ImInclusive: The Founder's Journey
ImInclusive began in a heart and mind, which identified that the community can have a rather disabled approach when dealing with people with disabilities (People of Determination). Growing up with a single parent in a family of 6 siblings, the Founder, Hafsa Qadeer, has been deeply impacted by the journey of her brother, Ahmed Qadeer, a self-taught content writer and editor. He is currently home-schooled in Pakistan as it is best practice for his health while he faces life with spina bifida. Her lived experience defines her values and principles in life: she acknowledges the difference in behaviors in treating people with disabilities and the lack of accountability entire societies can portray towards justice.
Many of Hafsa's personal life experiences have given her a restless passion for finding solutions to social injustice. She found her calling in servant leadership through disability inclusion and began volunteering at Special Olympics MENA Regional Games in Abu Dhabi in 2018. She followed her heart to ImInclusive, where she initially aimed to build an app so Ahmed could make more friends and families could connect with community members living similar experiences to overcome isolation. Through a rigorous incubation and mentorship period at the Authority of Social Contribution, Ma'an Abu Dhabi, Hafsa ran multiple kinds of research, including a survey with hundreds of people, identifying employment as the critical solution for the inclusion of People of Determination. In the first few weeks of the incubator, Ahmed joined Hafsa, took his first independent flight to the UAE, and played a significant role in the pitch to the government judging panel along with Hafsa! After ImInclusive's selection in the top 10 social startups from 523 applications across the world, Ahmed left back to Pakistan and continued working from home, while Hafsa embarked on a solo incubation and founding journey with Ma'an Abu Dhabi.
As a twenty-something, Hafsa began with a giant dream, passion in her heart, and ready to take on as much learning and unlearning possible to bring her vision to life. From sketching an app wireframe on a paper to building an award-winning, powerful social enterprise, the Founder has come a long way with a powerful, mighty team. Are you wondering where Ahmed is now? Stay tuned to this page to find out. P.s - connect with them on LinkedIn!
More about our team members that have a crucial impact on our journey, coming soon!