On 10 June 2025, a room at the United Nations headquarters in New York filled with representatives of government, civil society, intergovernmental organizations, and more listened intently as David Duncan, Special Olympics Jamaica Health Messenger and Special Olympics International Global Athlete Leadership Council (GALC) Chairman, shared his story and a call to action.
The occasion was the 18th Session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (COSP18) and, specifically, the launch of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global initiative on health equity for persons with disabilities. This new initiative follows on the heels of the World Health Assembly’s 2021 resolution on the highest attainable standard of health for persons with disabilities, as well as the WHO’s release of a global report on health equity for persons with disabilities in 2022 and a guide for action in 2024. The official theme of this year’s conference focused on enhancing public awareness of the rights and contributions of persons with disabilities for social development and framed many of the discussions including ones centered on personal experiences, such as those shared by David.
In his remarks, David highlighted a negative experience with a dental provider, followed by a positive experience with another provider who he described as aware of the needs of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). “That,” he said, “made her more willing to collaborate with me to get a better understanding of my condition.” He also cited that encounter, as well as his experiences at Special Olympics Healthy Athletes®, as how he knows it's possible for health services to better meet the needs of those with disabilities, including IDD specifically.
Similar sentiments were expressed by other speakers. Lubna Jaffery, Minister of Culture and Equality, Norway, described the initiative as “not just a matter of health, but of dignity, equality, and justice.” The small portion of international cooperation for health that is truly disability inclusive was a point highlighted by the Director-General of the Swedish Agency for Participation (and topic Special Olympics has also worked to shed light on). A representative of the International Disability and Development Consortium (IDDC) pointed out the crucial roles that civil society plays, including helping get disability inclusion on the agenda in the first place, offering technical expertise, and holding governments accountable, which aptly summarizes the approach in Special Olympics’ Rosemary Collaboratory project.
Closing the session alongside a representative from the International Disability Alliance (IDA), the Head of the Unit for Human Rights, Disability, and Inclusion of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development echoed David’s calls for partnership and pointed to the Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023 as an illustration of the shared force and power of the disability rights movement.
