Innovators of the Week: Miftahul and Aswin

Inclusive E-Drawing Book

Led by: Miftahul and Aswin
Special Olympics Indonesia

The following post was written by Miftahul and Aswin, Special Olympics Youth Leaders from Indonesia. Miftahul and Aswin make it their mission to strengthen inclusion within their community. Check out how they #innovateforinclusion!

Through the E-Drawing Book project, we hoped to use technology and interactive art applications more specifically to highlight the talent and potential of individuals with intellectual disabilities. In our community, the stereotypes of people with disabilities are negative and focused on pity and barriers rather than empowerment, so we wanted to enact change for inclusion.

Unified events such as this are quite uncommon, but with the support of Microsoft, we were able to make this collaborative and unified activity a reality. Over the course of 3 months, this project gave athletes an opportunity to participate in training and ultimately produce their own images. This event gave athletes the opportunity to work independently and show off their skills.

Every meeting was full of laughter and new friendships which made the experience unforgettable. The E-Drawing Book Project, in which 25 athletes and 15 Youth Leaders participated, was held from September to November and closed with the printing of the masterpieces created on t-shirts and tote bags. I am so glad that athletes and others will be able to look back and be proud of all that was accomplished in 3 months.

The Special Olympics Youth Innovation Grant initiative is supported through partnerships with SNF, Hasbro Inc., the Office of Special Education Programs at the United States Department of Education, Samuel Family Foundation, Microsoft Corporation, Lane Global Youth Leadership, PMIEF, and Kantar. Learn more about these inspiring projects at SpecialOlympicsGlobalYouthProjects.org.