Name Surname: Annabelle Xerri

Country: Malta

Nationality: Maltese

I graduated from the University of Malta, obtaining a degree in Bachelor of Communications with Psychology. I started working as a Marketing Executive in a private company. Looking for employment was very challenging, due to my Deafness. For this reason, I started to raise awareness about Deaf people and Deaf Culture on social media, starting with a Facebook page called A Silent World. This page was very successful, as I received a lot of positive feedback. I joined the committee and became a board member of the Deaf People Association Malta, and started to participate in more disability events, such as attending conferences and seminars to represent the Deaf People Association Malta. I was a member of the Disabled People's Advisory Committee and of the Consultative Council on Disability Rights. I was also appointed as the Vice Chairperson of the National Commission for Persons with Disability for a short period of time, before the dissolution of the board. I also visited schools to deliver awareness talks and to serve as a role model. In 2014, 2015, and 2016, I worked with other Deaf individuals and authorities to make the Maltese Sign Language an official and national language in Malta. The Maltese Parliament approved the Bill declaring that the Maltese Sign Language is to be considered an official language of Malta on 16th March 2016. After that, I was appointed as the chairperson of the Maltese Sign Language council. In 2016, I also won the Queen's Young Leaders award. The program discovers, celebrates, and supports exceptional young people from across the commonwealth aged 18- 29 who are making a change in their communities and using their skills to transform lives. Winners of this prestigious Award receive a unique package of training from Cambridge University, mentoring and networking, including a one-week residential programme in the UK during which they collect their Award from Her Majesty the Queen. In October 2016, I also commenced the Masters in Disability Studies course at the University of Malta, using the services of the Sign Language interpreters in order to be able to access the lectures.

Looking for employment was very challenging, due to my Deafness. For this reason, I started to raise awareness about Deaf people and Deaf Culture on social media, starting with a Facebook page called A Silent World. This page was very successful, as I received a lot of positive feedback. I joined the committee and became a board member of the Deaf People Association Malta, and started to participate in more disability events, such as attending conferences and seminars to represent the Deaf People Association Malta. I was a member of the Disabled People's Advisory Committee and of the Consultative Council on Disability Rights. I was also appointed as the Vice Chairperson of the National Commission for Persons with Disability for a short period of time, before the dissolution of the board. I also visited schools to deliver awareness talks and to serve as a role model. In 2014, 2015, and 2016, I worked with other Deaf individuals and authorities to make the Maltese Sign Language an official and national language in Malta. The Maltese Parliament approved the Bill declaring that the Maltese Sign Language is to be considered an official language of Malta on 16th March 2016. After that, I was appointed as the chairperson of the Maltese Sign Language council. In 2016, I also won the Queen's Young Leaders award. The program discovers, celebrates, and supports exceptional young people from across the commonwealth aged 18- 29 who are making a change in their communities and using their skills to transform lives. Winners of this prestigious Award receive a unique package of training from Cambridge University, mentoring and networking, including a one-week residential programme in the UK during which they collect their Award from Her Majesty The Queen. In October 2016, I also commenced the Masters in Disability Studies course at the University of Malta, using the services of the Sign Language interpreters in order to be able to access the lectures.

I am very determined, persistent and like working in a team.

Challenges and discrimination that I had to overcome and still have to overcome due to my deafness have been the reasons that made me start doing this work. For example, the difficulty to find employment due to being deaf. To this day, I still find various barriers, for example being refused a sign language interpreter when invited for an interview on the media.

There is a lack of awareness in Malta and Gozo about the Deaf community and sign language. Since we live in a world which is constructed for hearing people, my aim is to raise awareness about the deaf culture within the hearing community. Moreover, I aim to raise awareness about the importance of sign language within the deaf community, as not all deaf people use it. Many parents who have deaf children are afraid to teach sign language to their children, as they want their children to learn how to speak. However, it is possible for deaf people to use both the spoken and the signed languages. Sign language would improve the quality of life of deaf people, as it would make information more accessible in all areas of life, including education, employment, media, health sectors, and so forth. Using my story to serve as a role model gives other deaf / hard of hearing people, or their parents, someone that they can relate to.