Disability Research and Education
The Donald Beasley Institute advances the rights of disabled people and honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi through ethical, inclusive and transformative research.
Disability Research and Education
The Donald Beasley Institute advances the rights of disabled people and honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi through ethical, inclusive and transformative research.
Disability Research and Education
The Donald Beasley Institute advances the rights of disabled people and honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi through ethical, inclusive and transformative research.
Disability Research and Education
The Donald Beasley Institute advances the rights of disabled people and honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi through ethical, inclusive and transformative research.
Get to know our projects
Kā Kaupapa
Our Projects
Established in 1984, the DBI has a 41-year history as a rights-based disability research institute prioritising disabled-led and inclusive research.
We use different research methods that centre the voices and human rights of disabled people, and emphasise approaches that align with Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), the 2016-2026 New Zealand Disability Strategy, and Enabling Good Lives principles.
More ProjectsKōrero Whakamārama: We apply the Kāi Tahu dialect when writing in te reo Māori, that includes Kāi Tahu specific words and replacing the ng with a k.
Get to know our publications
Kā Pānuitaka
Publications
Our publications cover a wide range of disability-related topics and present the findings and other outcomes from our projects and research.
The DBI’s projects and research are presented in various ways, including reports, articles, book chapters, and other resources in alternative formats and languages. We strive to share our research widely and ensure it is publicly available and free when possible.
Get to know DBI
Ko Wai Mātou
About Us
The Donald Beasley Institute is recognised nationally and internationally as a leader in disability research and disabled-led research. We are a team of disabled and non-disabled researchers living throughout Aotearoa.
Our team is culturally diverse, with a high level of academic expertise and a range of lived and intersectional experiences. We also support new and emerging disabled researchers by working alongside them to build their knowledge, skills, and capacity.
Whakarakatira te tākata, ahakoa ko wai, ahakoa nō hea.
Respect and treat all with dignity, irrespective of who they are and where they come from.
Whakatinana
Honour Te Tiriti O Waitangi
Whakarakatira
Respectful
Whakawhanaukataka
Relational
Whakamana
Ethical
Whānau
Family
Whakakotahi
Inclusive
Whakawhirinaki
Accountable
Get to know benchmark
Benchmark Initiative
Benchmark provides evidence-based guidelines, case law, and other relevant resources to assist legal professionals.
Benchmark provides evidence-based guidelines, case law, and other relevant resources to assist legal professionals working with people in the New Zealand legal system who experience barriers to full participation in legal matters.
Benchmark is a collaborative and ongoing project intended to increase access to justice. Benchmark guidelines focus on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), questioning children, responsive practice with adults with a learning disability, responsive practice with older adults, communication assistance and pre-trial case management. New guidelines are in development.
The Benchmark Project has been led by Dr Emily Henderson, Dr Brigit Mirfin-Veitch, Professor Kate Diesfeld, and Dr Kirsten Hanna, who have been ably assisted at all stages by Ms Lydie Schmidt and Ms Niha Jalota.
Read MoreResearch Opportunities
Opportunities to Take Part in Research
The DBI often recruits participants for our research projects. Our aim is to centre the voices of the disability community by learning from disabled and D/deaf people, tākata whaikaha, whānau hauā and Tagata Sa’ilimalo, as well as their family, whānau, aiga, and close supporters. We are committed to ensuring disabled people have choice and control over how the research is conducted, and how they participate in the research.
We aren't looking for participants at the moment, new opportunities coming soon.
Announcements
Report Out Now: Window on Disability
05 June 2026
Working on this window has been a profound privilege for the Donald Beasley Institute. The Window underscores a critical reality: the public health system is, more often than not, failing disabled people. Report out now.
Congratulations to the Disabled Awardees of the New Zealand Order of Merit!
01 June 2026
Kā mihi nui ki a koutou, huge congratulations to all the disabled awardees of the New Zealand Order of Merit!
Research Launch: The Meaning of Home in a Multicultural Context: Disabled People’s Perspectives on Article 23 of the UNCRPD
21 May 2026
This research is based on kōrero with tākata whaikaha, Deaf, and disabled people. It explores the fundamental right to home and family, as enshrined in Article 23 of the UNCRPD.
Critical Disability Studies Network: Dr Sandra Yellowhorse
16 April 2026
The DBI and the Critical Disability Studies Research Network are proud to host Dr Sandra Yellowhorse here in Ōtepoti Dunedin.Dr Yellowhorse is a researcher in Critical Indigenous Disability Studies.