The Inclusive Communication and People with Disabilities Working Group (ICO) recently organised two webinars on inclusive communication. The aim of the webinars was to bring together leading scholars as presenters to amplify international discussions on inclusivity, accessibility, and equity in media and communication research. Together the webinars were attended by 150 participants and were live-streamed both on Zoom or Teams and Tencent.
What is inclusive communication? International perspectives
The IAMCR webinar on ‘What is Inclusive Communication’ took place on 17 January, 2025. It focused on ethical dimensions of inclusive communication, how people with disability can be both included and invisible in digital media as well as media representations and digital experiences of people with disabilities in China.
The webinar featured eminent speakers: Associate Professor Meryl Alper from Northeastern University, USA, Professor Lorenzo Dalvit from Rhodes University, South Africa and Professor Zhongxuan Lin from Jinan University, China. The webinar was chaired by Assistant Professor Victor Zhuang from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, with a welcome from IAMCR Vice-President Andrea Medrado and moderated by Professor Paula Saukko, Loughborough University, UK and vice-chair of ICO with Shahla Adnan, Fatima Jinah Women University, Pakistan, and co-chair of ICO concluding.
Watch the recording of the webinar at https://iamcr.org/webinars/inclusive-communication
Spotlight on Research on Inclusive Communication and People with Disabilities in China
ICO also organised a webinar, with an in-person event at Tsinghua University, China on Spotlight on Research on Inclusive Communication and People with Disabilities in China on 22 November, 2024. The webinar discussed the historical development of disability studies in China, psychobiological aspects of inclusive communication and experiences of academics with disabilities and featured an experimental collaborative deaf-hearing documentary.
The speakers were leading Chinese scholars in the area: Professor Zhongxuan Lin, Jinan University, Associate Professor Qiaolei Jiang, Tsinghua University, Professor Xuan Zheng, Beijing Normal University, Professor Yuping Zhang from Guangzhou University and Miss Jing Cui, Miss Xiaoting Sun, and Miss Wanchen, members of the "ProSigner," a deaf public welfare group, with Professor Panayiota Tsatsou, Birmingham City University, UK, and co-chair of ICO responding. The event was hosted by Yuqiao Yan from Tsinghua University and Ying Lai, University of California, Davis, both vice-chairs of ICO.
Watch the recording of the webinar at https://meeting.tencent.com/crm/NQQ5y8Q520 (password: ETBW)