Fostering disability-inclusive societies for advancing social progress is a commitment that requires a mindset shift. It also happens to be this year’s theme for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, December 3, 2025.
What it asks of us is simple but transformative: move past symbolic gestures and build systems where everyone has access to tools that help them grow, work and contribute. Inclusion is about recognising ability in its many forms and ensuring that opportunity isn’t limited to a single type of body or mind.
At NTI, we’ve learned that inclusion isn’t shaped on the outside looking in. It starts with the voices of persons with disabilities at the centre of the decision-making. We should never presume to know their needs; we need to learn from them and let that insight direct how we build, adapt and serve.
As our Change Artivist, Maria Holder-Small, reminds us, “If we lived by the golden rule and treated each other in that way then a lot of man-made problems wouldn’t exist.” That simple principle of treating people as we would want to be treated is, at its core, the foundation of social progress.
And when inclusion is lived rather than performed, the impact becomes visible. When a visually impaired learner completes a course and earns a certificate, that is social progress. When a person living with a disability uses digital skills to strengthen a business, that is social progress. When someone who has been overlooked finds confidence, competence and community through learning, that is social progress.
The NTI–Coursera platform was built to be flexible and accessible, allowing learners to engage through smartphones, adaptive tools and eLearning support. The aim is simple: remove barriers that don’t need to exist.
We also know we’re not finished. There is still much to learn in how we support and advocate for persons with disabilities, and that growth will be continuous. Every one of us at NTI has encountered moments that offered a new perspective: a learner’s email, a phone call, a conversation at an outreach, a moment of frustration at an event. These experiences have shaped us, sometimes quietly, sometimes boldly, and reminded us that inclusion isn’t taught once; it is learned repeatedly.
We are especially grateful to our Change Artivist, Maria Holder-Small, whose lived experience and guidance push us to check our assumptions, widen our perspective and do better every single day.
A disability-inclusive Barbados isn’t something we hope for; it is something we create. It begins when we choose to learn about disabilities, engage with our PWD community and create environments where every person has the opportunity to grow.
