One achievement I find very important is my participation in the UNESCO World Conference on Education for All in Salamanca, Spain, in 1994. The Conference produced a document stating the principles of special education and education for all. After lengthy discussions, the document was also included statements on the following subjects important for the Deaf:

• The right of Deaf children to receive education in Sign Language
• The right of Deaf children to have Sign Language as a school subject
• Deaf children, as well as Deaf-Blind children, should, rather than be integrated into the general education, be taught in their own schools or classrooms.

The Salamanca Statement is a crucial instrument that many governments use as reference.

Another achievement I value highly is the work to improve the status of Sign Language during my period as Vice President of the EUD. Together with the Board and the rest of the EUD staff we worked hard for many years, in order to improve the status of Sign Language. Now we start to see the fruit of our labour in all of the EU and European Council member states, as more and more countries are including Sign Language in their legislation.

I am also very happy that a five-year Master’s teacher training programme has been established for young Sign Language users in Finland. Through this, a network has also been established with other similar programmes in Sweden, Norway and Denmark. I sincerely hope this form of networking spreads all over the world.

Last but not least, one extremely important achievement, accomplished by the work of the World Federation of the Deaf: the new Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities. I have participated in the process since 2003 and the work is ongoing. This is the first international document of such a high level that recognises Sign Languages, the linguistic rights of Sign Language users, and the right to interpreting services. This is indeed a very important tool, and a great achievement.