15/10/2026
Save the Date!
We are delighted to announce that the 18th International Disability Law Summer School will take place from the 15 –17 June 2027 at the University of Galway and online!
Theme: Disability, Gender and the Rights to Care and Support
The 18th International Disability Law Summer School will centre disabled people’s insights in exploring how care and support rights can be achieved for all. Transforming care systems to recognise the social and economic value of care is a central part of feminist movements’ work to achieve gender equality. Disabled people’s social movements have opposed paternalistic, medicalised and charity-focused ideologies of care. Instead, they have called for deinstitutionalisation and for human rights-based support systems rooted in autonomy that promote independent living and community inclusion.
While disabled people’s human rights to support have been recognised in the UNCRPD, in recent years discussions have emerged on a wider human right to care. These discussions also acknowledge that disabled people, particularly disabled women, are not only recipients but also providers of care and support. This has led to an increased recognition of the need to create care and support systems that are human rights-based, disability-inclusive, gender-responsive, and age-sensitive.
This year’s Summer School will explore the alliances and tensions that have emerged within social movements and advocacy campaigns to recognise care and support rights. Bringing together intergenerational, intersectional, and cross-cultural perspectives, the programme will investigate how integrated, human rights-based care and support systems can respect the autonomy and dignity of everyone involved. By exploring the history of care and support and current challenges and opportunities, participants will also be invited to imagine how these systems may evolve in the future.
Registration will open shortly.
University of Galway School of Law | Institute for Lifecourse and Society | |
