“I was able to meet and take a photo with Andrew Boys, the Executive Director of DSI, an organization based out of the United Kingdom,” Clare said. “Sue Swenson, President of Inclusion International and past Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education under the Obama Administration, spoke about the history and progress of special education in the United States.

Ambassadors from Brazil, Poland, and Japan were also present. Self-advocates, Alexander Lee, Janice McPhillips, Maksymilian Bojarowski, and Marta Sodano spoke about their journey through education to encourage acceptance and inclusion. My favorite quote from the conference was ‘inclusion is not only a matter of knowledge but a matter of will,’ said by Daniela Gamboa Zapatel, an Inclusive Education Coordinator at the Peruvian Down Syndrome Society.”