Assistant Minister for Autism Emily Bourke is responsible for implementing the South Australia State Government’s autism policies. In a first for Australia, she was appointed in August 2022, in addition to her role as Assistant Minister to Premier Peter Malinauskas. Read more in the Link Magazine ..read more

Ky Lovell is a multi-instrumentalist with perfect pitch who can reproduce notes by ear. He told Link his goal is to work in the music festival scene as an inclusion coordinator, that is, when he is not performing on stage! The 21-year-old NDIS participant from Redcliffe, north of Brisbane, has profound symptoms of autism and other intellectual disabilities, but has discovered music is his way of communicating with the world. Read more in the Link Magazine ..read more

At this year’s Consumer Electronics’ Show (CES) in Las Vegas, we saw some exciting trends. Among them was Samsung’s Flex Hybrid OLED, that uses a combination of screens that fold, roll and slide to turn a pocket-sized device into a sizable screen. For people with low vision, the convenience of being able to easily carry a large screen in a pocket will make a big difference to accessibility. Another big hurdle in the use of ICT for people with Disability is the weight of the equipment so laptops like the Alienware X14 takes a powerful gaming laptop and makes it relatively thin and light. This ..read more

Andrew Whitehouse, Professor of Autism Research at the University of Western Australia and the Telethon Kids Institute spoke to Link about the new autism guideline and its implications for the NDIS. What? In a first for Australia, a national guideline has been released that clearly defines and describes evidence-based practice for children aged 0 to 12 years with autism. The National Guideline for supporting the learning, participation and wellbeing of autistic children and families has been developed to a high quality internationally agreed standard. Read more in the Link Magazine ..read more

Suzanna Poredos lives with her family in Sydney. She is 26 years old and was diagnosed with autism three years ago. She spoke to Kymberly Martin about living with autism, the emotional toll that being unemployed can bring, her love of poetry and her schooldays where bullying was rife. Read more in the Link Magazine ..read more

No one can dispute the special bond that exists between people and dogs. Dogs can provide a sense of calm, comfort and safety to reduce stressful situations. It’s no wonder, we are witnessing an increase in dogs used in therapy as human interaction with dogs can have numerous physical and psychological benefits. Kites Children’s Therapy in Western Australia offers a Dog-Assisted Therapy program with goals and activities relating to physical, emotional and social development. Read more in the Link Magazine ..read more

After five months in hospital, Nick Hoare wanted nothing more than to get home to his family. But just getting to the front door of his Melbourne house was a wake-up call to the long journey he’d embarked upon as an incomplete quadriplegic. Read More in the Link Magazine ..read more

In Benalla, country Victoria you will find a school that is rather different to any school in Australia. The EdSpace Education and Training Centre was set up in 2008 when nurse Maggie Fanning, her GP husband David Rodgers and friend Jenny Wellard, decided to open a specialist school for children who were falling through the cracks. It was the logical answer to the challenges Fanning was facing with her son who has autism and developmental difficulties. Read More in the Link Magazine ..read more

The 1970s were a time of major advancements in technology. Portable cassette players, personal computers, cell phones and floppy disks were released onto the market. These new types of consumer technology started to change the world. Read more in the Link Magazine ..read more

S peaking at the Australian Disability Services Conference where he delivered a keynote, lawyer, doctor and disability advocate, Dinesh Palipana, told the audience the purpose for all in the room was because “we believe we are doing things to make lives better”. Read More in the Link Magazine ..read more