Leo Burnett Israel And Access Israel Proudly Present, Cop26 Unaccessible Conference

Nov. 10, 2021

Disability affects more than 1 billion people around the world and yet it is still often treated as a second thought when it comes to making mega events accessible – the United Nations COP26 summit was no exception but this time the "oversight" sparked an international incident and a very timely campaign. 

A Public awareness campaign by Leo Burnett Israel.

Karine Elharrar, Israel's Energy Minister, suffers from muscular dystrophy and as such uses a wheelchair for mobility. But when she attended the Glasgow climate conference this week alongside Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, she found herself unable to enter the conference complex due to accessibility issues - and was left out.

Her wheelchair was not allowed into any of the entrances; and while the prime minister's staff tried to help her find a way in - including riding a shuttle, which was not wheelchair accessible either – she had no choice after two hours but to give up on attending the conference and make her way back to the hotel.

The problem was set straight the next day and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized to the Minister for the "confusion with the arrangements". But Access Israel saw an opportunity to amplify what the Minister had implied in her tweet following the incident and send a message on behalf of the millions of disabled ignored every day to the world and its leaders:

“Safeguarding our future, starts with caring for people.”