WEBVTT - Equal Too: The Decade Ahead 0:00:01.120 --> 0:00:04.000 There's a young boy wanting to obstacles cut up from 0:00:04.000 --> 0:00:08.280 our surgery, prosthetic picts burgery telling me I'm normal, but normal. 0:00:08.360 --> 0:00:12.280 They never really make see they are always paying, discriminated 0:00:12.320 --> 0:00:16.880 but levitated to all. So are we true disability is 0:00:16.880 --> 0:00:20.600 the forgotten diversity, the one ever needs our speeches. Disability 0:00:20.640 --> 0:00:23.800 gets relegated about. We can make a difference, We can 0:00:23.920 --> 0:00:26.400 support the one point to be in personal with disability. 0:00:27.000 --> 0:00:30.319 Let's say in a different way. Each individual has a 0:00:30.400 --> 0:00:32.960 voice in our world today that didn't used to be there. 0:00:33.360 --> 0:00:37.320 Galvanizing those voices in support of the Paralympic movement is 0:00:37.360 --> 0:00:39.600 I think what the story of is going to be 0:00:39.640 --> 0:00:41.680 about now. You need to build the extra mile and 0:00:41.720 --> 0:00:45.320 include fifteen percent of your population that is not put 0:00:45.320 --> 0:00:50.440 including since twelve, I think the Paralympics, says made a 0:00:50.600 --> 0:00:53.559 huge shift in a positive direction in the consciousness of 0:00:53.640 --> 0:00:57.960 the public and sports uh media as well as sports fans. 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:08.840 But you know it, stall if there is a continued progress, 0:01:17.600 --> 0:01:32.440 how be yeah M. In the first five episodes of 0:01:32.480 --> 0:01:35.679 this podcast series, we've learned a lot about the world 0:01:35.680 --> 0:01:37.880 in which we live and how much work there is 0:01:37.920 --> 0:01:41.240 to do to achieve true equality. For the disabled community. 0:01:42.120 --> 0:01:44.600 We have learned about the change that the Paralympics has 0:01:44.600 --> 0:01:47.640 helped to bring about and discussed in broad terms where 0:01:47.680 --> 0:01:53.240 the world now stands on legislation, representation, inclusive design and employment. 0:01:53.880 --> 0:01:56.600 So in this final episode, I want to focus on 0:01:56.640 --> 0:01:59.680 the future. Join me as I speak to leading figures 0:01:59.680 --> 0:02:03.280 from boards and sports, television, business leaders and entrepreneurs and 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:07.960 disabled activists about the potential in the decade Ahead. I'm 0:02:08.000 --> 0:02:12.600 Sophie Morgan. This is equal to episode six The Decade Ahead. 0:02:24.280 --> 0:02:27.000 I want to start this episode with an extract from 0:02:27.000 --> 0:02:30.000 a speech made by the multiple Bafter and Tony Award 0:02:30.040 --> 0:02:34.119 winning writer Jack Thorne, an English screenwriter and playwright who 0:02:34.160 --> 0:02:38.160 developed colinergic Cutakaria when he was twenty years old, and 0:02:38.200 --> 0:02:40.760 it's perhaps best known for his recent adaptation of his 0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:44.160 dark materials and the West End hit Harry Potter and 0:02:44.200 --> 0:02:47.799 The Curse Child. And he's an executive producer on ht 0:02:47.919 --> 0:02:51.720 white S forthcoming TV series on the Tokyo Games. Jack 0:02:51.800 --> 0:02:55.639 no longer identifies as disabled, but remains a passionate advocate 0:02:55.680 --> 0:02:59.480 for the community. Last month, he gave them a Taggert 0:02:59.560 --> 0:03:03.080 lecture at the Edinburgh TV Festival and use the speech 0:03:03.120 --> 0:03:06.000 to tell the television industry some hard truths about the 0:03:06.000 --> 0:03:08.880 reality of living with a disability. In the UK in 0:03:08.960 --> 0:03:12.440 recent months, the journalist Francis Ryan wrote this in one 0:03:12.440 --> 0:03:15.919 of her brilliant bursts of anger. What happened to our 0:03:16.200 --> 0:03:19.959 most vulnerable during the pandemic was not some terrible tragedy. 0:03:20.880 --> 0:03:23.680 It was the all too predictable consequence of a system 0:03:23.720 --> 0:03:27.520 that decided the lives of disabled and older people mattered 0:03:27.600 --> 0:03:31.760 less than those of the rest. I think that no 0:03:31.760 --> 0:03:35.480 one can doubt those words are true and that system 0:03:35.520 --> 0:03:39.000 was ours. So all I'm hoping for is a chink, 0:03:39.000 --> 0:03:41.920 a chink of change, And once people realize how valuable 0:03:41.960 --> 0:03:45.240 disabled people are, how consumable, the story suddenly will be 0:03:45.280 --> 0:03:49.320 washed through with them and no longer will inspirational crip 0:03:49.400 --> 0:03:53.400 be the model, and maybe hopefully disabled people will be 0:03:53.400 --> 0:03:57.480 treated with an iote and more dignity. Disabled stories need 0:03:57.520 --> 0:03:59.520 to be told, and when they are told, they need 0:03:59.560 --> 0:04:03.280 to be told by disabled people. It's an obvious thing 0:04:03.320 --> 0:04:09.680 to say it isn't happening. Jack's speech exposed the television 0:04:09.680 --> 0:04:12.400 industry for its treatment of disabled people, both on and 0:04:12.560 --> 0:04:16.680 off screen. The conclusions he draws are echoed throughout this 0:04:16.880 --> 0:04:21.680 series that disabled people have been failed, not just in television, 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:25.839 but in every area of society. Disability is the forgotten diversity, 0:04:25.880 --> 0:04:29.760 the one everyone leaves out. Speeches, Gender, race, sexuality all 0:04:29.839 --> 0:04:35.000 rightly get discussed at length. Disability gets relegated out in 0:04:35.080 --> 0:04:39.839 conversations about representation, in action, plans and newer planning. Disability 0:04:39.960 --> 0:04:44.800 is confined to the corner. It remains an afterthought. You're 0:04:44.880 --> 0:04:50.320 such an inspiration, so brave you remind me to do. 0:04:52.440 --> 0:04:54.920 How can we ensure that in a decade from now 0:04:55.120 --> 0:04:58.520 the situation will be very different, not just within television 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:01.680 but across all sectors. Before the start of the Tokyo 0:05:02.360 --> 0:05:06.080 Paralympics last month, the International Paralympic Committee launched a new 0:05:06.120 --> 0:05:11.360 campaign titled We the Fifteen and I Think Spatial about us, 0:05:11.600 --> 0:05:15.400 We have more. We the Fifteen aims to transform the 0:05:15.480 --> 0:05:18.080 lives of the cent of the global population with a 0:05:18.160 --> 0:05:23.280 disability by bringing together a coalition of international organizations from 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:28.920 the worlds of sport, human rights, policy, communications, business, arts 0:05:29.200 --> 0:05:32.440 and entertainment. As explained by the i p c s 0:05:32.480 --> 0:05:36.400 President Andrew Parsons, the idea grew from a realization that 0:05:36.440 --> 0:05:38.520 the i p C had the power to turn the 0:05:38.560 --> 0:05:42.800 Paralympics into much more than a sporting event. It could 0:05:43.200 --> 0:05:52.000 and should become a global movement billion people. I remember 0:05:52.080 --> 0:05:55.920 in seventeen and was not a PC president, and I 0:05:56.040 --> 0:06:01.640 went to an event at the United Nations headquarters in 0:06:01.640 --> 0:06:04.520 New York, the cost which is the convention ont of 0:06:04.560 --> 0:06:07.960 the State parties who has signed the Conventional Rights of 0:06:08.040 --> 0:06:12.120 Persons with disability. And at that moment I realized, look, 0:06:13.600 --> 0:06:15.800 we are not really connected to this world. You know 0:06:15.839 --> 0:06:19.360 the Paralympic games we are doing. Let's say the games 0:06:19.360 --> 0:06:22.680 are fantastic. We they are relevant enough. Now we can 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:25.080 make a difference. We can support the one point to 0:06:25.160 --> 0:06:28.720 billion person with disability, let's say in a different way. 0:06:29.160 --> 0:06:33.000 That's what prompted discussions at our at the i PC 0:06:33.200 --> 0:06:36.320 board level, what can we do and then the idea 0:06:36.440 --> 0:06:39.839 of a movement, Attend your movement, attend your campaign. That 0:06:39.960 --> 0:06:41.760 was the idea that came to our mind, and how 0:06:41.800 --> 0:06:45.520 we could then create an initiate or this global movement, 0:06:45.520 --> 0:06:49.599 but bringing other sport organizations for for disabled people, but 0:06:49.680 --> 0:06:54.719 also some international organizations from different sectors. Because that was 0:06:54.800 --> 0:06:58.240 our conclusion, every four years is not enough. So I'm 0:06:58.279 --> 0:07:02.240 really proud where we of the having launched the with 0:07:02.400 --> 0:07:05.440 the fifteen, but it's only the beginning. Having just spent 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:08.159 two weeks in Tokyo, it is undeniable that the Tokyo 0:07:08.240 --> 0:07:11.640 Paralympics has been a success from a sporting perspective, but 0:07:11.760 --> 0:07:13.720 we will have to wait a bit longer to understand 0:07:13.800 --> 0:07:16.520 whether there has been a significant social impact in Japan. 0:07:17.160 --> 0:07:19.240 But we do know the power that the games can 0:07:19.360 --> 0:07:23.400 have and has had on individuals involved. In Tokyo. We 0:07:23.480 --> 0:07:28.000 met a blind volunteer who has felt that power. Mr 0:07:28.040 --> 0:07:30.880 Shagiru Kudo, a teacher at a special needs school for 0:07:30.880 --> 0:07:38.720 the blind community, tells us our needs. When you meet 0:07:38.760 --> 0:07:42.440 a visually impaired person for the first time, you don't 0:07:42.440 --> 0:07:44.880 always know what to say or how to help them 0:07:44.960 --> 0:07:49.120 right away, but after a day's work, you will see 0:07:49.240 --> 0:07:52.520 that the only difference is whether you can see or not, 0:07:53.280 --> 0:07:57.240 and other than that you are not different. Perhaps the 0:07:57.320 --> 0:08:01.240 experience of seeing different kinds of disabled people to lose 0:08:01.280 --> 0:08:04.840 the Paralympic Games has inspired them to do something for 0:08:04.920 --> 0:08:08.880 those like me who are close to them, to challenge themselves. 0:08:09.720 --> 0:08:12.800 I believe that communicating with each other in this way 0:08:13.040 --> 0:08:18.120 we lead to a symbiotic society where disabled people unable 0:08:18.200 --> 0:08:22.360 bodied people lived together. So I think the most important 0:08:22.400 --> 0:08:26.720 thing now is for people with disabilities to be active 0:08:26.840 --> 0:08:31.080 in society and to let the able body know about us. 0:08:32.120 --> 0:08:36.480 I'm sure that many disabled people, not just visually impaired, 0:08:36.760 --> 0:08:41.440 volunteered at the tok of Games. I believe that if 0:08:41.480 --> 0:08:44.439 we tell the world about this, the trend towards a 0:08:44.520 --> 0:08:49.719 symbiotic society between able bodied people and disabled people with 0:08:50.000 --> 0:08:57.600 spreadful out the world at future Palympic Games. In the meantime, 0:08:57.760 --> 0:09:01.320 let us look ahead. Paris four is less than three 0:09:01.440 --> 0:09:05.480 years away. Andrew Parsons is particularly keen to ensure that 0:09:05.520 --> 0:09:08.400 the Paralympics in France will not just be remembered for 0:09:08.440 --> 0:09:12.280 the sport, but for the change that it inspires. We 0:09:12.320 --> 0:09:14.480 are going to account that is all about, you know, 0:09:15.080 --> 0:09:24.600 um legally so egalitier equality is something absolutely fundamental to us, 0:09:24.600 --> 0:09:27.400 and this is what we want to to tell the 0:09:27.440 --> 0:09:30.199 French population. Look, it's in the foundation of your republic, 0:09:30.720 --> 0:09:32.680 but now you need to go the extra mile and 0:09:32.720 --> 0:09:38.880 include of your population that is not full included. Every 0:09:38.920 --> 0:09:43.959 great endeavor begins with a dream. Following Paris, the Winter 0:09:44.000 --> 0:09:48.280 Games will head to Milan Cortina in six, where Bebe Vio, 0:09:48.559 --> 0:09:52.360 the Italian wheelchair fencing star of the Rising Phoenix film 0:09:52.400 --> 0:09:55.160 and one of the world's most well known Paralympians who 0:09:55.240 --> 0:09:57.800 just won a gold medal in Tokyo, hopes that the 0:09:57.800 --> 0:10:00.280 hosting of the Games will also have a major packed 0:10:00.320 --> 0:10:03.440 on society and culture in her home country, but with 0:10:03.520 --> 0:10:07.600 particular emphasis on the younger generations. If you watch all 0:10:07.600 --> 0:10:09.560 the plan, if you can, if you if you read 0:10:09.559 --> 0:10:13.199 that old plan that you're doing for Cortina six, you 0:10:13.240 --> 0:10:16.520 can see that most of the project are gonna be 0:10:16.559 --> 0:10:19.160 based on the Paralympic movement, and they're going to be 0:10:19.200 --> 0:10:24.000 based on the young generation. And so Milana is gonna be, 0:10:24.040 --> 0:10:27.000 like I think it's gonna be something really great for us, 0:10:27.040 --> 0:10:30.840 because there are so many countries, like so many cities 0:10:30.800 --> 0:10:33.560 in Italy which are which are like perfect for people 0:10:33.600 --> 0:10:35.760 with disability. I can say like Milan, I can say 0:10:35.800 --> 0:10:38.360 like Cortina is growing up much better in this year. 0:10:38.440 --> 0:10:41.200 And also we're doing so many projects with the city 0:10:41.240 --> 0:10:47.439 of Cortina because they want to be much more without barrier, 0:10:47.880 --> 0:10:51.559 without like much more disability friendly in some way, and 0:10:51.679 --> 0:10:55.400 so they're living in fact that the Paralympic Game can 0:10:55.400 --> 0:10:59.240 really change mentality of much of other people. Talking to 0:10:59.320 --> 0:11:02.400 Andrew and Bay, you get the sense of a real purpose, 0:11:02.960 --> 0:11:06.400 energy and vision for the decade ahead which goes far 0:11:06.520 --> 0:11:09.600 beyond a two weeks sporting event, and just like any 0:11:09.600 --> 0:11:14.000 other movement, it needs investment and support. Major brands are 0:11:14.040 --> 0:11:17.520 increasingly recognizing the value of the Paralympics and want to 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:20.760 align their own ambitions with those of the movement and 0:11:20.800 --> 0:11:24.240 the athletes and help them achieve their goals. One of 0:11:24.280 --> 0:11:27.080 the first businesses that really understood this, as mentioned in 0:11:27.120 --> 0:11:30.599 episode one, was Sainsbury's, a leading supermarket chain here in 0:11:30.640 --> 0:11:33.880 the UK. Their CEO at the time was Justin King 0:11:34.160 --> 0:11:36.880 and we spoke to him about why Sainsbury's got involved 0:11:36.880 --> 0:11:41.320 with London. The decision for the Sainsbury's board was not 0:11:41.559 --> 0:11:45.400 a financially justified decision. That's not why we took the decision. 0:11:45.400 --> 0:11:48.400 It's not a presentation that said spend this money and 0:11:48.480 --> 0:11:51.640 this will be the payback. It was a decision that said, 0:11:52.080 --> 0:11:55.079 this is an agenda which is really meaningful for our 0:11:55.120 --> 0:11:58.480 customers and colleagues. With some big decisions we need to 0:11:58.480 --> 0:12:01.160 make as a business, where or not we get involved 0:12:01.200 --> 0:12:04.800 with the Paralympics. But if we are involved, it will 0:12:05.040 --> 0:12:07.240 raise the bar, you know, it will force us to 0:12:07.320 --> 0:12:11.760 be a bigger thinking and ultimately we'll get a better 0:12:11.800 --> 0:12:16.440 outcome as a result. I think the key learning for me, 0:12:16.960 --> 0:12:20.120 and it really was brought home by the involvement with 0:12:20.280 --> 0:12:26.240 the Paralympics, is that talent is multifaceted. You know, we 0:12:26.679 --> 0:12:31.040 know that today as we sit here in and there 0:12:31.040 --> 0:12:35.600 are other aspects of diversity which are perhaps grabbing the 0:12:35.640 --> 0:12:39.800 bigger headlines, but behind that there's a core truth which 0:12:39.880 --> 0:12:45.920 is diverse talent leads to better business outcomes. And so 0:12:46.000 --> 0:12:47.680 for me, right up there at the top of the 0:12:47.720 --> 0:12:53.600 learnings is to retain as broader perspective as possible on 0:12:53.960 --> 0:12:57.480 the shape that talent takes, the life journey that that 0:12:57.559 --> 0:13:02.360 talent has had, the particular experiences that they bring to 0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:06.840 your business. And that requires not just an open mind, 0:13:07.040 --> 0:13:13.040 but it does require most organizations to massively revisit the 0:13:13.040 --> 0:13:15.320 way that they bring people into the business, the way 0:13:15.320 --> 0:13:19.080 that they train them, the way that they select for 0:13:20.200 --> 0:13:25.240 investment in training and ultimately, hopefully promotions and development. We 0:13:25.320 --> 0:13:28.040 also spoke with Sarah Hershland, the CEO of the U 0:13:28.120 --> 0:13:31.640 S Olympic and Paralympic Committee. She is convinced that in 0:13:31.679 --> 0:13:35.600 the next decade, the commercial opportunities for the Paralympics are huge. 0:13:36.000 --> 0:13:41.080 We are already seeing a shift in the commercial interest 0:13:41.120 --> 0:13:45.479 in the Paralympics in our country. The notion of galvanizing 0:13:45.559 --> 0:13:49.440 the corporate community in support of these athletes is starting 0:13:49.440 --> 0:13:52.439 to happen in a tangible way in the United States. 0:13:52.440 --> 0:13:56.440 So I don't know that it will wait until um. 0:13:56.480 --> 0:13:58.480 I think we're going to be there well before that, 0:13:58.520 --> 0:14:00.920 and we're going to see real energy. But I think 0:14:00.960 --> 0:14:04.520 what we see from the commercial community, both on the 0:14:04.559 --> 0:14:09.360 broadcasting side also on the sort of corporate sponsor side, 0:14:09.920 --> 0:14:12.880 UM I think is going to be profound. But but 0:14:13.000 --> 0:14:15.880 what to me will be the most profound and I 0:14:15.880 --> 0:14:19.920 think will be very in place, and the structure will 0:14:19.960 --> 0:14:25.400 be there is a world in which the consumer sentiment 0:14:25.800 --> 0:14:30.080 comes shining through in in ways we can't possibly imagine, right. 0:14:30.160 --> 0:14:33.680 I mean, each individual has a voice in our world 0:14:33.720 --> 0:14:37.520 today that didn't used to be there. Galvanizing those voices 0:14:37.520 --> 0:14:40.200 in support of the Paralympic movement is I think what 0:14:40.320 --> 0:14:43.400 the story of is going to be about. What excites 0:14:43.440 --> 0:14:47.400 Sarah about these commercial opportunities is the muscularity they bring 0:14:47.480 --> 0:14:49.640 to the games to create what she believes will be 0:14:49.640 --> 0:14:53.000 the biggest social impact in the history of the Paralympics, 0:14:53.400 --> 0:14:55.600 telling me that she is convinced there is a new 0:14:55.640 --> 0:14:59.000 intersection between sport and culture that l A will as 0:14:59.000 --> 0:15:02.840 the entertainment center of the world, grasp un exploit in 0:15:02.880 --> 0:15:05.880 ways that we have never seen before. The Paralympic Games 0:15:05.880 --> 0:15:09.440 in Los Angeles is an opportunity to change our nation 0:15:09.600 --> 0:15:13.320 and potentially, you know, even beyond our borders. You know, 0:15:13.320 --> 0:15:17.640 the opportunity we have as building from Tokyo, building into 0:15:17.880 --> 0:15:20.160 on the Winter Side, through the Beijian Games, through the 0:15:20.160 --> 0:15:23.320 Paris Games, through the Milan Games. Each moment is an 0:15:23.320 --> 0:15:27.120 opportunity to expose a new a new set of faces 0:15:27.200 --> 0:15:28.920 to what this is all about. And if we do 0:15:29.000 --> 0:15:32.720 our jobs right, we will expose some of those individuals 0:15:33.160 --> 0:15:37.040 who are driving pop culture conversations. That could be film 0:15:37.080 --> 0:15:40.560 coming out of Hollywood, it could be music, and particularly 0:15:41.000 --> 0:15:44.040 coming out of the United States, there is always a 0:15:44.160 --> 0:15:47.360 huge opportunity to influence sort of pop culture and what 0:15:47.520 --> 0:15:50.760 is being talked about and what is being accepted. Michael Johnson, 0:15:50.920 --> 0:15:54.720 four time Olympic champion also recognizes the potential of the 0:15:54.840 --> 0:15:59.440 l A Games in to present an unprecedented opportunity for 0:15:59.480 --> 0:16:04.880 commercial sponsors since um I think the Paralympics have made 0:16:04.960 --> 0:16:08.360 a huge shift in a positive direction in the consciousness 0:16:08.360 --> 0:16:11.520 of the public and sports uh media as well as 0:16:11.560 --> 0:16:16.040 sports fans. But you know, it will stall if there 0:16:16.160 --> 0:16:23.320 isn't a continued UMH progress m l A, which I 0:16:23.360 --> 0:16:25.360 said on the board of I think that there is 0:16:25.400 --> 0:16:30.200 a tremendous opportunity to really more normalize the games. I 0:16:30.280 --> 0:16:32.880 don't want to minimize the progress that's been made in 0:16:32.960 --> 0:16:37.600 seeing Paralympic athletes as athletes and seeing Paralympics sport as 0:16:37.680 --> 0:16:40.880 sport as opposed to Hey, these are people that we 0:16:40.920 --> 0:16:43.920 should support and a bit of sympathy, which those athletes, 0:16:44.000 --> 0:16:46.880 you know, do not want. The Paralympic sport movement doesn't 0:16:46.920 --> 0:16:51.600 want sympathy. Wants to be recognized as true, compelling sport 0:16:51.800 --> 0:16:55.360 and amazing athletes. And I think that one thing that 0:16:55.400 --> 0:16:59.240 we're good at here in America is finding ways to 0:16:59.400 --> 0:17:03.440 monitor is and create business out of opportunities. And I 0:17:03.480 --> 0:17:06.920 think that that's certainly, you know, the profit motive, the 0:17:08.040 --> 0:17:13.679 branding and marketing motive around Paralympics could certainly, um, you know, 0:17:13.760 --> 0:17:17.480 take off with the games here in l A. If 0:17:17.480 --> 0:17:20.320 Michael is right, the l A Games could indeed raise 0:17:20.440 --> 0:17:23.840 the bar higher than ever before. The organizers will be 0:17:23.880 --> 0:17:26.160 buoyed by the news late last week that the NBC's 0:17:26.200 --> 0:17:29.119 coverage of the Paralympics in Tokyo this summer saw higher 0:17:29.200 --> 0:17:32.840 viewing figures in the US than ever before. And what 0:17:32.920 --> 0:17:36.159 the U s has is perhaps the missing ingredient for 0:17:36.200 --> 0:17:40.360 the ultimate recipe for success. A climate of deep unrest 0:17:40.640 --> 0:17:42.679 and a longing for social justice in the wake of 0:17:42.680 --> 0:17:46.040 some of the most prolific and galvanizing examples of discrimination 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:49.320 in recent times. There's already a huge movement here in 0:17:49.320 --> 0:17:52.760 this country and has been for some time around equality 0:17:52.920 --> 0:17:57.200 for everyone and marginalized groups. And I think that there's 0:17:57.720 --> 0:18:05.320 a renewed um movement towards equality for everyone, uh over 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:08.359 the last year and a half or so, um, not 0:18:08.560 --> 0:18:13.119 least of which is due to the um George Floyd 0:18:13.200 --> 0:18:17.360 murder and what's been happening around the equality for African 0:18:17.359 --> 0:18:20.960 Americans black people in this country. UM. But I think 0:18:21.000 --> 0:18:25.960 that you know, this pandemic also has sort of highlighted 0:18:26.000 --> 0:18:30.280 the the inequality amongst certain groups and UM and it's 0:18:30.280 --> 0:18:33.080 sort of made people feel that, you know, we need 0:18:33.119 --> 0:18:36.159 to be allies of any group that has been marginalized, 0:18:36.160 --> 0:18:39.919 and of course people with disabilities are are certainly a 0:18:39.960 --> 0:18:41.679 part of that. So I think that there is an 0:18:41.720 --> 0:18:47.520 opportunity there and certainly that includes the disabled community, and 0:18:47.600 --> 0:18:51.440 the Paralympics has always been, certainly in recent times has 0:18:51.480 --> 0:18:55.760 been a leader in in um champion the rights of 0:18:55.760 --> 0:18:58.320 of people with disability and I don't see any reason 0:18:58.320 --> 0:19:02.280 why that won't continue and why this upcoming games could 0:19:02.280 --> 0:19:05.920 not be an amazing opportunity to continue the champion net 0:19:05.920 --> 0:19:09.000 and continued at a momentum. But I think a lot 0:19:09.000 --> 0:19:11.120 of work can be done between now and then as well. 0:19:11.400 --> 0:19:13.879 Another leading voice in the Paralympic movement is the British 0:19:13.880 --> 0:19:17.359 sports boadcaster Claire Building. She has worked on every Summer 0:19:17.400 --> 0:19:21.040 Paralympics as a presenter since Sydney two thousand. She echoes 0:19:21.080 --> 0:19:24.240 Michael's optimism about the l A Games, but Claire has 0:19:24.320 --> 0:19:28.000 some big and important questions. Will America finally wake up 0:19:28.160 --> 0:19:30.399 to the power of the Paralympic Games? Will they show 0:19:30.440 --> 0:19:33.320 it live? Will they show it for ten twelve hours 0:19:33.320 --> 0:19:36.680 a day. Um, will they end up knowing the names 0:19:36.680 --> 0:19:40.800 of more than two or three competitors? Will they I hope, 0:19:41.119 --> 0:19:43.320 will they tell the stories of athletes from other parts 0:19:43.359 --> 0:19:49.200 of the world, um, where finance might not be as good, 0:19:49.480 --> 0:19:53.960 and and will they understand, um what it, what it means, 0:19:54.040 --> 0:19:56.639 and what it can mean. And I really hope that happens. 0:19:56.680 --> 0:19:59.280 In the to finish this podcast, co producer chan Ad 0:19:59.359 --> 0:20:01.760 and I sat down to discuss what we've learned over 0:20:01.800 --> 0:20:04.439 the past few weeks and what this can mean for 0:20:04.480 --> 0:20:08.080 the future. Sophie, I'm conscious that for six episodes you 0:20:08.160 --> 0:20:11.680 have been the host of this wonderful podcast, whilst I 0:20:11.760 --> 0:20:14.800 have got to be not necessarily in the background, but 0:20:15.080 --> 0:20:17.480 definitely not sitting in front of the microphone as much 0:20:17.480 --> 0:20:21.080 as you were. So it's with great pleasure and privilege 0:20:21.119 --> 0:20:25.920 that we get to end this series and this edition 0:20:25.960 --> 0:20:29.560 of the series together. I guess my question for you 0:20:29.920 --> 0:20:36.320 is what did you take from these six episodes, either 0:20:36.520 --> 0:20:40.439 as a presenter, as a disabled person, as an advocate? 0:20:40.880 --> 0:20:45.080 What did you learn? I think it's become very I 0:20:45.119 --> 0:20:48.679 suppose in many ways I knew what to expect in 0:20:48.720 --> 0:20:52.000 the sense that I had a healthy dose of cynicism. 0:20:52.080 --> 0:20:57.000 I think about the way in which we communicate or 0:20:57.040 --> 0:21:01.920 we tell the stories around disability, um and at sometimes 0:21:01.960 --> 0:21:04.880 those stories get taken out of our hands and told 0:21:04.880 --> 0:21:07.760 in the wrong ways. And so I've always felt a 0:21:07.760 --> 0:21:11.600 little bit apprehensive when it comes to telling stories around 0:21:11.600 --> 0:21:14.560 disability who gets to tell them? But because I knew 0:21:14.800 --> 0:21:16.879 that we were taking control of this. And when I 0:21:16.880 --> 0:21:19.040 say we, I say disabled people, and I say you're 0:21:19.080 --> 0:21:21.560 you and me and the team that we worked with, 0:21:21.760 --> 0:21:25.920 who got a real awareness and sensitivity to that exact cynicism, 0:21:26.000 --> 0:21:30.600 that exact concern that, um, we need to speak with authority, 0:21:30.680 --> 0:21:33.800 but also with empathy around disability and an understanding where 0:21:33.800 --> 0:21:37.280 we don't know what we don't know. UM, so we 0:21:37.400 --> 0:21:40.400 I think we lent into this whole podcast with with 0:21:40.400 --> 0:21:43.520 with curiosity in a way that I came away feeling 0:21:44.680 --> 0:21:47.080 some of my questions got answered, but I knew that 0:21:47.080 --> 0:21:49.879 there would be some questions that remained aren't answered. But 0:21:50.000 --> 0:21:53.639 what's how hopeful is I think that those questions that 0:21:53.680 --> 0:21:56.800 remain aren't answered are not going to be forgotten about. 0:21:56.800 --> 0:21:59.719 I feel that as a community, we are coming together 0:21:59.800 --> 0:22:02.160 for the first time, or is perhaps for the first 0:22:02.200 --> 0:22:05.200 time in my lifetime, I've seen people coming together from 0:22:05.240 --> 0:22:10.280 around the world, perhaps using the Paralympics as a platform, 0:22:10.320 --> 0:22:14.480 but really just I feel there's a galvanized effort from 0:22:14.520 --> 0:22:17.760 the disabled community to come together and start pushing our 0:22:17.800 --> 0:22:20.919 agenda forward and using each other and leveraging what we 0:22:20.960 --> 0:22:23.720 can in our in our world to give us the 0:22:23.720 --> 0:22:25.800 platforms that we need to speak out about where things 0:22:25.840 --> 0:22:29.280 are going right and where things aren't and how about you? What? What? 0:22:29.280 --> 0:22:34.119 What about you? I think it's been so brilliant to 0:22:34.240 --> 0:22:40.080 have six different threads of conversation under the umbrella of disability. 0:22:40.440 --> 0:22:43.119 And when we began this podcast, we had lots of 0:22:43.160 --> 0:22:46.119 conversations back and forth about who the audience was. Was 0:22:46.160 --> 0:22:49.160 it non disabled people, was it disabled people, was it allies? 0:22:49.320 --> 0:22:51.960 Was it athletes? And one of the things that we 0:22:52.040 --> 0:22:55.720 have been really considerate around is making sure that across 0:22:55.760 --> 0:23:01.240 these six episodes that we appeal to listen to amplify 0:23:01.440 --> 0:23:05.320 and bring questions to each of those audiences. And that 0:23:05.520 --> 0:23:08.159 was far more challenging than I think both you and 0:23:08.200 --> 0:23:11.600 I had thought about at the very beginning, and it 0:23:11.680 --> 0:23:14.879 required such nuance and delicacy in the script writing, in 0:23:14.920 --> 0:23:17.760 the interviewing, in the editing supported by a brilliant team. 0:23:18.119 --> 0:23:19.760 But I think one of the things that I'm really 0:23:19.800 --> 0:23:22.440 proud of in terms of my learnings of these six 0:23:22.480 --> 0:23:25.359 episodes is the blueprint that we have put together in 0:23:25.400 --> 0:23:29.280 terms of accessibility, making sure that this podcast has transcripts, 0:23:29.320 --> 0:23:32.760 making sure that they are British Sign Language interpreted editions 0:23:32.840 --> 0:23:35.040 of each of the episodes, making sure we're thinking about 0:23:35.080 --> 0:23:39.080 accessibility through digital communications, but also not just looking at 0:23:39.119 --> 0:23:43.000 representation is the only definition of success, and making sure 0:23:43.080 --> 0:23:47.280 that we are viewing representation through an intersectional lens, across 0:23:47.400 --> 0:23:53.439 geographic boundaries, across the different industries, and really importantly across disability, 0:23:53.480 --> 0:23:57.720 because even when using the Paralympics as a platform to 0:23:57.880 --> 0:24:03.080 instigate these conversations, we can be focused on physically disabled people. 0:24:03.640 --> 0:24:05.480 And I realized the irony of you and I are 0:24:05.520 --> 0:24:09.080 discussing this both having physical disabilities. But there's that phrase, 0:24:09.320 --> 0:24:12.520 you know nothing about us without us, and we need 0:24:12.600 --> 0:24:16.359 to be holistic in our focus in these conversations around disability, 0:24:16.440 --> 0:24:20.960 because we can only speak for ourselves. I think the 0:24:21.040 --> 0:24:26.200 other thing that I didn't actually expect to be able 0:24:26.200 --> 0:24:28.560 to answer, which we put the question that we posed 0:24:28.560 --> 0:24:31.720 at the beginning of this, which was where does the 0:24:31.720 --> 0:24:35.480 story go next? And for me, like you say, because 0:24:35.480 --> 0:24:37.959 we've put these these we've had these different themes and 0:24:38.040 --> 0:24:41.240 in many ways when it comes to disability, there are 0:24:41.280 --> 0:24:43.719 so many areas where we could focus our attention and 0:24:43.760 --> 0:24:46.960 really push the agenda forward. Is that you representation? Is 0:24:46.960 --> 0:24:49.360 it just in the laws that protect us. There's these 0:24:49.440 --> 0:24:52.840 areas that all need work, but they don't work in isolation. 0:24:52.960 --> 0:24:55.560 Like as you say, we need a holistic approach. But 0:24:55.680 --> 0:24:59.439 I do feel I have concluded, and I think in 0:24:59.520 --> 0:25:04.119 terms for Rising Phoenix about their agenda questioning where we 0:25:04.160 --> 0:25:07.680 go next with this story, I think that there was 0:25:07.720 --> 0:25:12.440 something that we wrote in the script which was essentially, 0:25:12.920 --> 0:25:15.280 we need to be in the room where power is broken. 0:25:15.400 --> 0:25:18.439 We need to be making decisions. And I say, we 0:25:18.520 --> 0:25:22.320 disabled people need to be the nothing about us without us. 0:25:22.760 --> 0:25:25.200 We are aware of it. Many disabled people are aware 0:25:25.200 --> 0:25:27.919 of that phrase, even if it's even if it's not 0:25:27.960 --> 0:25:31.639 even explicitly. Implicitly, we all know that. But I feel 0:25:31.800 --> 0:25:34.919 that for the next part of this, this journey, to 0:25:35.040 --> 0:25:39.320