Disability Hallmark Research Initiative (DRI)

The Disability Hallmark Research Initiative (DRI) was one of the first Research@Melbourne Hallmark Initiatives at the University of Melbourne, 2014-2017. The aim was to co-ordinate interdisciplinary projects with the involvement of community partners and those with lived experience of disability. 

The Disability Human Rights Clinic (DHRC) at Melbourne Law School was one of the first of DRI’s projects. Using human rights law and disability studies, law students analyse and act on threats to the human rights of persons with disabilities. Students acquire the skillset to become the next generation of disability rights advocates.

The DRI was developed by the Melbourne Social Equity Institute and the Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, together with the Melbourne Neuroscience Institute and the Melbourne Networked Society Institute. It was hosted by the Melbourne Law School, as its focus is rights protection through research and advocacy.

Dr Anna Arstein-Kerslake, Associate Professor at the Melbourne Law School served as Academic convenor from  2014 - 2018 and Professor Keith McVilly, Professorial Fellow in Disability and Inclusion at the School of Social and Political Sciences, served as the Chair of the Steering Committee from 2016 - 2018.

For more information on the DRI past activities, visit the website