Rip Wilson

Before retiring in 2020, I had a consulting and lobbying practice to Business and Government that started at the Arizona state capitol in 1991. 

A native of the Northwest, I received my BA form Columbia University in New York city. 

I went from Idaho to Phoenix in 1977 and worked as a television news director and then senior aide to a US Senator and Az Governor before starting my firm. 

The early 2000's saw the rapid onset of my hearing loss. A race between the hearing decline and utilizing the best assistive listening devices followed that. As my personal and professional lives became increasingly isolated despite the technology, I looked elsewhere. Finding a reference for the first human gene therapy trial to restore hearing. I found a way to get invited to the party. In 2018, I became patient 23. While ultimately it was not successful, the same surgical team would then give me a Cochlear Implant in 2019. 

My personal and professional lives were joined as I worked with the Az Commission for Deaf and Hard of Hearing. There I was able to secure funding and installation of hearing loops in all public meeting areas of the Legislature. Ultimately, we secured captioning for all Legislative meetings including live streaming. 

Today, that CI and captioning are the lifelines that keep me connected to my relationships and the world. I have been both a mentor and advocate for those with hearing loss. I see a Board seat with the Global Alliance as an opportunity to not only address the quality of captioning and captioners, but also to be an important voice to promote the increased use of captions in far wider and more frequent applications. I believe I have skills that can help in that effort.