WeThe15, which aims to be the biggest ever human rights movement to represent the world’s 1.2 billion persons with disabilities, was named the International Campaign of the Year at the 2022 Sport Industry Awards.
Held in London, United Kingdom on 12 May, the prestigious annual awards celebrate achievements in the global sports industry, from the delivery of sports events to using sport as a catalyst for social change.
Launched in August 2021 ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, WeThe15 is a decade-long movement that aims to end discrimination towards persons with disabilities and campaign globally for disability visibility, accessibility, inclusion, and equality of rights.
The movement is spearheaded by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and International Disability Alliance (IDA), together with a coalition of international organisations, Instrumental to the success of WeThe15, which has now picked up eight major international awards, has been the input from adam&eveDDB, Pentagram, Fleishman Hillard, Porter Novelli and Portland.
The Sport Industry Award was presented by international snooker players Judd Trump and Jack Lisowski to IPC President Andrew Parsons and IDA Executive Director Vladimir Cuk.
Andrew Parsons, IPC President, said: “WeThe15 is a movement that organises campaigns to amplify the voices of 1.2 billion persons with disabilities, and every award that WeThe15 wins helps us raise awareness that 15 percent of the world has a disability.
“We are especially pleased that our sporting peers have recognised the launch campaign of WeThe15 because sport is fundamental to its success. Over the next decade the IPC, Special Olympics, Invictus Games Foundation and the Deaflympics will work together to use the profile of our athletes and international sport events to engage the 85 percent without disabilities in conversations and get them to commit to change that helps advance the lives of persons with disabilities.”
Vladimir Cuk, the Executive Director of IDA, added: "The International Disability Alliance is very proud to have jointly won the International Campaign of the Year at the Sports Industry Awards 2022 with the IPC and the entire WeThe15 network.
“Every industry and every community – from sports to business to nonprofit – need to be a part of this campaign so that we can change the global narrative around the rights of persons with disabilities in every corner of the world. The change is happening, and this award is the best possible testimony for that.
“We are on a 10-year journey with this campaign, and we are inviting each and every one of you to join us. We, at IDA, are especially proud and excited about our partnership with the IPC. We are sure that this award is only the beginning."
WeThe15 brings together the biggest coalition ever of international organisations from the worlds of sport, human rights, policy, business, arts, and entertainment, including representative organisations of persons with disabilities. Together they will work with governments, businesses, and the public over the next decade to initiate change.
The founding partners in WeThe15 are the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and International Disability Alliance (IDA), Special Olympics, Invictus Games Foundation, the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf (Deaflympics), UN Human Rights, UNESCO, the UN SDG Action Campaign, the European Commission, The Valuable 500, Global Citizen, Global Disability Innovation Hub, the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), International Disability and Development Consortium, C-Talent, Global Goals Advisory, ATscale – the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, Zero Project, and the Global Alliance of Assistive Technology Organisations (GAATO).