“Signing for Safety: Advancing Deaf-Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction”
“Hands That Warn, Hands That Save: Promoting Deaf-Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction”
“Deaf Inclusion Saves Lives: Recognising the Right to Sign Languages in Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies”
On the second day of the WFD Conference, Ms Peninnah Vulimu, WFD Disasters Risk Reduction Officer (DRRO) and Ms Susana Stiglich, WFD Sign Language Rights Officer (SLRO) delivered an important keynote-style presentation titled “A Changing World- Ensuring Sign Language Rights in a Time of Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction.” The 40-minute presentation highlighted the growing risks of climate emergencies and the systemic exclusion of deaf communities from disaster preparedness, emergency alerts, and recovery strategies. The presentation was structured around four key points:
- Introduction to the climate crisis and disaster risk reduction
- Challenges that deaf communities face
- Sign language as a human right
- Call to action
Ms Vulimu opened the session by outlining how overlapping global emergencies—ranging from natural disasters, such as wildfires, floods, and heatwaves, to man-made disasters, including war conflicts, displacement, and crises—have an outsized impact on deaf people. Deaf communities are frequently left out of emergency planning and have limited access to life-saving information in national sign languages. She illustrated that in emergencies and situations of risk, sign language and accessibility are crucial, the importance of deaf communities, through their national association of the deaf, being consulted and participating in preparedness efforts, response, and policy making.
Ms Stiglich presented the legal framework around this issue and how to advocate for sign language rights using the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), the Sendai Framework’s call for inclusive disaster risk reduction and the the right to accessible communication for all.
Both presenters concluded their participation with a call to action with the following recommendations:
- Governments and organisations must embed accessibility and inclusion in emergency response systems, following the legal international framework related to climate change and disaster risk reduction, which is intertwined with sign language rights.
- Deaf-led solutions: Involving deaf communities can drive more sustainable and effective strategies. Deaf organisations must be involved in decision-making at all levels.
Shortly after the presentation, the speakers led an activity where participants divided into groups tasked with developing pitches related to the theme and delivered a short presentation on the outcome of their discussions.
About the Conference and presenters:
Ensuring sign language rights in the context of climate change and disaster risk reduction was presented as the opening keynote presentation in the WFD Conference in Nairobi, Kenya on August 13th, 2025.
Plenary Presenters: Ms Susana Stiglich (Peru) & Ms Penninah Vulimu (Kenya), WFD Staff with expertise on Sign Language Rights and Disaster Risk Reduction.
