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Meet the non-profit improving the lives and careers of disabled Hongkongers
Co-founders Reina Cheng and Walter Tsui talk disability justice and creating a more inclusive workplace
Reading Time:3 minutes
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It’s been quite the journey for Walter Tsui and Reina Cheng. From a chat over a kebab more than a decade ago to winning a prestigious award at the United Nations in Vienna, Austria, this March, their project, CareER, has been one of the more successful Hong Kong non-profit organisations, helping tertiary-educated people with a disability or special needs enter the employment market.
Every year since 2014, CareER has placed more than 70 people in new careers, in fields such as legal, human resources and cybersecurity, in local and multinational corporations as well as social enterprises.
For Tsui, co-founder and CEO, establishing CareER was personal. Diagnosed as visually impaired at three years old, he recalls an inclusive, supportive environment at primary and high school, “but it was the opposite when I went to university”.
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Despite being tempted to quit, Tsui graduated from Chinese University, in 2011. He furthered his studies overseas and worked with various multinationals before establishing CareER, which now has 14 full-time staff, nearly half of whom have disabilities.
“I got thinking, ‘Why are there no groups for helping people with disabilities in higher education? Why don’t we focus on seeing ability, not disability?’”
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