FORMER FELLOWS

Don’t take our word for it!

Fellow // 2024-2025

Aisyah Ardani

Aisyah Ardani

2024-2025 CIP FELLOW

“During the fellowship, I received great mentorship and funding support to study disability concession programs in the transportation sector in Indonesia. I learned about implementing rigorous quantitative and qualitative studies, as well as developing a well-presented publication. At the end of the study, I developed recommendations for concession programs that can be considered for the Indonesian context and other Global South countries.

Furthermore, within the program, the biweekly meetings allowed me to learn from researchers and stakeholders around the world about their projects, including social protection, budgeting, and the care economy. This wide range of opportunities expanded my perspectives, improved my skill set, and enhanced my sensitivity as a researcher and educator.

Lastly, CIP also supported me in meeting and building a network with government stakeholders, researchers, and disability activists at both the national and international levels. This has led to upcoming collaborations with different organizations in Indonesia.

If you are an activist or professional with disabilities who wants to enhance research skills, this fellowship program is a must-try!”

About

 

Aisyah is an Indonesian educator and researcher focusing on the rights of people with disability, with prior experiences in education, social protection, economic empowerment, climate change, disaster preparedness, and gender equity. She has been working with local OPDs named Majelis Pengajian Difabel (Disability Islamic Learning Center) and Formasi Disabilitas.

During her fellowship, Aisyah investigated the gap between the expenditures of people with disabilities in Semarang City and the resources they had. The research aimed to provide recommendations and insights for policy development related to disability concessions and other social protection programs in Semarang City specifically, and in Indonesia more broadly.

Ahmed Hamdy

Ahmed Hamdy

2024-2025 CIP FELLOW

Ahmed is a an Egyptian scholar, disability rights advocate and researcher, and international development practitioner. He worked for several national and international organizations including UN agencies, and has extensive qualitative and quantitative research and policy analysis experience. He got his MA in political science.

In addition, he wrote several research and policy papers on disability inclusion and accommodation, including his policy paper on social dimension of transportation for PWDs, and his research article about use of multi-modal writing and use of assistive technology for PWDs.

During his fellowship, Ahmed investigated the administrative, physical, and information barriers that prevented persons with disabilities from accessing social protection schemes. He also studied how to enhance targeting strategies to ensure proper access and inclusion for all persons with disabilities in Egypt.

Bhanu Priya

Bhanu Priya

2024-2025 CIP FELLOW

Bhanu Priya (they/she) is a non-binary Bahujan queer feminist, and a person with psychosocial disabilities, spinal cord injury and chronic pain. They have been a writer for In Plainspeak, Mad in Asia, Velivada, Criminal No More, and Gaysi Family. They have completed her M.Phil. in Women’s and Gender Studies from Ambedkar University, Delhi. Their areas of
research and advocacy are gender, caste, disability, and sexuality. They were a PhD candidate in Disability Studies at University of Illinois, Chicago and had to leave the PhD program because of lack of mental health support in the state.

Bhanu is the founder of the Crossroads Collective, which is run solely for and by Dalit-Bahujan-Tribal people with disabilities, chronic conditions and caregivers, and queer-trans persons within these communities. In their role, Bhanu engages in movement-building at the intersections of gender, disability, caste, and sexuality.

EnP. Fritz Enjhay

2025 Nippon Foundation Fellow

“The Center for Inclusive Policy (CIP) fellowship provided me with a transformative platform to enhance my knowledge and skills in disability inclusion, sensitivity, and policy development. Through the program, I gained a deeper understanding of how inclusive and evidence-based approaches can strengthen national and local disability policies.

A key learning area for me was the application of disability-sensitive data collection techniques, ensuring that persons with disabilities are accurately represented in development statistics and planning processes. The fellowship also emphasized the use of participatory research methods and cross-sectoral analysis to address barriers faced by persons with disabilities in various settings.

By engaging with other fellows, I was able to exchange research practices, share local experiences, and collaborate on strategies that promote accessibility, inclusive governance, and equitable participation. This network of collaboration enriched my fellowship experience and created lasting partnerships that continue to advance inclusive policy and practice across regions.

Overall, the CIP fellowship strengthened my capacity to advocate for disability-inclusive development, integrate sensitivity and accessibility in policy design, and contribute to more collaborative, data-informed, and rights-based decision-making processes.”

About

 

EnP Fritz is a Filipino with Cerebral Palsy, an Environmental Planner, an alumnus of the AUN-DPPnet,Cohort Fellow 2016-2018 a scholar of The Nippon Foundation, and an advocate for accessibility. Currently, he works as Planning Officer IV at the Office of the Provincial Planning and Development Coordinator (OPPDC) in the Province of Antique.

During his fellowship, funded by the Nippon Foundation, EnP Fritz Enjhay proposed to assess the impact of Community-Based Inclusive Development (CBID) policy implementation in Antique, focusing on enhancing accessibility and participation for persons with disabilities. The outcomes of his proposal were:

  1. Improved understanding of the impact of CBID policies on accessibility and participation.
  2. Identification of best practices and areas for policy improvement.
  3. Recommendations for local government units and stakeholders to enhance the effectiveness of CBID initiatives.

This research was conducted in close collaboration with the Office of Persons with Disabilities Affairs (OPDA) in the Province of Antique. The OPDA played a key role as a partner, providing valuable insights, data, support, and resources to ensure the study effectively addressed the needs and concerns of persons with disabilities in the province.

Fellow // 2023-2024

GRACE KAWALA

“During my fellowship, I analyzed Kenya’s social protection schemes, particularly the cash transfer program, with the goal of making it more inclusive for persons with disabilities. This experience significantly deepened my understanding of policy analysis and reinforced my commitment to evidence-based policymaking.

Through the fellowship, I developed practical recommendations that informed the review of Kenya’s Social Protection Policy. Notably, my inputs contributed to the adoption of a more inclusive approach to cash transfers, ensuring broader access and equity within the program.

This experience not only strengthened my analytical and research skills but also inspired my pursuit of a Master’s in Public Policy, where I aim to build the capacity to design and advocate for transformative, inclusive policies at a national and global level.”

About

 

Grace is a disability rights advocate from Kenya, a governance scholar & the disability inclusion intern at the African Leadership University. She is a YALI Alumni 2022 and the Disability inclusion assistant at the League of persons with special abilities – a local OPD.

During her fellowship, Grace examined the cash transfer system in Kenya  with a focus on its potential shift from household entitlements to individual benefits alongside an evaluation of the Social Assistance Act 2013.

This experience not only strengthened my analytical and research skills but also inspired my pursuit of a Master’s in Public Policy, where I aim to build the capacity to design and advocate for transformative, inclusive policies at a national and global level.

SCADER LOUIS

“My fellowship with the Center for Inclusive Policy deepened my understanding of social protection and the financing challenges in Malawi. I examined the risks of donor dependency and exclusion of persons with disabilities in national social protection programs, particularly the Social Cash Transfer Program (SCTP), translating evidence into actionable advocacy. The research helped me discover my advocacy niche within the disability movement, connecting my lived experience with broader policy goals. It also strengthened my ability to translate research into policy dialogue and reinforced my commitment to advancing inclusion so that persons with disabilities are recognized as equal and active rights-holders in social protection systems. Grateful to CIP for the opportunity!”

About

 

During her fellowship, Scader worked on analyzing the financing and expenditure patterns of social protection programs over the last five years and assess the risks associated with excessive reliance on donor funding for social protection programs and the long and short term impact on persons with disabilities in Malawi.

She is skilled in qualitative and quantitative research, monitoring and evaluation, and policy analysis. She also works on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and the intersection of SRHR and disability is her passion. 

She has authored a policy brief called “Making a case for reasonable accommodation for persons with neurodivergence at the workplace”, a first in the Indian context, and is a part of Civic Asia’s working group of young queer neurodivergent individuals in South Asia.

During the time of her fellowship, Ayushmita was working as the Research and Monitoring Lead at Project Baala, an Indian organisation working on SRHR. At Project Baala, Ayushmita was helping build an SRHR information delivery system for women and girls with disabilities in rural areas, in association with Accessable. This was a UNFPA-funded project, and was targeted towards women and girls with little to no access to assistive technology and the internet.

Ayushmita was also one of the researchers who sent the UNCRC shadow report on the status of children in India in 2024. For this report, she, along with her colleagues, focused on the status of children of sex workers.

Ayushmita lives with multiple mental illnesses, and her lived experience is the basis and motivation behind her advocacy and work.

AYUSHMITA SAMAL

“Center for Inclusive Policy was the first organization ever to legitimise my research on disability assessments and certification in India, particularly that of invisible disabilities. My mentor was always supportive and constructive, and the fellow training sessions that I have been a part of (and continue to be) have helped me learn, grow, network, and collaborate. Because of the financial support provided by CIP, I was able to advocate with the Disability department in India, and have trained at least 30 government officials on disability assessments, as well as all the district level Nodal Officers for disability assessment in Uttar Pradesh, the state with the poorest disability certification rates, as per 2018. I also run a weekly helpline called CertLine, with an Organization of Persons with Disabilities in India, called Mission Accessibility, which is aimed at helping persons with disabilities with their questions on disability assessments and certification- which would not have been possible without this fellowship.”

“As a Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, I have applied a lot of my learnings from this fellowship in my MEL work as well, and the quantitative trainings provided have been especially helpful. These learnings (and their application) took me to the South Aisan Evaluation Concalve of 2025 in Sri Lanka, where I trained evaluators on disability inclusive evaluations- something which would not have been possible without CIP’s training on indicators. 

These are just a few examples of how CIP and the fellowship has helped me broaden my work on disability in India, especially disability assessments, data, and research- all underdeveloped issues in India. In the future, I hope to build on my work at CIP and want to pursue a PhD with my primary research topic being disability assessments and how they impact social policy and budgeting in LMICs.”
About

 

Ayushmita is an Indian researcher working on identifying the barriers faced by persons with invisible disabilities in obtaining a disability certificate and UDID.

She is skilled in qualitative and quantitative research, monitoring and evaluation, and policy analysis. She also works on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and the intersection of SRHR and disability is her passion. 

She has authored a policy brief called “Making a case for reasonable accommodation for persons with neurodivergence at the workplace”, a first in the Indian context, and is a part of Civic Asia’s working group of young queer neurodivergent individuals in South Asia.

During the time of her fellowship, Ayushmita was working as the Research and Monitoring Lead at Project Baala, an Indian organisation working on SRHR. At Project Baala, Ayushmita was helping build an SRHR information delivery system for women and girls with disabilities in rural areas, in association with Accessable. This was a UNFPA-funded project, and was targeted towards women and girls with little to no access to assistive technology and the internet.

Ayushmita was also one of the researchers who sent the UNCRC shadow report on the status of children in India in 2024. For this report, she, along with her colleagues, focused on the status of children of sex workers.

Ayushmita lives with multiple mental illnesses, and her lived experience is the basis and motivation behind her advocacy and work.

Fellow // 2022-2023

SAMANEH SHABANI

“During my fellowship, I had the opportunity to write a guideline for universities in Iran on how to provide services for students with disabilities.

The project was mainly focused on the right to independent living through accessibility and reasonable accommodation, and confident and persuasive communication as well. It was to introduce frameworks for community support systems for university students with disabilities for independent living.

This technical guidebook lucidly explain the different needs of students with disabilities as a diverse group and define the capacities for establishing community support systems as an achievable dynamic response. In longer time, it is envisaged to draw the attention of the policy makers to strengthen the content as applicable presets.”

About

 

Samaneh Shabani is a human rights and disability rights advocate from Iran, holding a Ph.D. in international law and a master’s degree in transitional justice from the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights.
She has been actively involved in advocating for the rights of persons with disabilities, particularly women, and has worked with organizations such as Humanity and Inclusion, the Disability Association of Tavana, and the European Disability Forum (EDF), where she currently serves as a women’s rights officer.
Her research and advocacy focus on domestic violence against women with disabilities and their access to justice, culminating in a published book on the subject in Persian.

Shabani completed her Ph.D. at the University of Tehran, where she also interned at the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) Tehran, contributing to public health communication during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the pandemic, she faced unique challenges due to her visual impairment, as the silence of lockdowns disrupted her primary sensory navigation, and touching surfaces increased her infection risk, yet she remained resilient and committed to her work.
She has also been involved in the UNDIS project with the United Nations in Iran.

In addition to her advocacy, Shabani has an academic background in computer engineering, where she pursued a master’s degree at the University of Isfahan, contributing to research on opportunistic routing in wireless networks and other technical topics.
There is also a separate individual named Samaneh Shabani who is a clinical nutritionist at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, and another person named Saman Shabani, a medical doctor specializing in neurosurgery, indicating that multiple individuals with similar names exist in different fields.

FRANCISCA VALDEBENITO ACOSTA

“At CIP I developed quantitative research on the quality of housing for people with disabilities in Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Systematic gaps were identified between households with and without persons with disabilities.

This fellowship allowed me a learning experience of the global map of disability, its issues and actors involved. From my work at CIP I was able to apply for a Doctoral Program in Epidemiology whose research topic is the continuation of what I developed during this year. I am grateful for the vision and guidance I got from this great team.”

About

 

Francisca has developed analyses of public policies related to disability in Chile. As director of studies at Symbolon, she has conducted research on the housing, health and subjective well-being gaps of people with disabilities for government and academia.

She is a professor of Capabilities Approach at the University of Chile and Social Innovation at the University of Santiago de Chile.

By the end of 2022, she is expecting to publish the article, housing deficit for people with disabilities in a radically neoliberal country: The Case of Chile. Handbook of Disability Policy. London: Elgar Press.

Fellow // 2021-2022

ESMA GUMBERIDZE

“During my fellowship with CIP, I have been focusing on extra costs of disability, especially at the intersection of age and disability. As an outcome, I wrote a blog for Development Pathways advocating for older persons with disabilities being able to receive both disability benefits and age-related state pensions/compensations in countries which offer both age and disability universal benefits. The article can be found at the following link.”

About

 

During her fellowship program, Esma was working on mapping of social protection system and evaluation of the inclusivity of the system. She was doing the comparative analysis of information obtained in Georgia to those on international practice regarding allocations. She was also supporting CIP work on cost of disability.

Esma is a human rights, defender, a disabled activist, Georgia’s Youth Representative to the United Nations in 2019-2021, a citizen journalist and a blogger.

Upon high school graduation and return to Georgia from the US she was interested just in politics and international relations. However, once she entered university, she realized how her status of a blind person was negatively influencing everything she was trying to do. So, she started writing and conducting awareness raising speeches and giving interviews on disabled persons’ rights.

She has graduated from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University with an undergraduate degree in law in 2018.

In 2016 she co-founded a disabled women’s organization ‘ The Platform for New Opportunities’.

Since November 2017, she has been a member of the consultative Council on the monitoring of implementation, protection and promotion of the UNCRPD with the Ombudsman of Georgia (a national human rights institution).

She is also an author and a host of the on-line radio show Beyond the Horizon on the Radio My Voice of the Helping Hand that has been running since August 2017.

She is a Leadership Council/board member of the European Democracy Youth Network/EDYN (a member since 2019, LC member since 2020).

In addition to all of this, Esma has authored few pieces of research including one for UNPRPD through the UNDP Georgia. She wrote a situation analysis of participation of persons with disabilities.

Now, she has 8 years experience in disabled persons’ and women’s rights, youth empowerment.

In her free time she enjoys writing posts for Facebook.

Publications

Publications

Gumberidze, E, (2019) “ECPG Review” CAT Alumni Idea Forum, https://www.catprogramme.org/2019/11/25/cat-alumni-idea-forum-ecpg-review/

Gumberidze, E, (2019) “Economic Instability” CAT Alumni Idea Forum, https://www.catprogramme.org/2019/09/11/cat-alumni-idea-forum-economic-instability/

Gumberidze, E. & Mirotadze, R. (2021) “Georgian Women Are Fighting for gender Equality ” Young European Ambassadors, https://www.euneighbours.eu/en/east/eu-in-action/youth/stories-young-european-ambassadors/georgian-women-are-fighting-gender

Gumberidze, E., Janashia, T., Kakabadze, R., Lataria, L., Mosidze, N., Shulga, T., (2021) Chapter ‘Nurses in Georgian Healthcare System – Policy Challenges and Solutions’, The Changemakers 2021 – Policy Paper Recommendations p. 4-8

ALIMATA ABDUL KARIMU

During her fellowship Alimata was working on reviewing the 3% District Assembly Common Fund allocated by the Government of Ghana for the use of persons with disabilities in order to reduce poverty among them. The aim was to evaluate the impact of the Fund in the lives of persons with disabilities as well as to gather information on the extra cost of disability and the types of support people need.

About

 

During her fellowship program, Esma was working on mapping of social protection system and evaluation of the inclusivity of the system. She was doing the comparative analysis of information obtained in Georgia to those on international practice regarding allocations. She was also supporting CIP work on cost of disability.

Esma is a human rights, defender, a disabled activist, Georgia’s Youth Representative to the United Nations in 2019-2021, a citizen journalist and a blogger.

Upon high school graduation and return to Georgia from the US she was interested just in politics and international relations. However, once she entered university, she realized how her status of a blind person was negatively influencing everything she was trying to do. So, she started writing and conducting awareness raising speeches and giving interviews on disabled persons’ rights.

She has graduated from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University with an undergraduate degree in law in 2018.

In 2016 she co-founded a disabled women’s organization ‘ The Platform for New Opportunities’.

Since November 2017, she has been a member of the consultative Council on the monitoring of implementation, protection and promotion of the UNCRPD with the Ombudsman of Georgia (a national human rights institution).

She is also an author and a host of the on-line radio show Beyond the Horizon on the Radio My Voice of the Helping Hand that has been running since August 2017.

She is a Leadership Council/board member of the European Democracy Youth Network/EDYN (a member since 2019, LC member since 2020).

In addition to all of this, Esma has authored few pieces of research including one for UNPRPD through the UNDP Georgia. She wrote a situation analysis of participation of persons with disabilities.

Now, she has 8 years experience in disabled persons’ and women’s rights, youth empowerment.

In her free time she enjoys writing posts for Facebook.

Publications

Publications

Abdul Karimu, A, “Disabled persons in Ghanaian health strategies: reflections on the 2016 adolescent reproductive health policy: Reproductive Health Matters‘, 2017,
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09688080.2018.1527158 

Abdul Karimu, A, “Exploring the sexual and reproductive health issues of visually impaired women in Ghana, Reproductive Health Matters’, 2017
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09688080.2017.1333893? 

Abdul Karimu, A, Chapter “Menstruation and the girl with visual impairment’, Sexual and Reproductive Health of Adolescents with Disabilities p.85-99, 2021
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/347600448_Menstruation_and_the_Girl_with_Visual_Impairment.

Fellow // 2019-2020

MEENAKSHI BALASUBRAMANIAN

“I was involved in documenting and understanding the social protection programs for persons with disabilities globally. 

 As a part of the program I could support different DPOs in India in conceptualising and finalising various reports and activities of the organisation.

Overall it was a rich learning experience for me personally.”

About

 

Meenakshi Balasubramanian, is a co- founder of Equals Centre for Promotion of Social Justice in Chennai India and is currently an associate with Center for Inclusive Policy.

Meenakshi is a long-time disability rights activist who contributed to numerous campaigns to improve laws and policies at the states and Union level in India. Passionate about CRPD compliant policy analysis, she has reviewed  Union and States budget from a disability perspective every year since 2012 for the People Budget initiative led by CBGA.

She has led studies on best practices of Community based rehabilitation in India, cost of exclusion of Persons with Psychosocial Disability, Socio Economic Impact of National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme on Persons with Disabilities in Tamil Nadu among others.

She holds a Master in Commerce and a Post Graduate Diploma in Human Rights from the Indian Institute of Human Rights, New Delhi.

ABNER MANLAPAZ

“I participated in the discussion exploring the concept of standards for advisory services to ensure disability inclusion and accountability.

CIP supported me in developing the policy paper on disability support allowance which is now a proposed law in the Congress.

I facilitated the partnership of CIP with Persons with Disability Affairs Office of Batangas Province to implement the pilot Disability Data Management System which lead to additional support from UNPRD-ILO-UNICEF and UNESCAP.”

About

 

Abner is a disability rights activist who is based in Manila, Philippines. He co-founded Life Haven Center for Independent Living and several other organizations of persons with disabilities. He is one of the core members of the Philippine Coalition on UNCRPD who is responsible in submitting several treaties to CRPD, ESCR including CSO report on SDGs.

He is actively promoting accessibility and development of support services particularly the establishment of personal assistance system and access to assistive products. He has supported disability inclusion in numerous development projects working with JICA, Australian Aid, the World Bank, ADB, ASB Indonesia-Philippines, Philippines Institute for Development Studies and many other organizations. He has been involved in the study on inclusiveness World Bank funded projects such as the flagship 4Ps cash transfer program and is presently working with Oxfam Policy Management and NOSSAL Institute for the research project on the study of the cost of raising children with disabilities and the Disability Data Management System in Batangas.

He also provides training on the rights of persons with disabilities as well as disability inclusion in projects, programs or activities. He participated in different policy discussion such as the social protection floor, the revised Philippine Social Protection Framework, The Philippine Development Plan, Philippine National Standards on Public Utility Vehicle, and many others including the proposed law on disability support allowance.

Abner is a member of various committees such as the National Council on Disability Affairs’ Subcommittee on Accessibility and Built Environment, Subcommittee on Auxiliary Social Services, Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Sub-Committee on Social Protection and the Department of Trade and Industry’s Bureau of Product Standards – Technical Committee on Road Vehicle (TC-44).

SHIVANI GUPTA

“I participated in and undertook different activities like supporting the writing of a policy paper on support services, doing desk research and interviews on challenges in DPO participation, developing the content for an online on accessibility; being a regional researcher for research commissioned by WHO on the impact of COVID19 on support services. I also got an opportunity to participate at the Social Protection Week 2019 organised by the Asian Development Bank and attended a workshop on “Strengthening advocacy for social protection reforms that promote inclusion of persons with disabilities exchange and learning week.”

About

 

Shivani Gupta is passionate about independent living for persons with disabilities in less-resourced areas. Her areas of work include improving physical accessibility and support services.

She co-founded AccessAbility in 2006, a consultancy working with different stakeholders including the government, private companies and organizations of persons with disabilities and UN agencies to promote inclusion and accessibility of persons with disabilities. She has largely worked in India and also in Asia Pacific countries in collaboration with CIP, CBM, IDA  and others for accessibility audits and training in accessibility and disability rights. She has co-authored publications pertaining to accessibility in physical environments, public procurement, assistive devices, support services especially from the context of less-resourced rural villages.  She is also the author of ‘No Looking Back’ inspired by her own life experiences as a woman with disabilities living in India.

She holds an MSc in Inclusive Environments: Design from the University of Reading, UK and a PhD from the University of Maastricht, Netherland.