An MMU (Manchester Metropolitan University) lecturer has been named among the UK’s most influential disabled people.
Human Geography lecturer Dr Becky Alexis-Martin has been named on the 2022 Shaw Trust Disability Power 100 shortlist – an annual celebration of the most influential disabled people in the UK.
UK’s most influential disabled people
The Disability Power 100 aims to dispel negative perceptions of disability and show the benefits of accessibility and inclusion.
Each year, an independent panel assess public nominations to compile a shortlist of disabled people “at the top of their game and in positions of influence across all sectors of society”.
The awards highlight “the pioneers, the changemakers and influencers opening doors for future generations, paving the way for disabled people, families, employers, organisations and governments to break down prejudice and work towards the creation of a fairer, more inclusive world.”
MMU Lecturer among most influential disabled people
Dr Alexis-Martin, who was named on the list, is a Lecturer in Human Geography at Manchester Metropolitan University, specialising in nuclear culture, medical histories, and the Global South.
She said: ‘I am delighted to be included in the Shaw 100 Disability Power List. My contributions to research and my lived experience of disability have not previously been recognized in this way.
‘I hope to use my place on the shortlist to raise awareness of disability in academia – and to highlight the communities that I work with.’
Dr Alexis-Martin has been chosen in the Education category and takes her place in the overall shortlist alongside household names including Rose Ayling-Ellis, Chris Packham, Ellie Simmonds and Manchester Metropolitan alumna Kadeena Cox.
The Shaw Trust Disability Power 100 event which was due to be held on Monday, 12 September at the Landmark London was postponed upon the news Queen Elizabeth II has passed away on September 8.
Instead, the Trust announced, via social media, that the event would instead go ahead on October 17.