Early 2025 Update, March Webinar, and Chat List

4 Mar

Dear Supporters,

We hope you had a restful start to the year. The United Blind Leaders (UBL) leadership team took a break over Christmas, but we’ve been working hard behind the scenes to prepare for an exciting and impactful year ahead.

Standing in Solidarity

We want to take a moment to send our solidarity and support to blind people in the United States. Many Government employees are facing termination and harmful and inappropriate stereotyping of blind people is occurring in political discourse. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) has issued a statement on this issue. We stand with them in calling for systemic change. Ensuring that blind people have meaningful employment, including in leadership roles, is at the core of our advocacy.

Upcoming Webinar: "What is Blind Leadership?"

📅 Wednesday, 13 March 2024
⏰ 7:30 PM AEDT
📍 Online – Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_YnXNoGyWTz2-OMk97uZaiw

We’re kicking off the year with an important discussion: "What is Blind Leadership?" Our panel of speakers will explore leadership from a blindness perspective, and the UBL leadership Team will provide updates on our strategic plan and current activities. This will also be an opportunity for you to ask questions and contribute to the conversation. We encourage all supporters to attend!

Building Meaningful Partnerships

Over the past few months, we’ve been connecting with several blindness agencies in Australia and internationally to develop collegial and mutually beneficial relationships. These include:

Australia: Blind Citizens Australia, Guide Dogs Victoria, Guide Dogs NSW and Vision Australia
Internationally: National Federation of the Blind (USA), World Blind Union

These discussions are vital in strengthening our collective voice and ensuring that blind leadership is supported at all levels. We thank these organisations for their willingness to engage with us and look forward to continuing to strengthen relationships in 2025.

UBL Chat List – Join the Conversation

As mentioned in a previous update, we’ve set up a UBL chat list to provide a space for ongoing discussion, idea-sharing, and connection between supporters. If you haven’t joined yet, we encourage you to subscribe and be part of the conversation.

To subscribe, simply send a blank email to ubl-chat+subscribe@groups.io.

This is a great way to stay engaged, share insights, and connect with others who are passionate about blind leadership.

BCA 2025 Convention

Blind Citizens Australia will host its 50th Anniversary Convention in Melbourne from June 13 to 15. This will be a key event for the blind community in Australia and will provide a great opportunity for renewing or making new friendships. To find out more, visit BCA’s 2025 convention page.

Thank you for your ongoing support. We look forward to seeing you at our upcoming webinar and working together to advance blind leadership in 2025.

In solidarity,

United Blind Leaders

June Bennison