National Youth Leadership Summit 2023 Organized by Special Olympics Bharat

The fifth edition of National Youth Leadership Summit 2023 organised by Special Olympics Bharat came to a close. The three-day summit, emphasizing Diversity and inclusion, saw engagement from 21 Indian states and featured a dedicated day for schools and colleges across Delhi-NCR. Day 1 commenced with the collaboration of seventeen institutions from Delhi NCT, inaugurated by Himanshu Gupta, Director of Education & Sports, Govt of Delhi NCT, highlighting school inclusion. The subsequent days welcomed participation from diverse states, uniting a promising cohort of youth leaders and adult mentors. State performance summaries set the context at the start of each day, while the panel discussion witnessed a powerful convergence of distinguished guests.

The key highlight on Day 2 was a panel discussion themed 'Harnessing Educational Spaces to Foster Communities of Acceptance and Inclusion.' Panelists included A Srija, Economic Advisor, Department of School Education & Literacy, Govt of India; Dr Mallika Nadda, President, Special Olympics Bharat; Pam Rolink, Manager, Youth Initiatives, Asia Pacific Region, Special Olympics SOAP; Prof (Dr) Jayanti Pujari, Dean, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Professor & Director, Amity Institute of Rehabilitation Sciences; and Mala Arora, Consultant, Inclusion. The Unified Pair, Rithik Hukku (Youth leader with IDD), and Smruti Sikta Misra (Youth leader without IDD) were moderated the discussion.

An important session with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) featuring Ashley Wilkinson, Senior Programme Officer – Youth and Citizen Engagement at WWF also took place on the last day of the Summit called the ‘Tide Turner Platic Challenge. The sessions showcased emerging partnerships through the youth and also demonstrated the ability of the youth with intellectual disabilities to be part of every responsible endeavour.

Dr. Kalpana Sharma Delivers an Address on Coach Roles in Promoting the Inclusion of Persons with IDD through Unified Sports, Followed by Ms. Damini Gosh Discussing Youth's Role in Policy Formation. Special Olympics Bharat Athletes Showcase Vibrant Flash Mob Performance, and Shrey Kadian & Rithik Hukku Share Insights from Asia Pacific Leadership Conference in Jakarta during Post-Lunch Session.

Himanshu Gupta, Director- Directorate of Education & Sports, Govt of Delhi and NCT said, "Special Olympics Bharat is doing wonderful work for specially-abled children through the concept of unified sports, and promoting diversity and inclusion via sports. Their efforts are helping children find a focus and purpose in life as they are also becoming independent and self-sufficient. We have now also moved on to the idea of integrated schools where all young ones can sit and learn together. The government and organizations such as Special Olympics Bharat have been working towards such initiatives, especially for children from disadvantaged backgrounds".

A Srija, Economic Advisor Dept of School Education and Literacy, Govt of India, said, "I am thankful to be a part of the fifth edition of The National Youth Leadership Summit organized by Special Olympics Bharat. As per our law, all children in educational institutions should be given a chance to get admission without any discrimination or biases. Under various government schemes, many interventions have come up to help specially-abled children be a part of all activities like any other child would. State schools can come up with proposals for inclusive education and the provision of funds. And the government of India also requests the states to come forward and make use of these provisions, thereby moving towards inclusion through games and sports".

Dr Mallika Nadda, president Special Olympics Bharat, said, "Special Olympics Bharat has been working to promote inclusion and diversity through sports. The government has chosen Delhi’s model of inclusion through sports as the pilot project and I would really like to think the government for making this decision and putting their faith in the program which would go on to inspire other states and the country as a whole and brighten the future of our special athletes. We hope that through this summit we are able to meet our aims of inclusion through sports and eventually lead to the holistic development and integration of specially-abled children in the society without any discrimination, providing them with an environment that is happy, accepting and inclusive".