Our Beginnings in China Vision

China Vision was set up by a group of individuals with a strong interest in China, disability, the media and human rights. Several of the original trustees of China Vision are now trustees or associates of ABB. China Vision’s initial purpose was to support education for visually impaired people in China. At first we supported study visits to the UK by visually impaired and sighted teachers. Later we helped launch the first independent radio production centre run by and for visually impaired people in Beijing. Since the early 2000s China Vision has run and supported numerous disability rights initiatives in China.

Development of Our Work

Over the past quarter century most of China Vision’s – and now ABB’s – work to support disabled people’s rights and self-advocacy in China and beyond, has focused on the centrality of lived experience and authentic voices. In 2006 China Vision supported the establishment of One Plus One, one of China’s first fully independent disabled people’s organisations (DPOs), and we jointly created a radio production service run by and for visually impaired people. Later China Vision worked in the field of pan-disability, supporting groups and individuals to learn, organise and develop practical solutions to improve the lives of disabled people and their families across China and East Asia.

Putting Principles into Practice

A very important part of China Vision’s work has been researching and promoting the values and principles of international human rights law, especially the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). As a signatory of the CRPD, China is obliged to implement this convention over time and, with the active involvement of disabled people and their communities, much has been achieved since the country ratified in 2008. China Vision has supported research and learning by disabled individuals and DPOs, who have advocated for policy reform in education, employment, personal autonomy and other fields. We have also supported the development of pre-school inclusive education, to help give children with special needs a better start in life.