Goedele A. M. De Clerck presents cross-cultural comparative research that examines and documents where deaf flourishing occurs and how it can be advanced. She spotlights collective and dynamic resources of knowledge and learning; the coexistence of lived differences; social, linguistic, cultural, and psychological capital; and human potential and creativity.
       Deaf Epistemologies, Identity, and Learning argues for an inclusive approach to the intrinsic human diversity in society, education, and scholarship, and shows how emotions of hope, frustration, and humiliation contribute to the construction of identity and community. De Clerck also considers global to local dynamics in deaf identity, deaf culture, deaf education, and deaf empowerment. She presents empirical research through case studies of the emancipation processes for deaf people in Flanders (a region of Belgium), the United States (specifically, at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC), and the West African nation of Cameroon. These three settings illuminate different phases of emancipation in different contexts, and the research findings are integrated into a broader literature review and subjected to theoretical reflection.
       De Clerck’s anthropology of deaf flourishing draws from her critical application of the empowerment paradigm in settings of daily life, research, leadership, and community work, as she explores identity and well-being through an interdisciplinary lens. This work is centered around practices of signed storytelling and posits learning as the primary access and pathway to culture, identity, values, and change. Change driven by the learning process is considered an awakening—and through this awakening, the deaf community can gain hope, empowerment, and full citizenship. In this way, deaf people are allowed to shape their histories, and the result is the elevation of all aspects of deaf lives around the world.

Increased interaction between sign language communities and the mainstream societies in which they function is creating the potential for greater equality of opportunity for people who are deaf and hard of hearing. In this volume, renowned scholars and policy makers from around the world present innovative and groundbreaking perspectives on the relationships among sign language, sustainable development, and equal opportunities.
       The contributors to this volume offer creative and open-minded explorations of the construct of sustainability that are informed by their work with deaf individuals, deaf communities, families of deaf children, and other stakeholders. Sign Language, Sustainable Development, and Equal Opportunities describes sustainability in relation to:

·      identity, resilience, and well-being
·      partic­ipatory citizenship
·      historical perspectives on sign language use in educational contexts
·      sign language learning and teaching
·      human rights and inclusive education
·      literate thought and literacy
·      the sign language factor and the development of sign language communities in sub-Saharan Africa
·      sign language legislation

       These changing communities’ understanding of what is required to become sustainable—in areas such as full participation and citizenship in society, economic well-being, access to quality education, and cultural and linguistic identity—is also taking new forms. This work contributes to the paradigm shifts regarding deaf emancipation and deaf education taking place around the world.