Disability and Development: Different Models, Different Places

Abstract

Debates about disability within geography, as well as in disability studies more generally, have been largely urban, Anglophone and Western-centric. Not only have industrialised societies remained the predominant focus of attention, but the debates themselves are rooted within an often unacknowledged Western context. In the light of this, this article aims to bring together debates about disability and development, which have until relatively recently tended to be mutually exclusive, and provides a critical review of recent debates about disability issues in developing countries. By doing so, it furthers debates about the significance of geography in disability studies, challenges the Western-centric focus of disability models and extends understanding of the shifting and complex landscapes of disability in developing countries.