Education:
June 1993 Master of Arts in Music Theory and Composition (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA)
May 1990 Bachelor of Arts with honors in Music (St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN, USA)
Oct 1988 Bachelor of Arts in English and Philosophy (Chiangmai University, Chiangmai, Thailand)
Career:
2013-present Member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
2008-present Member of the Senate, Royal Thai Parliament
2002-present: Executive Committee Member, Foundation of Asia Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD Foundation) under Royal Patronage, and Asia Pacific Development Center on Disability
1999-present: Founder/Coordinator, Daisy Thailand
1999-present: Founder/Secretary General, Thai Blind People’s Foundation & Vice Chair, Thai National Institute for the Blind
1993-present: Freelance Academic Advisor/former Deputy Director, Ratchasuda College, Mahidol University, Thailand
Other positions:
2013-2018 Member of the Experts Committee of China Braille Press and China Braille Library
2011-2012: Chairman of Local Organizing Committee, World Blind Union (WBU) and International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment ( ICEVI) General Assembly 2012 in Bangkok – November 2012
2004-2012 President, Thailand Association of the Blind
2003-2006 Representative from the Thai government to the UN
ad hoc committee for the elaboration of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
2001-2005 Member, Advisory Committee on Disability to the
Prime Minister of Thailand
2001-2005 Member, Information Technology Committee,
Ministry of Education
2000-2002 Member of the National Broadcasting Commission
Search Committee
1999-present Founder and Vice Chairperson, Thai National Institute for the Blind
1999-present Executive Committee Member, World Blind Union
(re-elected in 2004)
1999-2001 Member, Committee on the Educational Reform for
Persons with Disabilities, other Disadvantage groups and gifted children, Ministry of Education
Awards:
Awarded with the plaque of honor from The Nation Multimedia Group project on “Following good citizens to pay back to the Land” October, 2009
Awarded with the plaque of honor from Prime Minister of Thailand as an outstanding advocate for the rights of the child for the year 2009
Awarded as the person who contributes to the betterment of life for the blind by the Takeo Iwahashi Award '04
Announced by the media as good parliamentarian of the year December 2008
Awarded with a Plaque of Honor from the Prime Minister of Thailand in 2001 as an Outstanding Individual whose contributions have made significant improvement to the lives of PWDs in Thailand
Awarded the Most Outstanding Person with Disabilities in Thailand from Council on Social Welfare in 1995
Awarded “Outstanding Member of the Year” from the Alumni Association of Chiangmai School for the Blind in 1988
Recent Publications:
Most recent writing has been centered on keynote speeches, presentations and short articles, a selection as listed below:
16.05.12: “ICT Accessibility: one of the Core Components to ensure ICT for Sustainable and Inclusive Development”, presented at the ITU (International Telecommunication Union) Asia Pacific Regional Forum on ICT for Sustainable and Inclusive Development held UNESCAP Bangkok Thailand
14.03.12: Opening Address to the UNESCAP Regional Preparatory Meeting for the High Level Intergovernmental Meeting on Final Review of the Implementation of the Asia and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003-2012, Bangkok Thailand
3.02.12: Address on behalf of the Thailand Delegation to the 50th Session of UN Commission for Social Development, New York USA
21.06.11: “Basic Principles to Ensure ICT Accessibility for All and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)”, delivered at ITU Asia Pacific Regional Forum on Digital Inclusion for All, Singapore
12.04.11: “Accessible Tourism: A Strategic Example of CRPD Implementation”
Delivered at International Conference on Accessible Tourism Taipei, Taiwan
4.03.11: “International Cooperation in Developing Countries: Let’s Make It More Disability-Inclusive”, delivered at Opening Ceremony UNESCAP Social Development Committee Meeting
