As the world marked International Day of Persons With Disabilities 2016 this weekend, it's a good time to tell you about Eddie Ndopu, one of this year's MPP students with a particularly inspiring story.

Eddie is a 26-year-old disability rights activist currently pursuing a Master of Public Policy at the Blavatnik School and Somerville College, University of Oxford. Eddie lives with spinal muscular atrophy, a degenerative condition that means he needs 24-hour care and cannot survive without personal and medical support. This has not stopped him from progressing, but made him even more determined to succeed and affirm the dignity of people with disabilities. 

Since arriving in Oxford, Eddie’s living costs have escalated due to a combination of unforeseen factors. The costs are far higher than those originally budgeted and for this reason he is fundraising to cover the care he needs to stay at Oxford.

Students, faculty and staff at the Blavatnik School - as well as at the University of Oxford and Eddie's college Somerville - are working closely with Eddie to support his fundraising efforts to meet these additional care costs. However, Eddie's extraordinary situation means he needs additional funding above and beyond this.

Please visit Eddie's fundraising page to find out more and make a donation.

You can watch a news piece about Eddie broadcast on Al Jazeera this weekend.

Above: Eddie with classmates on the first day of the Master of Public Policy. Photo: Fisher Studio