Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Members of the committee, thank you for undertaking a study of international disability-inclusive education, including that with respect to intellectual and developmental disabilities. I would especially like to thank the Honourable Mike Lake for introducing this critical issue into the parliamentary agenda. I would also like to thank Ms. Vandenbeld, who was one of the few people at the UN-organized presummit for the Transforming Education Summit in Paris last year to raise the issue of inclusion within education. I also want to express my thanks to my member of Parliament, the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, who was one of the first members of this House to advocate for the rights of persons with disabilities.
I'm pleased to be here today representing Inclusion International, the global federation of associations of persons with intellectual disabilities and their families, with over 200 national members in over 115 countries. I'm joined virtually by Mónica Cortés from Bogota, Colombia, who, with me, co-chairs Inclusion International's catalyst for inclusive education program, which assists our members in promoting inclusive education.
Mónica, will you say a few words?