 February 2025 Welcome to the first newsletter from the World Association for Supported Employment (WASE)!Thank you very much for your interest and for signing up for WASE news. From now on, every three months, you will receive updates on events, news, and resources available to the Supported Employment community worldwide. At the beginning of March, the Zero Project Conference will be held at the United Nations Office in Vienna. All WASE Board members will attend this unique global meeting and will get together to discuss the future strategy of WASE and the introduction and development of policies for members and associated organizations. As a side note, the Canadian Association for Supported Employment (CASE) is among the 77 Zero Project Awardees from 45 countries for “contributing significantly to advancing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), standing out for their innovation, impact, and scalability.” Please see our Events Section for more details. Please stay tuned for updates on WASE’s strategy and policies in future newsletters. We are looking forward to continually sharing insights into the world of Supported Employment with you! Thank you for joining us on our journey towards an inclusive community. For the WASE Board, Annette Borrows President NEWS  World Disability Employment Conference 2027 Every four years, the World Association for Supported Employment (WASE) hosts a world conference. In 2023, this was held very successfully in Vancouver, Canada, with more than 600 delegates from all parts of the globe attending. In March 2027, this conference is to be held in Brisbane, Australia! The event will be hosted by WASE in collaboration with Disability Employment Australia at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.Learn from best practice and evidence from all over the world.Connect with a diverse, multinational audience of peers to build or maintain lasting connections and promote cross-country collaboration.Attend informative presentations from speakers from a range of disciplines and backgrounds. If you think you might like to come or would like to share your ideas about the program and how we make the event fully accessible and inclusive, please complete this expression of interest and we will share further details as they are finalised. Big Changes at the European Union of Supported Employment: New Name, New Logo, and New President  Reflecting the collaboration and partnership with its members across Europe, the European Union of Supported Employment (EUSE) has rebranded itself as the Association of Supported Employment Europe (ASEE). The new name and a fresh logo and branding were unveiled at the closing ceremony of the 15th EUSE Conference in June 2024 in Tarragona, Spain.We also bid farewell to our President, Luc Henau, CEO of GTB and member of SUEM (Belgium Association of SE), who had been elected in 2017. Over his tenure, Luc made significant contributions, partnering with other European NGOs and signing agreements to improve employment opportunities for disabled people across Europe. Luc, you will be missed. Stepping into Luc’s big shoes is our new President, Karen Warson from SUEM. ASEE warmly welcomes Karen, who has hit the ground running. She has already established vital connections and laid out a strategic plan for the next four years. Let’s find out a little bit more about Karen.  When and how did you become involved with EUSE/ASSE?In 2015 we started a project, SEQF (Supported Employment Quality Framework) with our Belgian Association, and were in search of European partners. That was my first connection. After the project was ended, I joined the EUSE-board for SUEM. What are your main priorities for ASEE during your term as President?We need to keep advocating at the policy level to ensure that Supported Employment remains the key model for achieving inclusive labour markets. We need to ensure excellence in supported employment in a standardized way across Europe. That’s why we should promote the SEQF as the key assessment model to evaluate and maintain these standards. Disability Employment Reforms in Australia Australia is about to embark on a new and exciting journey to assist People with Disability into employment. The New Specialist Disability Employment Program (NSDEP) will commence on 1 July 2025 and will replace the current Disability Employment Services (DES) program. Currently, more than 20% of Australians, or about 5.5 million people, live with disability and experience higher levels of disadvantage, lower economic participation rates, and higher levels of unemployment. The NSDEP will build on the DES and be more flexible than current arrangements. You can read more about the new program on the Australian Government website.  CASE’s MentorAbility Recognized with Zero Project AwardMentorAbility Canada, an initiative of the Canadian Association for Supportive Employment (CASE), has been recognized as a Zero Project Awardee 2025! CASE celebrates this award alongside our MentorAbility Hub partners and the service provider, employer, and strategic partners with whom we collaborate to deliver this initiative across Canada. CASE’s Director for MentorAbility Canada, Mary Beshai, will be presenting at the Zero Project Conference on Friday, March 7, about MentorAbility. Visit the Zero Project website to read more about MentorAbility.EVENTS  APSE’s 2025 National Conference Advocacy Day on the Hill & and Employment First Gala: Wednesday, June 11, 2025 Regular Conference: Thursday, June 12 – Saturday, June 14, 2025 Location: Grand Hyatt, Washington, DC (US) The National APSE Conference provides access to top-tier training and networking opportunities to Employment First professionals across the country. It brings together the very individuals and organizations working toward and impacted by Employment First—people with disabilities and their families, service providers, universities, rehabilitation counselors, as well as state and federal agency representatives. Early Bird Conference Registration on March 31, 2025. We are currently accepting applications for Host Chapters for 2025 and beyond. Please download and complete the application, and email it to julie@apse.org. Submit a Proposal to Present at #APSE2025. This year’s conference theme is Employment First, Employment for All! Deadline for submissions is February 28, 2025. Visit the conference website for more information on submitting a proposal.  2025 Focus on Ability™ Short Film FestivalThe Focus on Ability™ Film Festival is back for 2025 with entries closing July 1. All films must have a disability theme and be less than 5 minutes. The organisers are busy working behind the scenes compiling over $100,000 in cash and prizes! Australian, New Zealand, and international submissions accepted for documentary and short film.For more information and to submit a short film, visit the festival website or contact admin@focusonability.com.  IASSIDD 2025 Congress – Call for Abstracts Now Open!The IASSIDD 2025 Organising Committee welcomes your participation as a presenter in the 5th Asia Pacific Congress of the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Singapore from 14 to 17 October 2025. The conference organisers are calling for submission of abstracts now! Individual (Spoken Word/Poster Presentations)Roundtable DiscussionSymposium Proposals Submission Deadline: Monday, 31 March 2025, 11:59pm (GMT+8) Notification to authors: Monday, 26 May 2025 For more information and to submit an abstract, visit the conference website. 15th European Supported Employment Congress 2024  Image: WASE Board Members attending the European Congress on Supported Employment.The 15th European Supported Employment Congress, “We Have the Talent”, held on June 5-7, 2024, at Port Aventura Convention Centre in Tarragona, Spain, brought together 580 participants from 30 countries from all over the world. The Congress was organised by Aura Foundation, in collaboration with AESE , EUSE, ONCE Foundation and ACTAS. With 77 presentations covering a wide range of topics, the congress focused on promoting labour inclusion for individuals with disabilities and those at risk of social exclusion. Key topics discussed were human rights, technological advancements like AI, sustainability policies, and the improvement of support programs. By fostering collaboration and sharing best practices, the congress helped participants gain knowledge on innovative research, technological trends, and strategies to enhance workplace inclusion. The involvement of people with disabilities in the organizational process was also a significant highlight, showcasing the importance of self-advocacy and participation in decision-making. World Association of Supported Employment (WASE) Board members hosted an engagement lunch with international Congress delegates to share information on WASE as well as gathering information on future directions for WASE. For more information and video from the conference, please visit the conference website. The next Association of Supported Employment Europe (ASEE) Conference will be held in the UK and will be hosted by the British Association of Supported Employment in Liverpool, November 2026. The next World Conference on Supported Employment will be held in Brisbane, Australia in March 2027. Further details to follow!  Join the Canadian Association for Supported Employment (CASE), avenueNB, and delegates from across Canada for the 30th Annual National Supported Employment Conference! We will gather in person at the Delta Hotels by Marriott Beauséjour in Moncton, New Brunswick, from June 17 to June 19, 2025. The Annual Conference brings together employment service providers, employers, community partners, and other allies to celebrate and to advance employment inclusion of persons experiencing disability. Through sessions and workshops led by leaders and innovators in the field of supported employment, we will explore shared best practices, innovative solutions to common challenges, the latest trends and research findings, and opportunities for networking and community building. If you have questions, please contact Lenore Klein, National Event Planner. RESOURCESAustralia: Centre of Excellence to shape the future of disability employment The Albanese Labor Government is committed to an inclusive Australia where everybody has the opportunity for secure, fairly paid work – including people with disability. Please read the full media release on the government website. No Australian with disability should be left behind. The disability employment reforms will deliver on the vision for a stronger and more inclusive Australia for people with disability. For more information, please visit the homepage of the Disability Employment Centre of Excellence. 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Newsletter from the World Association for Supported Employment (WASE)
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