Catalina Devandas is the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Catalina is a dedicated human rights advocate. She was born in Costa Rica with spina bifida, and since graduating from law school, she has worked to promote the rights of persons with disabilities as member of NGOs of persons with disabilities, and with international and multilateral organizations, such as the United Nations and the World Bank.

Since she was appointed as the first Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities in 2014, Catalina has collected testimonies and evidence of human rights violations against persons with disabilities around the world, and elaborated recommendations to governments, to ensure that their rights are protected in laws and institutional practices.