Mr. Kudzai Shava is a scholar-activist devoted to working on issues affecting the disabled and visually impaired. Blind since the age of 3, he still pursues his love of sports, participating in golf and baseball for the blind, and works diligently in the field of HIV/AIDS awareness in his native Zimbabwe. He is also the recipient of a Claude Ake Memorial Program award.

Thursday, October 28, 2004
12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
10367 Bunche Hall
UCLA campus
Los Angeles, CA 90095

Mr. Kudzai Shava holds a Bachelor's degree in Primary Education, and a Diploma in Special Education. He is currently studying for his Master's degree in Sociology and Social Anthropology at the University of Zimbabwe.

Blind since the age of 3, Mr. Shava is a devoted advocate on issues affecting the disabled and visually impaired. Mr. Shava has served in various capacities, including Information and Publicity Secretary of the Zimbabwe Association of the Visually Handicapped; Advocacy Committee Chairperson of the National Association of Societies of the Care of the Handicapped (NASCOH); Chairperson of the HIV/AIDS Programme for the Visually Impaired; Coordinator of the Midlands State University Disability Resource Center; and Secretary General of the University of Zimbabwe Support Group for Blind Students. Mr. Shava's advocacy on issues concerning the disabled and visually handicapped can be followed in The Weekend Tribune where he serves as a columnist.

On the board of the First Lady's National Paralympic Games Fund, Mr. Kudzai Shava is also an avid participant in sports. Not only has he played and coached baseball for the blind, but Mr. Shava has also been inspired to launch a blind golfer's association in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Mr. Kudzai Shava joins us as a scholar-activist award recipient of the Claude Ake Memorial Program.

Cost : Free and open to the public; parking is available in lot 3 for $7.

www.international.ucla.edu/africa

Sponsor(s): African Studies Center, Globalization Research Center - Africa