The new EDF Strategy will provide a framework for our actions in the next 5 years. Our two main objectives are to support the creation and implementation of disability-inclusive policies and legislation, based on the UN CRPD, and to strengthen the Disability Movement. These goals are supported by 4 pillars: advocacy, membership and capacity building, communication, and alliances. We will do this by founding our work on strong organisational development and fostering inclusion and diversity within our organisation.

Our vision is a Europe where persons with disabilities are fully included in society on an equal basis with others, and where their human rights, as outlined in the CRPD, are fully respected, protected, and fulfilled worldwide. We recognise that achieving this vision requires us to continue advancing the CRPD while also addressing broader societal challenges.

Our mission according the EDF Statutes (Art. 3) is to ensure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities in European society and to promote their access to human rights through active engagement in policy development, implementation, and monitoring of the CRPD.

We are committed to supporting and empowering our members and strengthening collaboration with our partners and other stakeholders at the national, regional and global levels. We aspire to actively practice non-discrimination, inclusion, and full participation.

Our advocacy will be built on the diverse voices and perspectives within the disability community. We recognize that our work will only have an impact if we address the rights of all persons with disabilities, including those who experience discrimination based on disability combined with race and ethnic origin, gender, LGBTQI+ status, age, and socio-economic status. Through these efforts, we aim to create a more inclusive and equitable society for all.

Our values

• Human rights: The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities underpins our work
• Equal participation: We value the active participation of persons with disabilities in all aspects of society.
• Inclusion: We are dedicated to ensuring that all persons with disabilities are fully included in the work of EDF and in society in general.
• Equality: We strive for equal rights and opportunities for persons with disabilities in all their diversity.
• Non-Discrimination: We oppose all forms of discrimination and work to ensure equal treatment.
• Empowerment: We support and empower persons with disabilities to advocate for their own rights and speak up for themselves.
• Collaboration: We foster cooperation with a wide range of stakeholders to advance our goals at the national, regional and global levels.
• Diversity: We embrace and promote diversity, recognising the intersectionality within the disability community.
• Well-being: We work to ensure all our actions improve the well-being and daily lives of persons with disabilities.

Our goal is that persons with disabilities in Europe and globally are represented by a strong and diverse movement that actively influences decision-making on EU level.

This goal will be pursued through two overarching objectives:

1. Policy and Legislation: European, national, and international institutions adopt and enforce legislation, policies, and programmes that promote the rights of persons with disabilities in Europe and around the world.
2. Strengthening the Disability Movement: The disability movement is strong, diverse, and representative of persons with disabilities in all their diversity at the global, EU, and national levels.

Our goal and overarching objectives are grounded in the UN CRPD. We strive to create equal opportunities for persons with disabilities in all their diversity within the EU and beyond by fully implementing the CRPD. Achieving this requires a robust and representative disability movement.

These objectives are supported by four main pillars that represent our approach:

• Pillar 1: Advocacy – We will advocate for disability rights towards European and global policy makers to promote and enforce inclusive legislation, policies, and programmes.
• Pillar 2: Membership and capacity building – We will enhance the engagement and capacity of EDF members and partners through training and support.
• Pillar 3: Communication, dissemination and awareness raising – We will inform and educate the media, policy makers, the general public about disability rights. We will work to improve public perception and understanding of disability issues through strategic communications efforts.
• Pillar 4: Alliances and stakeholders’ engagement – We will foster collaboration and support for disability rights among a wide range of stakeholders and allies worldwide.

Our work is based on two foundational principles: Organisational Development and Diversity and Inclusion. Strengthening these foundations is essential to our effectiveness. The specific content of these building blocks is detailed in the following section.

Building on EDF’s past successes, we will maintain our focus on our four pillars of work while striving to enhance our impact. Those pillars will guide our efforts in achieving an inclusive and accessible Europe and world:

Advocacy forms the cornerstone of EDF’s efforts to advance disability rights across Europe and globally.

In this pillar, EDF will focus on three strategic objectives:

1. Promote and enforce inclusive legislation and policies – EDF will advocate towards the EU and national governments to adopt new legislation and integrate disability rights into all relevant initiatives and programmes. This includes monitoring the implementation of both disability-specific and other laws with a disability component while also protecting existing rights and using mechanisms to enforce EU laws effectively.
2. Ensure inclusive representation and engagement EDF will ensure the diverse presence of the disability movement in EU and international fora, bringing expertise and lived experiences to policy discussions. This also involves advocating towards international bodies on global challenges. Our aim is to ensure that policies and decisions are taken from the perspective of and the contributions of the disability movement. The national realities of persons with disabilities should be taken into account.
3. Strengthen evidence-based advocacy we will gather evidence through data collection and research, publishing reports and analyses to support advocacy efforts and measure their impact

This pillar focuses on enhancing membership engagement and capacity within EDF to effectively advocate for disability rights on national, EU, and global levels. Our aim is to empower and support our diverse membership by providing tools, resources, and opportunities that foster collaboration, inclusion, and organisational growth.

Membership and capacity building are crucial for EDF’s mission because they strengthen our collective ability to advocate for disability rights effectively. By supporting organisational development and resource mobilisation, we enable our members to conduct impactful advocacy at all levels. Emphasising diversity, inclusion, and collaboration within our membership ensures that all voices, especially those of the most marginalised, are heard and represented in our initiatives.

In this pillar, we will focus on the following strategic objectives:

1. Support members’ organisational development and resource mobilisation: we will support members in their organisational development and strengthen them by producing tools and resources for their activities, including advocacy, at national, EU, and global levels.
2. Mobilise resources for capacity building based on members’ needs and the emerging policy agenda, offering amongst others, trainings, workshops, peer exchanges, exchange visits, or events.
3. Foster diversity, inclusion, and collaboration – increase diversity within our membership by welcoming and supporting members who represent the most excluded persons with disabilities.

Enhance member engagement and support exchange.  EDF will facilitate exchange between EDF members, especially National Councils, and provide space for networking. EDF staff will actively support and visit members at the national, regional, and global levels to gain a deeper understanding of local and international issues to help members to engage better in EDF’s (policy) work. We will provide opportunities and spaces for members to showcase their work. This includes co-organising governing body meetings and events with a wide range of members and partners.

Pillar 3 is dedicated to using strategic communication to enhance awareness of disability rights. Effective communication is instrumental in shaping policies, influencing public opinion, and cultivating inclusive attitudes towards persons with disabilities. It plays a vital role in EDF’s advocacy efforts by engaging policymakers through high-quality communication tools and media engagement, ensuring that our messages resonate and drive meaningful policy change. Strengthening accessible internal and external communication are important to reach diverse audiences.

In this pillar, we will focus on the following strategic objectives:

1. Enhance communications for policy change: we will continue our high-quality communication efforts with policymakers and decision-makers on national, EU, and international level, using position papers, joint statements, and other policy communication tools. We will leverage our influential social media accounts, thematic newsletters, and media contacts to amplify our messages.
2. Strengthen accessible communication: we will improve accessibility of our internal and external communication. This includes using audiovisual communication by increasing the production of short-form videos, expanding our presence on social media channels, developing accessible information, and exploring translations of key documents. This initiative aims to ensure our communications are accessible to a more diverse set of audiences, including the diversity of disabilities and linguistic backgrounds
3. Promote disability rights awareness: we will intensify cooperation with journalists, media channels, and personalities to raise awareness about disability rights. We will strategically support member campaigns, coordinate awareness weeks, and organise public actions and events to foster inclusive attitudes and drive policy changes.

Collaboration through partnerships and alliances plays a vital role in our work, including advocacy, membership engagement, capacity building, organisational development, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. By actively participating in partnerships and alliances at both EU and international levels, whether as formal members of organisations or within broader networks focused on specific issues, EDF strengthens its collective impact. EDF is committed to sustaining and expanding our engagement with key networks to advance our overarching goal and strategic objectives.

In this pillar, we will focus on the following strategic objectives:

1. Amplifying our advocacy efforts: EDF will continue and/or strengthen collaboration with key networks, aiming to promote disability rights, equality, and inclusive policies. By fostering diverse alliances and networks, EDF will amplify its advocacy impact across various sectors and ensure that initiatives on equality benefit all individuals within marginalized groups, including those with intersecting identities.
2. Leveraging partnerships for increased visibility and influence at both European and global levels.
3. Integrate disability-inclusive approaches into other networks and institutions– we will continue to work closely with networks or institutions both in the EU and beyond, to advocate for disability-inclusive policies in those bodies.

We will strengthen our own internal structures in two key areas: organisational development and fostering inclusion and diversity.

Organisational development is crucial for maintaining and enhancing our operational capacity, governance structures, and strategic planning processes. By investing in continuous improvement and capacity building within our organisation, we aim to ensure that EDF remains agile, responsive, and effective in advancing disability rights across Europe and globally.

Inclusion and diversity within EDF is essential to reflect the richness of experiences and perspectives that exist within the disability community. This initiative involves creating an environment where individuals from diverse backgrounds, including those with intersecting identities such as disability, gender, age- including youth and older persons, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, feel valued, respected, and empowered to contribute fully. By promoting inclusivity at all levels of our organisation—from leadership and membership to decision-making processes and project development—we strengthen our ability to advocate authentically for the rights and interests of all persons with disabilities.

Foundation 1: Organisational development

Our work here will focus on enhancing EDF’s internal capabilities for effective governance, operational efficiency, and financial sustainability, which are crucial for achieving our mission and goals. Throughout this strategy period, we will ensure our organisation is well-equipped to do our work and that we are able to address any gaps in our operational effectiveness.

Our strategic objectives are the following:

1. Strengthen governance structures and enhance accountability mechanisms to ensure alignment with the CRPD and our strategy commitments: our aim is to fortify EDF’s governance framework, ensuring that our organisational practices are robust and future-proof. By enhancing transparency in decision-making, including financial reporting and accountability mechanisms, we will strengthen trust among stakeholders and demonstrate our commitment to inclusive and ethical governance.
2. Enhance operational efficiency and staff capabilities through improved IT systems and strategic human resources management: our aim is to optimise our operational efficiency by modernising IT systems and adopting innovative technologies. By investing in cybersecurity measures and AI-driven tools, we ensure a secure and efficient virtual environment, supporting our advocacy and communication efforts effectively. We will enhance our HR policies and training initiatives to ensure that staff skills align with strategic objectives, fostering professional growth and organisational resilience.
3. Diversify and strengthen sustainable income streams to support our work and organisational sustainability: we will enhance our financial sustainability by diversifying income sources, including EU operating grants, membership fees, corporate sponsorship, project funding, and co-financing from members and governments. This approach supports advocacy activities, capacity building, and empowers members through projects and partnerships. We will focus on effective management of current funds while actively seeking new opportunities in priority areas.

Foundation 2: Inclusion and diversity

Persons with disabilities represent a diverse population living in various circumstances and geographical locations. Many of the most marginalised people with disabilities have high support needs or face intersecting forms of discrimination and exclusion. This includes individuals from racialised communities, the LGBTQI+ community, youth, women, people living in poverty, Roma or people with a migration background.

Within the disability movement itself, many persons with disabilities are more excluded than others and face greater barriers. The EDF membership unanimously agrees that a foundational element of EDF’s work is to be as inclusive and accessible as possible. Our goal is to grow into an organisation that fully represents the diversity of the disability movement. Inclusion and diversity should cut across every initiative of EDF’s work.

To achieve this, we will incorporate “inclusion and diversity” as guiding principles across our advocacy, capacity building, events, governance and human resources. Our strategic objectives include:

1. Establish a “Inclusion and diversity Working Group”. This internal working structure will be set up and open to all members to advise, support and stimulate EDF in diversity and inclusion matters. Tasks will include monitoring diversity, stimulating new approaches and practices, and providing feedback to the governing bodies. We will strive to reflect the diversity of EDF’s membership in this working structure.
2. Ensure that inclusion and diversity considerations are integrated into all aspects of EDF’s work, including advocacy, capacity building, events, governance, and human resources management. This involves adopting inclusive practices that address the diverse needs and challenges within the disability community.
3. Transform EDF into an organisation that authentically represents and includes the diverse voices and experiences within the disability movement. This entails actively fostering an inclusive culture and actively recruiting and engaging individuals from underrepresented groups.