Bringing home half a century of global collaboration, what does it take to lead an international community dedicated to the deafblind movement into its next era? Closing out our celebratory 50th anniversary series, Amy Stevenson sits down with Deafblind International President Mirko Baur. From his background as a special education pedagogue, linguist, and NPO manager in Switzerland to guiding worldwide initiatives like the ICF Core Set and global definitions of deafblindness, Mirko reflects on a lifetime of championing connection, communication, and systems change.
About Mirko Baur
Mirko Baur is the President of Deafblind International (DbI). A trained special education pedagogue, linguist, literary scholar, NPO manager and specialist for diversity, equity and inclusion, he has served on the DbI board since 2015, stepping into the role of Vice President in 2019 before being elected President in 2023. He was the first chair of the DbI Communication Committee (ComCom), remains a member of ComCom, is a member of the Fundraising Committee (FundCom), chair of DbI’s Committee for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEICom), and is responsible for the Management Committee (ManCom). He leads the Global Education Campaign and is co-chair of the Planning Committee for the 2027 World Conference. Mirko is deeply passionate about overcoming communication barriers, promoting global equity and inclusion and driving international campaigns in collaboration with, and on behalf of, everyone concerned and involved in deafblindness.
Special thanks to the Deafblind Ontario Services team and Amy Stevenson for producing and hosting this 50th-anniversary podcast series.