Disability Activist
Isabel Hodge is an independent consultant and internationally recognized disability rights leader with more than 30 years of experience advancing disability inclusion. She is the former Executive Director of the United States International Council on Disabilities (USICD), where she led strategic planning, global partnerships, congressional engagement, and multilateral advocacy, representing U.S. disability policy at the United Nations, NATO, the International Labour Organization, and other international forums.
Isabel previously served as a senior Program Analyst in the Department of Defense, shaping policy for military families with special needs and leading major data, evaluation, and policy modernization initiatives for the Office of the Secretary of Defense. She also completed a federal detail at the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD), where she drafted the AIDD Strategic Framework, coauthored regulatory revisions to the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, and contributed to federal interagency initiatives on mobility, transit, and disability policy.
A published author of national and international policy papers, Isabel provides technical assistance to governments, disabled-led NGOs, and multilateral institutions. She recently completed her term as Secretary of the Board of Disabled Peoples’ International (DPI) and Vice President of DPI North America and the Caribbean. She has served on the Board of Directors for Wheelchairs for Kids International since 2014.
A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Isabel brings lived experience, public service, and global leadership to her work advancing disability rights, inclusive policy, and equitable international development.