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Global Disability Innovation Hub accelerates ideas into impact for a more just world - for disabled people, and all people.

About GDI Hub
UN Headquarters
News

COSP-19: a year of anniversaries and action, to consider what next

This statement was delivered by GDI Hub CEO Iain McKinnon, at the UN in New York, as part of the General Debate for COSP-19, the UN’s annual disability conference. This is the year of anniversaries. …

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What we do

GDI Hub is a world-leading academic research and practice centre based at University College London (UCL). We are the WHO Global Collaborating Centre on Assistive Technology

Include

Deep community leadership and engagement with OPD’s, AT users and networks.

Inquire

New evidence and insights through academic research, data and foundational methodologies.

Incubate

Develop and test new solutions through GDI Accelerate, our innovation arm.

Invest

Bringing effective solutions to market through public/private finance.

Integrate

Strengthen systems to make inclusion a reality, from national policy landscapes to country pilots.

Impart

Educating and learning to disseminate and knowledge and impact for a fairer world.

Where we work

Our work and reach is global. Including Africa, South America, Asia, Europe, North America.

40+ Countries

64m People impacted

100+ Partners

Our portfolio

Including our research centres and international development programmes, networks, consultancy and teaching.

PhD students chatting in our design lab

Including our research centres and international development programmes, networks, consultancy and teaching.
two people working together, one is using a wheelchair and one isn't

Centre for Digital Language Inclusion: Using AI to bridge the barrier between impaired speech and Automatic Speech Recognition
Graduation photo of MSc cohort in gowns, throwing hats into the air

Disability, Design & Innovation MSc: our UCL based MSc to tackle global challenges from a new perspective.
View all projects

Highlights

Some examples of our work.

A person pushes another person in a wheelchair across a road, with buildings and trees in the background.

Inclusive Cities, Global Action Report
A smiling man wearing a red shirt and cap sits outdoors in a custom-built wheelchair with extra large wheels, designed for mobility on rough terrain. Greenery forms the background.

The first World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Research on Assistive Technology
10 people around a table as part of a codesign workshop

Disability Innovation Strategy
PhD students chatting in our design lab

Blog

Disability Inclusion and Innovation for Clean Energy Access: Embracing Co-Design and Collaboration

  • 02 July 2026

Beyond Ramps: Three Policy Frameworks for Disability-Inclusive Cities, Energy, and Climate Action

  • 06 March 2026

Beyond Stigma: What happens when sport, assistive technology and storytelling meet?

  • 26 January 2026
All Blog

News

UN Headquarters

COSP-19: a year of anniversaries and action, to consider what next

  • 29 June 2026

From Disability Representation to Systems Change: Exploring Participation and Advocacy with the CPwD Forum

  • 12 June 2026

Where to find us at WUF 13

  • 18 May 2026
All News

Events

A women in Kenya being tested for DOT glasses. She is wearing a bright yellow top with a colourful headband

Celebrating 10 years of the Global Disability Innovation Hub: our work, our stories, our community

  • 14 September 2026

Webinar: Introducing the Global OPD Map

  • 09 July 2026

Energy Access & Disability Tech for Equitable Futures

  • 26 November 2025
All Events

Publications

Some of our latest papers, reports and publications.

Gender Equality, Disability & Social Inclusion (GEDSI) Toolkit

  • Transforming Energy Access; 2025

Understanding the Video Content Creation Journey of Creators with Sensory Impairment in Kenya
Person in a colorful garment stands near water with a rural house in the background; cover of the "Advancing Disability Inclusive Climate Action" guide featuring logos of CBM Global, IAG, and GDI Hub.

Advancing disability inclusive climate action: A resource guide for global practitioners

Toward a Multi-layer Framework to Assess the Quality of Life Impact of Smartphones as Assistive Technology for People with Sensory Disabilities in Kenya

A Cookbook for Community-driven Data Collection of Impaired Speech in LowResource Languages

Developing National Priority Assistive Products Lists: experiences and lessons from six Sub-Saharan African countries

  • Taylor & Francis; 2025

Exploring the Usability of Gaze-based Mobile Communication in Ghana
Cover of report

Youth Attitudes Towards Disability Sport & Assistive Technology

  • Shujaaz Inc; 2025

Inclusive Cities

  • Global Disability Innovation Hub; 2024

Integrating Disability in Energy Transition GESI Strategies

  • Transforming Energy Access

Opportunities for Disability-inclusive Energy Access

  • Transforming Energy Access
screenshot of article's first page

Demographic, socioeconomic, and social barriers to use of mobility assistive products: a multistate analysis of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing

  • The Lancet; 2024
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