australian anti-discrimination laws place greater obligations upon educators to avoid discriminatory barriers to equality. These laws establish a legal responsibility to provide fair and safe teaching environments, where all staff and students have equal opportunities. Many barriers to students with disabilities also impact staff with disabilities. For example, when a staff member with a disability advocates for a ramp to be installed – or for a software package to adopt universal design – then those staff will benefit when it is made inclusive for students.
The impact of including staff with disabilities at all university levels cannot be underestimated. Staff with disabilities, who conduct research into disability inclusion, are contributing directly to a more inclusive world.
However, academics with disabilities are not limited to researching on disability alone. They work across all industries; the difference is, when academics with disabilities conduct research – even when the topic is not focussed on disability – those research projects almost always consider disability inclusion. An architect who uses a wheelchair, for example, is unlikely to design a product without advocating for wheelchair access.
Taking action
When I started working as a UQ academic in 2011, there was no one with a disability leading the strategic group that monitored the University’s Disability Action Plan (DAP).
So, one day I walked across to the Chancellery and pitched an idea to have representatives with disabilities given a seat at the table. UQ has always believed in promoting diversity and inclusion, and this was no exception. The UQ Disability Inclusion Group appeared in the next iteration of the DAP, and I became the Chair.
Associate Professor Paul Harpur.
In late 2019, I was awarded my Fulbright Future Scholarship, which included a three-month project working between Harvard Law School and the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University in the US. My project was intended to collect data and build relationships between Australian and US advocates and researchers involved with the development and promotion of design that is accessible to everyone in society, whether they be able or disabled.
Like too many stories about 2020, though, this one starts with ‘…and then the pandemic hit.’ That was an incredibly challenging time to be in a foreign country as a blind man. I had only a few weeks to orient myself with Harvard before things started to turn, and navigating a campus and city that was amid lockdowns, panic, and ever-changing conditions – that would have been difficult for anyone, let alone a person who couldn’t see.
I was still able to work with some incredible academics and advocates during my too-brief time in the US, and came back to UQ inspired to drive more change at my own institution.
The UQ Disability Inclusion Group – which I continue to chair – monitors the DAP, and reports directly to the Deputy Provost, as well as to the Senate Sub-Committee for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
This has resulted in research into understanding how the University can be more inclusive, and then devoting resources to implement the findings.
Some key achievements of the DAP in recent years include improved communication for students and staff of support services, improved physical and digital accessibility for physical environments, greater support for mental health conditions, improved accessibility to library resources, staff training and education, and enhanced disability employment initiatives.
These efforts are widely recognised, with UQ becoming the founding higher-education member of the Australian Human Rights Commission IncludeAbility network.
Associate Professor Paul Harpur.
Associate Professor Paul Harpur.
What you can do
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has swept in a new participation paradigm; people with disabilities must be included in all aspects of society, and at all levels. This means we should see people with disabilities graduating with undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, entering professions, and succeeding at all levels in the workforce.
While you may not have control over recruitment at your workplace, here are some practical ways you can start to make a difference in your work environment:
- Recruit and/or promote people with disabilities if they are qualified for the position.
- Find ways to proactively make people with disabilities feel included and supported in your work environment – both in your team culture, and in work processes and physical environments.
- Focus on the person, not the disability or impairment – avoid getting caught up in semantics and be willing to listen to feedback and constructive criticism.
- If you’re not sure how to help a colleague with a disability – ask, and listen to them.
Everyone can make adjustments to consider ways to be more inclusive. Whether you’re arranging a function for clients, designing a website, or purchasing office furniture, you can ask the right questions to ensure it is inclusive for everyone, regardless of their abilities.
About the author
Associate Professor Paul Harpur is a leading international and comparative disability rights legal academic and was recently awarded a four-year Future Fellowship with the Australian Research Council. Outside the law, Dr Harpur was a professional athlete, competing in the 2000 Sydney and 2004 Athens Paralympics, as well as the 2002 Manchester and 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games. Dr Harpur was named the 2022 Blind Australian of the Year on 19 November 2021. The Blind Australian of the Year award recognises and celebrates Blind Australians, who – by example – inspire others to improve Australian life. This year, there were 58 nominations from many walks of life, including the legal fraternity, the media, refugee assistance, arts, fashion, medicine and sport.
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