Deaf people are 4× more likely to die in disasters.
Emergency systems worldwide are built for hearing people. IDE is changing that — through preparedness, advocacy, and systemic inclusion.
People with hearing loss worldwide
Homes built for deaf families
People trained in DRR
Years of impact
Invested where it matters most.
Donations are held in an emergency fund — ready to be deployed when disasters strike deaf communities. Funds support DRR training programs, research and innovation in accessible emergency technology, and strengthening the capacity of national deaf organizations to reach their own communities.
Read our financials501(c)(3) EIN 27-3191911 · Tax-deductible donations
When disaster strikes, deaf people are left behind.
Left out of every warning system
Sirens, loudspeakers, emergency radio — all built for hearing people. When disaster strikes, deaf communities receive no warning at all.
Can't call for help
Over 60% of the US and nearly all of the developing world has no text-based emergency calling system. Deaf people are invisible to first responders.
Shelters offer no communication
Evacuation shelters operate on audio-only announcements. No sign language, no visual alerts — for days, sometimes weeks after a disaster.
The most vulnerable, the least served
The vast majority of deaf people live where accessible emergency infrastructure simply does not exist. They are the last to be reached in every crisis.
160+ homes.
Built by deaf hands.
After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, IDE didn't just deliver aid — we built a permanent deaf-accessible village and trained deaf construction crews to rebuild their own community.
Our storyPrepare. Advocate. Respond.
IDE works across the full disaster cycle — with the priority on acting before disasters occur.
Prepare
Training deaf communities and national associations in disaster risk reduction — before disasters occur.
Advocate
Influencing laws, policies, and humanitarian frameworks to include deaf communities by design.
Respond
Financial aid and coordination with the World Federation of the Deaf when disasters strike.
Our Work in Action
Building homes after the 2010 earthquake — Haiti
Deaf-led construction crews
Nepal earthquake response
Job training — economic empowerment
Disaster preparedness training
Recognized by & aligned with
Léveque Village, Haiti — built by IDE
“The systems failed them. That's what I couldn't unsee.”
One month after the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Emmanuel Jacq — a Deaf French diplomat then serving as an officer at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C. — traveled to Haiti as a humanitarian envoy. What he witnessed changed everything: deaf survivors had received no warnings, no accessible information, and no communication access at shelters.
He founded IDE as a volunteer alongside his diplomatic career to ensure that gap is never repeated. Over 16 years, IDE has built homes, trained communities, and shaped global humanitarian policy — grounded in the conviction that deaf lives matter as much as any other.
Emmanuel Jacq
Founder & Executive Director
Deaf people continue to die in disasters not because of their deafness but because of society's failure to communicate with them.
Your donation saves deaf lives.
for deaf communities in crisis
for deaf community leaders
in accessing humanitarian resources
501(c)(3) Tax-Deductible · EIN 27-3191911 · WFD Member · IDA Member