Friday, November 26, 2010

A woman's vision

Bismillah.

Mae Fah Luang University, the venue where I am attending a training organized by the International Telecommunication Union, is a young and thriving university in Chiang Rai. It is poised to transform the present agriculture centric city into a hi-tech city. It was established in 1998 to commemorate the gracious contributions of the King of Thailand's mother - Her Royal Highness Princess Srinagarindra, who is lovingly known to the hill tribes in northern Thailand as Mae Fah Luang (Royal Mother from the Sky). 

The uni and I share the same birth date,
25th September although I am not as young as it is
Coming to this part of the world has broadened my vision. One of the many things I learned is that we should try to see the universe from a bigger perspective and that our perspective should include that which is 'seen' by our friends who are not blessed with a good vision. In other words, we should try to see things from the eyes of a blind person and all person with disabilities. They want us to include them in embracing all that the world has to offer. They too want to experience life to the fullest. If we enjoy reading, they too want to be able to enjoy reading freely. But how? It's the duty of the sighted person or 'person without disabilities'  to explore new technologies and come up with creative solutions so that this world stays bright and colorful for all - all inclusive and none is left behind. And DAISY is one technology enabler that allows a blind person to navigate a book, go to a chapter, bookmark, browse etc. So a blind person can actually read not just from Braille books but also digitally. And the possibility is endless, if we care.

Best wishes from:
Mae Fah Luang Uni
Chiang Rai
Thailand
- A musafir's travelogue, Day 5

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