When he was 12 years old, Mr Ko Chi-kin, Derek lost his right arm in an accident. But he has not let that hold him back, due to his sense of perseverance and his personal motto: “Don’t say ‘No’ before you try”. Mr Ko has made it his mission to help those with disabilities to cultivate a positive attitude towards their disabilities, through encouraging them to do outdoor adventure activities, so as to live life to the full.

Mr Ko has worked as a volunteer since 1973. He has provided sports training and activities for people of all ages, including those with disabilities. He has taken a number of people with a variety of disabilities on overseas expeditions, including mountain trekking, caving, cycling and canoeing. Using himself as a role model, he encourages people with disabilities to participate in various sports and to explore their own talents. His mission is to help them overcome their own physical disability and to learn not to give up when facing problems. Mr Ko also teaches vocational skills to people with disabilities to increase their chances of employment and to boost their confi dence and sense of self-worth.

Mr Ko is also keen in promoting social integration of people with and without disabilities. To achieve this, he organizes joint outdoor activities involving both able-bodied people and those with physical disabilities. Through increasing interaction and understanding, prejudice can be lessened among the participants. Between 2006 and 2008, Mr Ko was sponsored by the Equal Opportunities Commission to give talks to students at 85 primary schools on the problem of disability. He has often been invited to schools and organizations since 1977 to talk about how to face adversity.

Mr Ko has also been volunteering to lead in a number of local organizations, so as ensure that he speaks out for the disabled when it comes down to infl uencing social policies and allocation of resources. The groups he volunteers for include: Board of Directors of the Hong Kong Federation of Handicapped Youth, Sub-committee on Access under the Rehabilitation Advisory Committee of the Labour and Welfare Bureau, Publicity and Promotion Committee of the Hong Kong Award for Young People, Outward Bound (Alumni) Association of Hong Kong, Management Committee of the Hong Kong Institute of Adventure Counseling.

As he heads towards retirement, Mr Ko is keen to ensure that the services he launched continue into the future. These include social inclusion; vocational training and outdoor activities. So he has joined forces with a number of friends, who have different kinds of disability and have taken part in his adventure programmes, to set up the self-help organization Holistic Adventure Association Limited. In this way, his partners can cater to the needs of people with a variety of disabilities in helping them to lead fulfi lled lives.