As a person living with physical disabilities, Wuri Handayani can attest to the fact that the problem is not the disability; rather, it’s the lack of access, opportunity, and empathy.
“In 1993, I was a pharmacy student when I experienced an accident and had to be on a wheelchair for my whole life. Then the school asked me to move to another faculty because they didn’t have any facilities for disabled students,” she recounts. “At the time, I insisted on remaining; however, after only one semester, I realised that it was too difficult to continue. So I began to study accounting where there was no laboratory activity. It was much easier for me.”
However, it was her experience at the University of Leeds (where she obtained her Master of Disability and Social Policy) and the University of Hull (where she received her PhD) that left a lasting impression on her.
She adds, “When I had the opportunity to continue my study in the UK, the universities facilitated my needs, whether academic or non-academic. In fact, they sent me a list of questions on what they needed to do to facilitate my study. So when I returned to Indonesia in 2018 and had the opportunity to join Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), one of the biggest universities in Indonesia, I tried to adopt a similar system as I had promised myself.”
With this idea in mind, Wuri assembled a team and proceeded to create her project, which focuses on peer support. “We are developing a buddy system, in which able-bodied students assist and give support to disabled students in everyday campus life,” she explains. “This is especially important at UGM, where there’s a number of students with disabilities; however, there’s no special unit to cater to them yet. Therefore, this project aims to raise awareness on disabilities and provide an inclusive atmosphere for all students, whether able-bodied or disabled.”
As part of the project, Wuri and her team will conduct a survey on UGM students with disabilities to identify and develop the right strategies to raise awareness. “Based on our study, the level of awareness can be increased through direct interactions and different forms of media, from videos to posters,” she elaborates. “So we are trying to develop a visual-based campaign based on the preliminary study. For every step of this project, which we envision can be completed in the span of six months, we have determined the Key Performance Indicator. For example, for the survey, we are targeting to distribute at least 300 questionnaires, in coordination with the directorate of students Universitas Gadjah Mada. And then, for the buddy system, we are targeting at least 10 students with disabilities and 50 able-bodied students. We will develop their level of confidence and encourage them to raise their voice, understand their rights, and plan for their study and future career.”
Despite being optimistic about undertaking the project, Wuri also recognises its challenges. “We acknowledge that many students are not willing to declare their disabilities because of their hesitancy or fear of being discriminated against, especially the new students,” she notes. “This is why our project focuses on recruiting and training able-bodied students to form a body that provides physical and academic support for disabled students. Aside from the support, all they need at the end of the day is simply understanding and being heard.”
In this project, Wuri is approaching University of Leeds’ Disability Services to support this project. Last year, she approached one of staff at the University of Leeds to help us in planning the establishment of a disability service at UGM,” she says. “In the future, I plan to invite them to a Zoom meeting to share their experience on managing their volunteers so more people can be exposed to their work and its importance. All in all, we hope that this project creates a more inclusive environment in academic spaces, so that aspiring academics with disabilities dare to dream bigger and aim higher.”
