Meet Emma Harrison - IDPD Community Spotlight
International Day of Persons with Disabilities is this Wednesday 3rd December, but we are celebrating it all week! It’s an annual event created by the United Nations to “promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights and wellbeing of persons with disabilities”.
Within the All The Elements Community there are some incredible disability campaigners, activists and changemakers. Through this blog series we’re shining a light on their work, celebrating their achievements, and championing the importance of disability inclusion in the UK outdoors.
Today’s feature is celebrating Emma Harrison (she/her), a physically disabled mountain leader and life coach that loves introducing people to the outdoors and helping them explore in a way that meets their needs.
What do you love most about spending time outdoors?
So many things, but fresh air and the sounds of nature are my favourites.
What's one thing you wish more people understood about accessibility and the outdoors?
Be more open minded - so much can be done with thoughtfulness and adaptations.
What's the most impactful adaptation or change that you’ve found, or someone has made, that's helped you to access the outdoors more easily?
For me, it’s probably been the discovery of walking poles. Changing from crutches to walking poles for stability has helped me be more active in rural and urban environments.
Emma also shared that she is developing some accessibility courses for outdoor leaders, using her and others’ lived experiences as a catalyst for important discussions and learning with the goal of more disabled people accessing the outdoors safely. The first course is running Saturday 7th February - watch this space!
To find out more about Emma, follow them on Instagram, check out their website and listen to this episode of ATE Reads
This article is part of a series written by All The Elements, to celebrate some of our incredible community members, inspired by International Day of Persons with Disabilities. Each day this week, we will be spotlighting a different person. You can explore the full series here or follow along with us on social media.
Join our Disability Campaigners’ Community!
Are you working on disability inclusion in the UK outdoors? If so we’d love you to join our Community! Our last online social of this year is this Wednesday 3rd December at 6pm, you can sign up here.
The 2026 dates will be announced soon! Sign up to our newsletter to be the first to hear about future dates - or drop us an email at hello@alltheelements.co to find out more.
