Zero Project Report 2014 At A Glance - Accessibility

About the Zero Project: For a World without Barriers
The Zero Project was initiated by the Essl Foundation in 2010. It has been run in partnership with the World Future Council (WFC) since 2011 and the European Foundation Centre (EFC) since 2013. The mission of the Zero Project is to work for a world without barriers, according to the principles and Articles of the UN CRPD.
It does so by researching Innovative Practices and Innovative Polices worldwide that help to improve the lives of persons with disabilities, as well as researching Social Indicators that measure the implementation of the UN CRPD and the current situation in all countries of the world. Innovative Practices and Policies are communicated to decision-makers and opinion-leaders worldwide.
The Zero Project is not a legal entity, but a small core team of professionals from the Essl Foundation, the EFC and the WFC, whereas the expertise comes from a huge network of all kinds of disability experts from around the world. In the last three years, a total of approx. 2,000 experts from more than 130 countries have contributed in different ways.
An annual topic is chosen on which all the research is focused. In 2013/14 the topic is accessibility. In 2012/13 it was employment; and in 2014/15 it will be independent living, political and personal rights.
Regarding research in 2013/14, 243 Innovative Practices from 58 countries were nominated by the Zero Project expert network. 54 of them made it through the selection process. Following a similar procedure, 68 Innovative Policies from 34 countries were nominated, and 15 of them finally selected for inclusion in the report.
The Zero Project Social Indicators consist of 20 questions on the general implementation of the UN CRPD and another 12 questions on this year's topic, accessibility. Currently 164 disability experts from 130 countries have completed the questionnaires. All the results of every individual question are visualized on the Zero Project Website with traffic lights and world maps, including hundreds of comments giving insight into the situation in many countries.
The Zero Project communicates through its website, Facebook, Youtube and Twitter, participation at international conferences and many more channels.
 
Facts & Figures of the Zero Project 2014
• Topic 2014: Accessibility
• Approx. 1,000 experts contributed their knowledge to the Social Indicators, Innovative Practices and Policies selection
• 130 countries surveyed with Social Indicators from 32 questions on the implementation of the UN CRPD
• 243 projects nominated as Innovative Practices; 54 selected
• 68 policies nominated as Innovative Policies; 15 selected