From a young age, I have always been involved in voluntary work and got the love for getting involved with community projects, supporting and empowering people to have a voice and influencing decision makers. I first started by helping out at old people’s home, providing support and company to many older people. As I grew, so did my interests and activities and throughout my work and personal life, I have tried to get involved in as many different levels of activities, gathering experience as I went.
I really can’t list all of my different roles and appointments here; it would be too much for people! It is enough to say that I have been privileged to be involved in so many ground-breaking and successful projects: it has been a delight. Looking back, this has not been through opportunities coming to me, but through my own tenacity and determination. I have always tried to be aware of what was going on in the Deaf community and have proactively involved myself in it.
A Varied Career
Through my different roles, I have met with many high-profile individuals, including Mike Atherton (Former England Captain Cricket), Preston Football Players, Mel and Sue Perkins (Light Lunch), Meera Syal, Nina Wadia (Gracious Goodness Me), along with Local Mayors, Councillors, Politics and local schools, as well as many other people. To top it all off, I have also met and chatted with HRH the Duchess of York and HRH the Prince of Wales.
I have had the pleasure of being involved with the DBC (Deaf Broadcasting Council), RNID, NDCS, FYD (Friends for Young Deaf people), local and central government and television and media organisations. Seeing the many barriers present for deaf people, in all fields, I have taken it as a personal challenge to fight for change. It is exciting to see organisations like Deaf Unity joining the charge to improve access, provision and the student experience. For a more extensive view of my career, please feel free to have a chat with me at the conference.
I thrive on new challenges and taking on new experiences. Making a difference to other people’s lives is very rewarding and makes my work worthwhile. I am not keen on ‘all talk and no action’. I prefer to be proactive, empowering people to take advantage of opportunities available and to show others through my experiences that if I can do it – then they can do it too!
I enjoy giving presentations and inspiring others. As a result, I have been invited to many engagements as Guest speaker. My engagements include: Harrow Heroes Award (October 2012); Communityid Seminar (March 2012), RADAR’s Yorkshire and Humberside Empowerment Forum (May 2010); RADAR’s Leadership Programme at London (April 2010); RADAR’s Newcastle Empowerment Forum March (2010); RADAR’s Leadership Programme at Manchester (Jan 2010); Chair of RADAR’s ‘Right to Independent Living and Control’ Workshop in London (November 2009); and as a Guest Speaker for San Francisco’s Mayor Office, USA (June 2002).
I enjoy my public appointment work and continue to be involved as a board member of the Disability Transport Advisory Committee, Department for Transport; Public Appointment Ambassador for the Government Equalities Office and Cabinet Office; Harrow Arts Centre Ambassador November 2012, amongst others. I also enjoy working with the community, especially in my role as President of Harrow Asian Deaf club and as a result of our team work: we have put HADC on the map.
On a personal level, for the accumulation of my personal achievements over the last 20 years, I was awarded with MBE in recognition for my public services to deaf and disabled people.
Breaking Barriers and Inspiring People
As I mentioned earlier, it is impossible to relate here all of my different roles and appointments over my long and varied career. Something that has been true for all of them, however, is the idea of breaking barriers. From when I was a student, there has been a constant battle to be treated as a peer and equal. Thanks to my own grit and character, I was the first to achieve a whole host of successes, both on a personal and secular level. Sadly, not all deaf people have this ‘hard-headedness’ and find themselves shrinking from challenges, blocks and walls that lie in their path. Much of my work, like that of Deaf Unity, is striving to empower members of our community, so that success stories are not the rarity, but the norm.
My message to people interested in this area is to achieve your dream. Networking is an essential tool to move on and to support one another. Going to the right education institute with the right support can go very far. Also willingness and motivation is a must to take on new challenges and to experience new areas, be it voluntary or paid work. Gaining experiences is essential for developing a career. It is vital to gain the relevant skills and knowledge in the areas a person is interested in, and many of these are transferrable to other roles/ careers. It is important to be on the lookout for learning as part of your continuing professional development which is very important as you get older. It is about maintaining motivation and adapting to new changes in your career. I will be talking more about this at the conference. I will also be talking about my positive and negative experiences in education and will be sharing my vision of how the Deaf Learner experience should be. Make sure that you are there, and help pave the way to a brighter future.
Asif Iqbal MBE is a Public Appointment Ambassador for the Government Equalities Office and Cabinet Office, as well as President of Harrow Asian Deaf Club. He has been involved in various roles from Government to working with Communities.
One thought on "Deaf Learners National Conference Speaker Asif Iqbal: Breaking Down Barriers"