Chapter 13 briefly describes the structure and functions of the Council of Europe. It explores the evolution of disability law and policy within the Council of Europe and discusses the main tenets of the Council’s current Disability Strategy. The chapter also examines in great detail the role of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and considers the influence that the CRPD has on the Court’s interpretation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The chapter also discusses the European Social Charter (ESC) and the Revised European Social Charter (Revised Charter), as well as the most relevant decisions of the European Committee on Social Rights (ECSR) related to disability.

Chapter 13 briefly describes the structure and functions of the Council of Europe. It explores the evolution of disability law and policy within the Council of Europe and discusses the main tenets of the Council’s current Disability Strategy. The chapter also examines in great detail the role of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and considers the influence that the CRPD has on the Court’s interpretation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The chapter also discusses the European Social Charter (ESC) and the Revised European Social Charter (Revised Charter), as well as the most relevant decisions of the European Committee on Social Rights (ECSR) related to disability.

Chapter 15 addresses African and Asian disability laws and policies, highlighting the regional developments stimulated by the entry into force of the CRPD. It presents the structure and functions of the African Union (AU) and discusses the main tenets of the African human rights system, before turning to an examination of the evolution of the AU’s disability policy. Particular attention is paid to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Charter) and to the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa (RPDA Protocol). The chapter cursorily addresses the role of the League of Arab States in protecting and promoting the rights of persons with disabilities, with a focus on the 2004 Arab Charter on Human Rights. Finally, the chapter discusses the role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities, and it examines the role of the UN regional body –– the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) – in facilitating the exchange of good practices on accessibility and inclusion in the region.

Chapter 15 addresses African and Asian disability laws and policies, highlighting the regional developments stimulated by the entry into force of the CRPD. It presents the structure and functions of the African Union (AU) and discusses the main tenets of the African human rights system, before turning to an examination of the evolution of the AU’s disability policy. Particular attention is paid to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Charter) and to the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa (RPDA Protocol). The chapter cursorily addresses the role of the League of Arab States in protecting and promoting the rights of persons with disabilities, with a focus on the 2004 Arab Charter on Human Rights. Finally, the chapter discusses the role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in advancing the rights of persons with disabilities, and it examines the role of the UN regional body ̶̶ the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) ̶ in facilitating the exchange of good practices on accessibility and inclusion in the region.

Chapter 1 explores the various theoretical models of disability that have been delineated by scholars in the field. The chapter traces the evolution from the medical model of disability, which focused on the individual’s impairment, to the social and social-contextual models of disability. The United Nations Convention on the Rights or Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) endorses a social-contextual model of disability, which lays emphasis on the interaction between impairment and environmental, legislative and attitudinal barriers. In addition, the chapter analyses the key features of the human rights model of disability that underpins the CRPD. The chapter also explores the core and cross-cutting themes that have become the cornerstone of current disability law at the international and European levels, and it demonstrates the role of the CRPD as the roadmap of global disability policy.

Chapter 8 provides an analysis of Article 27 CRPD, a key norm in ensuring the exercise and enjoyment by persons with disabilities of the right to work without any discrimination and in contributing to the enjoyment of other substantive rights in the CRPD, including the right to live independently and be included in the community. After briefly discussing the right to work in international human rights law, the chapter provides an overview of the obligations imposed on States Parties under Article 27 CRPD. In that regard, it discusses the role of reasonable accommodation and accessibility in employment settings. It also reflects on sheltered and supported employment, and their compatibility with the CRPD.

Chapter 5 reflects on how accessibility is understood in the CRPD and how it is interpreted by the CRPD Committee. It conducts a broad examination of the multidimensional concept of ‘accessibility’ and its relationship with universal design and assistive devices. It discusses the role of ‘accessibility rights’ in the Convention and focuses on the content and scope of Article 9, addressing the relationship between accessibility and non-discrimination. The chapter investigates the differences between accessibility and reasonable accommodation, in light of the CRPD Committee’s jurisprudence. Finally, the chapter briefly analyses Article 21 CRPD on access to information and communications.

This chapter introduces the reader to the textbook and to the novelties and intricacies inherent to international and European disability law and policy. In that regard, the chapter begins with an overview of the developments that led to the emergence of disability law as an academic discipline. Thereafter, the chapter briefly discusses how the language of disability has changed over time. It then goes on to provide an account of the aims and objectives of this textbook, and it outlines the guiding perspective and the methodological approach adopted in the book. Finally, the chapter ends with an outline of the structure of the textbook as a whole.

Chapter 12 examines the main tenets of the current EU action on accessibility for persons with disabilities and identify the most relevant provisions in the EU legal framework. It analyses the relevant accessibility legislation that predates the conclusion of the CRPD as well as more recent regulations and directives in the domains of the physical environment, transportation, information and communications. It also briefly discusses accessibility of cultural goods and services, including audiovisual services. Then, the chapter turns to an examination of the proposal for a European Accessibility Act, which is currently under discussion in the EU legislative institutions. Additionally, the chapter examines accessibility requirements in public procurement legislation, and succinctly addresses the role of standardisation in guaranteeing accessibility. Finally, it goes on to discuss the role of state aid law and policy in fostering accessibility and in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities.

Chapter 2 highlights the gaps that existed in the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities before the CRPD came onto the international human rights landscape. It also traces the principal disability-related developments that have occurred within the UN from the early 1970s to the present day. In doing so, it explores the evolution of the UN disability protection from a charity-based approach to a human rights model of disability. The chapter also provides an overview of the work of several UN bodies and agencies in the field disability, by analysing the role of the UN itself and some of its agencies, such as the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), in promoting and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities.

Chapter 14 provides an overview of the core areas of the Inter-American human rights system (IAHRS) that are relevant to disability rights. The chapter analyses the primary instruments that pertain to disability, and the key judicial and quasi-judicial mechanisms of the IAHRS. The chapter outlines the principal features of the American Convention on Human Rights (AHCR) and the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (CIADDIS). It also highlights the disability case law of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Inter-American Court on Human Rights (IACtHR), before and after the adoption of the CRPD.

Chapter 10 highlights the key turning points in the history of disability policy in the EU and discusses the main tenets of the current EU legislative and policy action to protect, promote and ensure the rights of persons with disabilities. The chapter focuses on the current European Disability Strategy 2010-2020 and discusses its core elements. It then briefly examines the European Pillar of Social Rights and its features from a disability perspective. The chapter, then, considers the ratification of the CRPD and the effects that the Convention has in the EU legal order. Finally, the chapter briefly discusses Brexit and the consequences that the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU will have on the rights of people with disabilities in the Britain.