Her Abilities is the first global award honouring the achievements of women with disabilities. Light for the World is the founder of the award. With this award, we aim to honour women with disabilities who achieved greatness in their life and field of work.
The First Global Award honouring the achievements of women with Disabilities.
Her Abilities Q & A
What is the origin and aim of this award?
Her Abilities is the first global award honouring women with disabilities who have achieved greatness in their life or field of work. It is a pioneering initiative, launched in 2018 by Light for the World along with Right Livelihood Award winner Yetnebersh Nigussie.
With this award, we aim to honour women with disabilities who achieved greatness in their life and field of work.
The disability rights activist and Light for the World advisor, Yetnebersh Nigussie, is a key spokesperson for Her Abilities.
Yetnebersh Nigussie was inspired by winning the Right Livelihood Award in 2017 and the Spirit of Helen Keller Award last year, and wants to give back to the disability community by championing an initiative to celebrate other women with disabilities who have achieved amazing things.
Who decides on the winner?
Light for the World is the founder of the Award and will organise the judging process.
An independent awards jury decide on one winner in each of the three categories.
This jury is made up of strong female role models with and without disabilities, representing different industries and areas of life.
If we receive more than 50 nominations, Light for the World will make a pre-selection. This is to ensure that the judging does not take too much time and is as easy as possible.
Light for the World will not influence the final decision making.
What are the categories?
- There are three categories:
- Health & Education : Women with disabilities from the health or education sector, including but not limited to: teachers, teaching assistants, headmasters, university professors, doctors, surgeons, nurses, community health workers, etc.
- Rights : Women with disabilities from the advocacy and rights sector, who advocate for the rights of people with disabilities and their inclusion. They could be working for an NGO or charity, a business, within a governmental organisation, or simply in their local communities to achieve vital change.
- Arts, Culture & Sports :Women with disabilities from the arts, culture and sports sectors, including but not limited to: artists, actors, comedians, poets, Paralympians, runners, singers, swimmers, writers, etc.
When do nominations open?
Nominations open on 8th March 2019 (International Women’s Day) and close on 21st June 2019.
Who can nominate?
Everyone is eligible to nominate except members of the jury.
Who can be nominated?
Women with disabilities (from the age of 18) can be nominated. They must fit into one of the three categories mentioned above.
Who cannot be nominated?
- Jury members and their family members
- Light for the World staff and Board members
- Anyone who does not identify as a woman with a disability
How do nominations work?
Please use the nomination form provided on the Her Abilities website. In case you find the online form difficult to use, you can also download it, fill it in, and email it to her-abilities@light-for-the-world.org. All nominees and their nominators will be contacted by the ending of the judging process.
What criteria will the jury use to judge the winners?
The jury will consider the following primary criteria in judging the winner:
- Impact
To what extent this person has achieved excellence in their life and field of work - Recognition
If this person has an untold or underreported story which particularly deserves to be told - Relevance
If this person’s story has a relevance to current rights and social debates, which could inspire others into action
In addition the jury may, as a secondary consideration, look at the balance between the three category winners in any given year (including e.g. geographical spread, diversity in personal profiles, and types of achievement).
What do the winners win?
The benefits for the winners are:
- They will join a celebrated network of other successful women who commit to finding opportunities to support each other in their further pursuit of justice, equality and excellence.
- Light for the World will open their networks and will try to ensure speaking opportunities for the winners.
- Light for the World’s communications team will promote the winners’ stories via media and online work, ensuring they and their projects get more of the public attention they deserve.
- They will receive a certificate and a physical award.
Her Abilities is a purely honorary award.