What:
- Special Olympics Singapore conducted a Unified Leadership training session for employees from Edwards Lifesciences.
- The session was 90 minutes long. It was facilitated by an athlete leader and staff members from Special Olympics Singapore.
- The session taught participants how they can become Unified Leaders. Unified Leaders value and learn from people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
- The facilitators also led participants in a meaningful discussion on how they can create more inclusive environments for people with IDD.
Why/How:
- Special Olympics Singapore staff worked with athlete leader, Gabriel Lee, to develop a script for facilitation.
- Rehearsals were held before the actual session.
- “It is my first time co-facilitating in such a project. I was nervous at first but with help from Special Olympics Singapore staff, encouraging me and going through many practice sessions with me, I did it.” – Gabriel Lee, Special Olympics Singapore athlete leader
Achievements:
- 4 senior staff members from Edwards Lifesciences participated in the session.
- It was a highly interactive session where participants asked questions, expressing their willingness to learn more about IDD, and engaged in meaningful discussion on how they can create more inclusive environments for people with IDD.
- Athlete leader, Gabriel Lee, feels that Unified Leadership training helps in changing attitudes and behaviours towards people with IDD: “It is important for us to share about Unified Leadership to more companies. This will create more job opportunities for persons with IDD. Diversity is good, but inclusion is so much better. Inclusion is diversity in action. We believe that with Unified Leadership, people like me with IDD, and people from other disadvantaged groups will finally have the opportunities we have deserved for so long, but never had the chance to pursue.”
What we learnt:
- Ask athlete leaders for their feedback and input when working with them to develop scripts for facilitation.
- Encourage athlete leaders to voice out. Listen actively to what they have to say.
- Be patient and guide athlete leaders. Their contributions are key to the success of the session.
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