What We Do
Over 70 million Deaf people lack basic access to information and resources in 300 different sign languages. This inaccessibility results in communication challenges, poor education, limited job opportunities, and other difficulties fully engaging in society.
At DDW, we view these crises* as opportunities for growth.
What Are Our Targets?
DDW programs are designed to address the specific causes for the lack of access in the communities we serve. Realistically, we can’t solve everything, but our work in each local Deaf community fits into three distinct categories:
Where We Work
DDW works closely with signing Deaf communities across Asia, the Caribbean, Africa, and the USA, supporting over 3,000 signing Deaf individuals in improving their sustainability. Take a closer look at our work, country by country.
Africa
China
Dominican Republic
Philippines
USA
DDW’S Impact Around The World
DDW keeps an eye on our proven results to see how we are cultivating signing Deaf communities. We commit to finding solutions that work and providing customized training that fits their needs.
We take pride in our work.
4
countries in which we have worked on initiatives
We started to record our impact in 2012, including all the countries where intiatives have been funded since DDW shifted its focus to being community-driven.
1.9
million USD invested in initiatives
Since 2012, we have tracked all funding from grants and donors, investing in both completed and ongoing initiatives.
3,020
Deaf signers reached through our initiatives
Our resources and tools have been shared with our Deaf participants through training since 2012, both directly and indirectly. This means they have also passed them on to their local communities.
The Journey Of Unlearning At DDW
DDW values the sharing knowledge to drive real change. For more than 10 years, we’ve been helping Deaf signers learn global skills. We have deployed programs in 5 countries, empowering Deaf signers to become leaders. Our overarching goal is to create a ripple effect of healthy global development.
We know there is more work to do. We strive to reduce social harm in our Deaf communities. We lead by example by acknowledging the power disparities in global development and American sign language.
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