What is it?
The National Week of Deaf People (NWDP) is a week-long national celebration of Deaf individuals and the Australian Deaf community. This includes celebrating the International Week of Deaf People (IWDP) and International Day of Sign Languages (IDSL) which are initiatives of the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD).
These two events are traditionally held during September and are based on the founding date of the WFD (23 September 1951). is an opportunity for Deaf people to celebrate their communities, language, culture and history; make the public aware of their local, state and national Deaf communities; and to recognise their achievements.
Share this flyer to help raise awareness of what National Week of Deaf People is. Also scan the QR code to view the Auslan translation, or click here.
NWDP Flyer
Daily Themes
National Week of Deaf People Theme for 2022: Building inclusive communities for all
We adopt the World Federation of the Deaf’s daily themes for the International Week of Deaf People for use throughout NWDP. This years daily themes are:
Monday, 19 September 2022 | Sign Languages in Education
Tuesday, 20 September 2022 | Sustainable economic opportunities for deaf people
Wednesday, 21 September 2022 | Health for All
Thursday, 22 September 2022 | Safeguarding deaf people in times of crisis
Friday, 23 September 2022 | Sign Languages Unite Us!
Saturday, 24 September 2022 | Intersectional Deaf Communities
Sunday, 25 September 2022 | Deaf Leadership for Tomorrow
Digital Stickers for Facebook and Instagram
We commissioned Deaf designer Shirley Liu to create 10 digital stickers and images that incorporating Auslan. You can use these to add to your Facebook and Instagram stories and share with your friends on social media.
Watch Sam explain how you can use these digital stickers in your story.
View full collectionCommunity Events
To celebrate National Week of Deaf People, Deaf Connect has supported the community to create the following events:
17-18 Sep | Deaf Festival in Brisbane
17 Sep | Spring Jam Basketball event in Brisbane
23-25 Sep | Auslan Creative Festival in Lismore
23 Sep | Adelaide Open Caption Movie Night
24 Sep | Cairns Community BBQ
24 Sep | Townsville Community meet up
7 & 22 Oct | Visual Vernacular Youth Workshops
26 Nov | Deaf Festival in Sydney
Deaf Connect is the major sponsor of the Deaf Festival and the Spring Jam
