Dr Carmen Yau Q&A
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Global disability expert and advocate Dr Carmen Yau tells us about her career and research, and shares how this year's Pride in London will mark a new milestone for inclusivity and accessibility.
Dr Carmen Yau (Department of Social, Therapeutic and Community Studies, STaCS) was included in the Disability Power 100, compiled by The Shaw Trust
Volunteering and your work to make public events more accessible are important to you. Is there an important message you are conveying about disability and belonging when you participate in this way?
People might wonder why I volunteer, after all I have a busy working life. But I think it is important to contribute, and to make space to do that. My volunteer work is not just service—it is an act of identity politics, a conscious assertion of presence and resistance within structures that often marginalise voices like mine. It grounds my scholarship in lived realities and ensures my teaching remains authentic, politically engaged, and socially accountable.
You’ve been connected with London Pride for the last three years. What is your role?
I am the Head of Accessibility and Quiet Parade at Pride in London.
This year is an exciting milestone as we are organising the first ever Quiet Parade. We are designing the event very purposefully for people who may be neurodivergent, people who need some spaces with less sensory stimulation and social interactions, or people who need a space for self-care and wellbeing.
We will be live screening the parade in an environment where people can enjoy it without potentially overwhelming crowds and noise. People will listen through headphones and have different options of whether they’d like to tune into the broadcast from the parade, or different music and sound options. There will also be a mindful crafting area, where people can create collective art, and the Wellbeing Research Unit from Goldsmiths will showcase a curated selection of recommended books related to wellbeing for the LGBTQ+ community.
How can we make public spaces and events accessible for all?
I think there's a lot of barriers, particularly for disabled people, when it comes to accessibility, inclusivity and how people feel being welcomed. It's not only about having an accessible venue, but how you design the whole event and the activities as a co-production with the disabled community and stakeholders. You have to consider, does it accommodate people with all disabilities? It’s necessary to think about what resources are needed to enable people to fully participate.
I’m working on developing a handbook for making mass events accessible and inclusive, so I hope to produce a useful resource for the future. One of the key concepts I’ll promote is radical welcoming. This involves moving toward a radical and respectful response to people with diverse abilities, identities, and lived experiences.
How does your advocacy work impact your research, and how does this help you to provide practical advocacy for marginalised groups?
It would be ironic that someone who prizes access and inclusivity in daily life would not insist on these concepts being a staple of my academic research. Along with meeting high ethical safeguards, the approach that I take to my research affirms the right of disabled people to be seen heard and represented on their own terms.
I've learned that impactful advocacy needs to be based in evidence. What I'm trying to do is turn the emotions and voices of people who have been marginalised into evidence to make change. Research is for me a method for collaborating with communities and tackling social problems.
How did your career in social work begin?
After graduating in psychology, I worked as a case worker but I realised - especially after supporting children with rare diseases - that I had questions over structural and societal issues, so I decided to do a master's in social work.
It was enlightening and transformative for me, particularly a social work placement where I had the opportunity to work with domestic violence survivors.
Studying social work helped me to answer a lot of questions and it also put me in a position to challenge issues in life.
What makes a good social worker in your view?
A good social worker today combines empathy, ethics, and technology literacy with strong professional reflexivity. The professional judgement of a social worker is very different to other helping professionals. Social work depends on the “use of self” and reflexivity to gain understanding on intersectionality and uphold anti-oppressive practice. In an AI tech-driven world, social workers should balance human connection with innovation to promote ethical and inclusive support for individuals from diverse backgrounds.
Tell us about your research.
My research focuses on disability and intersectionality. One part of this is about barriers, about addressing daily challenges people face. I also look at the root causes of structural oppression faced by disabled people, and I research decolonisation of the concept of disability.
For example, I’m giving a keynote at the Sexuality and Social Work conference in Ljubljana, called ‘From Stigma To Strength: Challenging Taboos and The Intersection of Disability and Sexual Empowerment’. In the research landscape around disability, gender, sexuality, relationships and reproductive rights are underrepresented and under-researched.
One of the most embedded questions I deal with is around how disabled bodies are perceived in the sociocultural context, which is very pertinent to this topic. My keynote will draw attention to the reality of the situation when it comes to how disabled people are perceived, giving an overview of the picture from East to West, but also consider possible solutions to current problems. One theme I will explore is parenthood.
You have spoken about your experiences as an immigrant, coming to London from Hong Kong. What was moving to London like?
It’s part of the recipe for a new Londoner to have culture shock when you first move. Through working at Goldsmiths, I’ve been able to recognise and embrace that being a Hong Kong immigrant is part of my identity, and also to appreciate how it has authentically shaped my value, vision, and mission. I am now part of a leadership training programme called STELLARHE which is tailored for Black, Asian and ethnically diverse leaders in higher education aimed at ensuring that their qualities are respected and recognised.
How will the formal collaboration recently agreed with Hong Kong Polytechnic University shape the experiences of students studying here?
The first benefit is expanding student’s horizons, creating more learning opportunities between both places. In April, a group of doctoral students from Hong Kong PolyU came to visit Goldsmiths, and they had the opportunity to meet our doctoral students.
This is also about decolonising knowledge, so students can gain a deeper understanding of other cultures, and in this case of East Asian cultures. We use the phrase ‘cultural humility’, which means understanding the culture of somebody else, but also being aware of how your own cultural background influences you and the power dynamics of different situations.
What do you enjoy most about teaching or working with students here?
My students are very compassionate and engaged. This is so crucial because teaching and learning is a co-production, I need students to ask questions so I can know where their interests lie or what they’re curious about. So, I’m fortunate that my students are so engaged.
You’ve been at Goldsmiths for two years now. What makes Goldsmiths different from other places you've worked or studied?
One of the reasons I love Goldsmiths is because of my colleagues. They have been very supportive and understanding in facing front on the barriers and challenges that I face through disability, because of my gender, because of my background. There are a lot of structural challenges, but my colleagues are always very empowering with the courage to have discussions about navigating them and looking for radical solutions.
You were nominated in the Writer of the Year category at this year’s Sexual Freedom Awards. What did the nomination mean to you?
My erotic storytelling project started in Hong Kong, where I wrote my erotica in Asian sociocultural context. Moving to London, I felt voiceless, and it took me a long time to build the courage and energy to continue my storytelling project. It is not easy to continue my storytelling across different sociocultural contexts as it takes time to learn how this cosmopolitan city would respond to my stories.
Being shortlisted is both an encouraging recognition and a meaningful sign to keep going. It affirms the value of the work so far, while also highlighting how much more needs to be done to achieve genuine representation and inclusion of people from diverse backgrounds.
What do you think is the best kept secret at Goldsmiths?
The library has become a haven for me. It nurtures curiosity, supports rigorous inquiry, and provides a sense of belonging through access to knowledge that is both diverse and carefully curated. For me and for my students, it remains one of the most essential and transformative spaces in the university.