Samantha French is the Senior Policy Officer at People with Disabilities Australia (PWDA), a national disability rights and advocacy organisation. Samantha has worked in the disability filed for over 25 years in providing consultancy and advice to government, international human rights agencies and development sector on disability-inclusive development practices.

Sam is actively involved in promoting the rights of people with disability as the national, regional and international level, including through her roles on the Executive Committee for the Australian Disability and Development Consortium (ADDC), Board Member of the Pacific Disability Forum (PDF), as a member of the Pacific Women with Disability Committee and as Vice Chair of Asia-Pacific Disabled Peoples Organisations United.

Sam was directly involved in the development of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and other regional strategies, namely the Pacific Regional Framework on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2016-2025 and the Incheon Strategy plan of action for the New Asia Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities 2013-2022, and in representing people with disability in the Asia-Pacific region as part of the broader Sustainable Development agenda.

Concurrent session moderator: When disability rights movements lead: rethinking approaches to sustainable development