Amy Kavanagh
| Amy Kavanagh | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| 🎓 Alma mater | King's College London |
| 💼 Occupation | Activist |
Amy Kavanagh is a prominent British disability rights activist and advocate, listed among The 2020 Shaw Trust Power 100, an annual publication containing the 100 most influential disabled people in the UK.[1]. She is registered as blind, and was born[2] with a complex visual impairment called Ocular Albinism, which means her vision changes. In 2017 she became a prominent disability influencer, after she began writing about her lived experiences navigating the world as a blind Londoner alongside her guide dog called Ava. Kavanagh has built a sizeable following of nearly 29,000 followers[3] and her viral campaign #JustAskDontGrab[4] to encourage people to ask for consent before offering assistance was highly successful. Kavanagh was a finalist in the Royal National Institute for the Blind See Differently Awards 2019[5], and her campaign was awarded the Campaign of the Year at the Transport for All Awards 2020.[6]
Education and early career[edit]
Kavanagh graduated in 2017 with a PhD from King's College London, after achieving a first class degree at the University of Leeds in 2010.[7] Her academic specialism was on the civil service in India in Bengal in the late nineteenth century.[8] As Policy and Public Affairs Advisor for Sense she championed the rights of people living with complex disabilities, including those who are deafblind, at a local and national levels. Other experience includes roles at CLIC Sargent, fundraiser campaign Listen, and universities.
Career[edit]
Kavanagh currently works as a freelance disability consultant and an advocate for inclusion. Her focus in keynote talks, panel discussions or speaking events includes topics such as
- Disability Awareness
- Disability and Feminism
- Living with Visual Impairment
- My Journey with Guide Dog Ava
- Disability and Activism on Social Media
Kavanagh specialises in creating engaging communities and spaces for disabled people to encourage businesses to welcome and empower disabled people.
#JustAskDontGrab campaign[edit]
Kavanagh’s campaign was so impactful that she was nominated for an RNIB award in 2019, and she went on to win the Campaign of the Year at the Transport for All Awards 2020. Throughout her campaign work, Amy is 'careful to highlight both positive and negative experiences in order to encourage the good'.[9]
Media influence[edit]
Kavanagh has written and spoken extensively about the impact on disabled people of social distancing and the ‘new normal’ including an interview on BBC Woman's Hour in June 2020.[10] She has also written for publications including Huffington Post[11], Metro News[12], The Times Red Box[13], and iNews[14]
During the global COVID-19 pandemic Kavanagh founded The Staying Inn, an accessible, inclusive online space for disabled and non disabled folk to stay connected during the crisis. The Staying Inn online community is run by disabled people for disabled people providing social events, training, support and wellbeing events.[15]
Kavanagh is also known as a visually impaired video gamer and streamer. As the Blind Button Masher she advocates for greater accessibility in gaming. This included speaking at The 9th Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) conference in May 2020,[16] and working with Ubisoft.
References[edit]
- ↑ "The 2020 Shaw Trust Power 100: an annual publication containing the 100 most influential disabled people in the UK". The Shaw Report. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Kavanagh, Amy (2021). "About Amy". Dr Amy Kavanagh: Navigating the world differently. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Blonde Historian on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Blind activist wants to change how people interact with those with disabilities". Sky News. August 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ↑ "See Differently Awards 2019". Royal National Institute for the Blind. 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "The Transport for All Awards 2020 Campaign of the Year". London Councils. 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Dr Amy Kavanagh Profile". LinkedIn. 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Kavanagh, Amy (2017). "Our Rule in India rests wholly on ourselves: The District Officer in Bengal 1850 – 1905". King's College London Research Portal – via King's College London.
- ↑ "Amy Kavanagh – a safer environment for disabled people around the world". University of Leeds Alumni. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "BBC Woman's Hour Interview with Jenny Murray, Disabled women in lockdown". BBC Radio Four. June 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "The Huffington Post Author profile". Huffington Post. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ↑ "The Metro Newspaper author profile". Metro. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ↑ "Disabled people feel frightened and isolated as Britain eases its lockdown". The Times Red Box. 3 June 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ↑ Kavanagh, Amy. "The i news author profile". i News. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ↑ "The Staying Inn". The Staying Inn. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "The 9th Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) conference". YouTube. May 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2021. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help)
External links[edit]
- Her website Dr Amy Kavanagh: Navigating the world differently
- Cane Adventures (her personal blog)
- Blonde Historian
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