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The latest from CPActive
Highlights from our 2022 Launch
On 22nd March we had our first town hall for 2022 with some inspiring speakers talking about their priorities for the year ahead. Read their reflections. Be part of it and watch the highlights video now: Here’s a quick re-cap of what our speakers had to say on the night: Elly Desmarchelier on the Defend Our NDIS campaign: “The NDIS… was not built by politicians, it was built by people with disability. That’s the scheme we want, that’s the scheme we are defending.” “I realised the decisions that politicians make ultimately, as a disabled person, they impact my life more than a person without disability. My life is inherently more political. So I can just ignore that, or I can actually use my voice to have the biggest impact on my life.” “The Defend Our NDIS campaign is… an opportunity, and it gives us a place in which we can
Meet Tamsin Colley: Australia’s youngest ever track and field Paralympian turns her sights to education
When Tamsin Colley arrived for the 2016 Paralympic Games she was the youngest member of the Australian team, turning fourteen in Rio. It’s an achievement most of us only dream of. As an athlete living with cerebral palsy, it also made Tamsin an advocate, a role she was eager to take up. “I was the youngest ever Australian to compete in athletics at the Paralympics,” says Tamsin. “I was lucky enough to get support to participate in sport from a young age and want to ensure other people receive the same opportunities.” With the Paralympics under her belt at such a young age, Tamsin’s focus turned to her high school studies, ready to bring her determination and drive to excel at this next challenge. But she was in for a rude shock. The support and encouragement that had helped her reach the Paralympics was excruciatingly hard to find in the
Cerebral Conversations: Work/Life Brilliance with Marley Lyras-Hull
Marley Lyras-Hull is a master juggler, Cerebral Palsy Alliance employee, and is currently studying her fourth degree – and she shares the secrets behind her drive on the Cerebral Conversations Podcast.
She’s raising three daughters, one of whom lives with a disability, and Marley herself lives with cerebral palsy. When there really are only 24 hours in a day, how does she get it all done?
Marley talks about how she juggles ALL the things, what inspires her, and her tips for other parents living with a disability or parenting a child with disability.
A campaign to break the boundaries of love
CPActive Champion Jerusha Mather is on a quest to find love. Living with cerebral palsy, Jerusha knows that for people with disabilities the journey can take extra twists and turns.
On major dating apps, people with disabilities often experience discrimination, where their prospects of being seen as a potential partner are often judged according to their disabilities.
CPA Intern Ananya: My Workplace Experience
By Ananya Choudhary My name is Ananya Choudhary, I am sixteen years old with Cerebral Palsy. I am in my last year of secondary education and currently studying at Macarthur Girls High School. I am interested in technology and I like creating digital content such as social media posts, posters, flyers and many more. As I am growing and slowly entering the real world outside of school, I want to learn more about the work environment. I think that through work experience I will be able to learn about the work environment and how to use theoretical knowledge in the real world. I got an offer to work in CPA’s Global Influence and Social Impact Department from 14th January 2022 to 28th January 2022. This department works in championing an inclusive society for those with cerebral palsy both domestically and globally and building the community through digital media like websites,
Employment project: callout for consultations
The employment rates for people with disability are unacceptably low in Australia. Less than 50% of people aged 15-64 years with disability are employed, compared to 80% of their peers without disability. This gap has not changed for decades. Various projects, strategies and schemes have been implemented by federal and state governments. But despite this, Australia’s participation rate for people living with disability is on par with developing countries – and it needs to change. Any strategy for inclusive employment needs to be based on the lived experiences of people with disability. That’s why Cerebral Palsy Alliance is conducting consultations with people living with CP and similar conditions to understand your employment journey. Would you like to have your say? Email project officer Dula Hettiarachchi at dula.hettiarachchi@cerebralpalsy.org.au to express your interest! The consultation will include questions about: What employment means to you Your positive and negative experiences with finding a career
Reflections from the 2021 celebration event
On 30 November CPActive hosted our final event of 2021. After a very strange year, it was fitting to look back on everything we’d achieved together. To relive some of our best moments and biggest achievements, check out the highlight video below! We also took a look forward to all the exciting opportunities for change in 2022! If you couldn’t make it, here’s a wrap on a few things we discussed. Teamwork Works: the new campaign from the disability sector Teamwork Works is a new national campaign from National Disability Services, uniting people living with disability with service providers to oppose funding cuts to the NDIS. Emma Dawson, Director of think tank Per Capita, joined the CPActive event to present their new report for the campaign False Economy: The economic benefits of the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the consequences of government cost-cutting. “It’s fundamentally about shifting our understanding of
Podcast: ‘Changing Brains and Minds’ with Dr Iona Novak
Neuroplasticity is the secret ingredient for better brain power – and better outcomes for children with disability.
In this episode Professor Iona Novak, CPA’s Chair of Allied Health, co-founder of the CPA Research Institute and renowned journalist, author and broadcaster Tracey Spicer go deep into our grey (and white) matter to explore the brain’s ability to create new neural pathways and what that means for a child’s critical early years of neurological development. How can we rewire our brains by learning new skills? Why are some pathways a bit overgrown and others rather well-trodden? Can teenagers and adults harness neuroplasticity, and how is it relevant for people without disability?
Podcast: ‘Speaking Up’ with Bronya Metherall and Tara Moss
Cerebral Conversations is a podcast series by Cerebral Palsy Alliance. Each episode features an inspiring discussion with changemakers living with cerebral palsy and similar disabilities. We can all be agents for change, but we need to find our voices first and the courage to speak up. In this episode, Bronya and Tara speak up about creating communities that empower those living with disability. How can we challenge governments to enact change that creates truly inclusive societies? What does advocacy really mean, and when does it really work? How can we help people find their voice and see the power in their personal storytelling? And how on earth can we get people to care about a cause that doesn’t personally affect them? Bronya Metherall is General Manager of Global Influence & Social Impact at Cerebral Palsy Alliance. She leads CPA’s global advocacy campaigns, including World CP Day and Window of Opportunity,
Podcast: ‘Early Diagnosis and Meeting Eve’ with Nadia Badawi
One in 10 babies born in Australia end up in a NIC unit in our hospitals. In Australia we can do ethical, safe as can be, best research on stem cells and other therapies that parents are crying out for.
Join this cerebral (palsy) conversation with internationally renowned neonatologist, Professor Nadia Badawi. Early in her career, Nadia realised that working with newborns was an opportunity to change the entire course of a person’s life, not to mention having a huge impact for their family and the wider community. That realisation has taken her on an incredible path, becoming a leading voice in neonatal intensive care.
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