CHENNAI: The Headway Foundation, a NGO that works for enhancing and emphasising the capacity of deserving individuals and communities, and obliterating the social stigma around people with disabilities (PwD), recently conducted its first annual one-day conference — ‘Inclusive India conclave 2018'.
K Raghavi Senthilkumar, founder, Headway Foundation, walks us through her journey and talks about the success of the event. Raghavi was affected by polio when she was three months old. "I grew up in a wheelchair and endured a lot of struggle — from lack of inclusivity in education, employment and so on," says the founder, a BTech graduate, who also went on to do a programme in Master of Business Administration.
"I was extremely passionate about training people and went on to become a human resource manager," she says, adding that she is a PhD in HR. The urge to open conversations on inclusivity and to fight against the tide, led Raghavi to start her own NGO in 2016. "Since I had more than a decade of experience in HR, I decided to put that to use in helping and empowering different communities...especially the differently abled," she says.
"We also curate blood donation, organ and stem cell donation drives," she adds. The one-day conclave’s aim was to take such conversations to a bigger platform. "I had the idea to flag a conclave since the NGOs inception. But, it had to happen at the right time. We had great support from several people, brands and organisations, making the first edition a successful one," she says. Over 150 delegates from various walks of life — educationalists, entrepreneurs, actors and change makers— participated. "I wanted to break the norm when it came to speakers who addressed the audience.
So, we had speakers with hearing and speech disabilities, cerebral palsy and other disabilities talk about their experience, ordeals and solutions for a inclusive society," she adds. K Maragadham Kumaravel, Member of Parliament, Abhinaya, actor, Raja Krishnamoorthy, actor, Kumaravel CK, cofounder, Naturals and Naturals Enable, Babloo Prithviraj and Snehan were also a part of the event.
Headway Foundation
Bringing a change in attitude in society, education, voicing concerns on accessibility for PwDs in public spaces, employment gap and inclusive marriage are a few aspects which the NGO has been working on. Over 150 delegates from various walks of life — educationists, actors and change makers participated in the conference.