Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion

She is the first (and long time the only) professor in the world to hold a chair in this field. Since 1976, she has worked continuously and with considerable success on research into deafblindness and communication with people who have been deafblind since birth or from an early age. She is globally recognized as a figurehead and expert, who is dedicated to combating the unremitting social isolation of people who can neither hear nor see.