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CPActive Champions are people with lived experience of CP who are the advocates behind our campaigns.
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Hannah is the co-Founder of Cerebral Palsy Alliance’s Krazy Kosci Klimb, a challenge empowering young people living with cerebral palsy or other disability to walk the summit track from Charlotte Pass to the top of Mount Kosciuszko.
She is also the driving force behind a petition demanding Disney create a princess with a disability so their characters more fully represent the community, giving children with a disability the chance to see their lives reflected and providing a powerful character to increase understanding from non-disabled children. You can sign the petition here.
In addition to her campaign work, Hannah is a full-time university student in her last year of a Bachelor of Arts & International Studies at the University of Wollongong.
She is deeply passionate about improving the visibility of people with disabilities in all arenas and empowering people to look beyond their perceptions around what success for a disabled person should look like. Through her campaigning she strives to create space for disabled people to imagine and work towards their own definition of a rich full life, and one day hopes to be in a position where she can provide tangible resources for this effort.
Jerusha Mather is an activist, writer, poet, and PhD candidate in biomedical science.
Growing up living with cerebral palsy, Jerusha developed a passion for inclusion at a young age, writing to major companies from food manufacturers to fashion houses asking them to make their products accessible. Her desire for people with disability to be represented in decision-making prompted her to pursue a career in medical research, becoming one of the Australian Academy of Science’s STEM Women Changemakers.
Jerusha’s commentary on education, accessibility and disability has been published in national publications including the Sydney Morning Herald and Women’s Agenda. Her first book of poetry, Burnt Bones and Beautiful Butterflies, was published in September 2020.
You don’t understand me
You haven’t walked in my shoes
You haven’t had a heart as loud as lions
And a soul full of broken shiny stars
That light up all the dark places
Jerusha Mather, Soft
Johanna Garvin is a filmmaker, storyteller, and sits on the Cerebral Palsy Alliance board.
A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and Metro Screen, Johanna’s work is deeply rooted in social justice. In 2017 she won funding from the Information and Cultural Exchange, Accessible Arts, and Screen NSW to produce her short film ‘The Milky Pop Kid’. The mockumentary premiered at the Sydney Film Festival where it was highly commended, and was later selected for the ReelAbilities program in New York and the Other Film Festival in Melbourne.
Johanna’s role as a disability advocate has taken her to the top of Mount Kosciusko, and made her the first wheelchair competitor in the World Marathon Challenge, traversing seven continents in seven days. She aspires to move into documentary filmmaking, sharing unique and interesting stories that tell us about the human condition, giving audiences a more compassionate lens through which to see the world.
Lia Sintras is 23 and a passionate advocate for people living with disability. She currently works at disability support organisation Hireup, where she helps manage compliance for their support workers on the platform.
Lia believes in the power of educating people about disability, breaking stereotypes and proving that just because you have a disability it doesn’t mean you can’t do everything everyone else can do – you’ll just have a different journey to reach your goals.
As a CPActive Champion, Lia hopes to help people see the world in a new perspective and think about everyday things in a different way. Her aim is to make the world a more accessible place where people with disability are accepted everywhere.
Lia is a major sports fan, following tennis, NRL and cricket. When she’s not hard at work or cooking new and delicious food for her family, she plays tennis and indulges in more adrenaline-charged activities like skiing and indoor skydiving.
“If I can play a part in making a difference and getting people to focus on ability not disability, then I have done what I set out to do”.
Declan is 28 and studying his second degree, a Juris Doctor in law, which he can use in his advocacy for people with disability by better effecting change through knowledge. His friends call him a Social Justice Warrior!
Although he found the pandemic isolating, Declan was able to use the down-time to discover his potential about how we can help people like himself get a fair go as well as the same opportunities that are extended to everyone else.
Declan was the only student with a disability when he was at school and that has left him with a complex relationship towards his CP. However at university he was able to make a diverse group of friends as well as find like-minded people through avenues like the Sci Fi club.
Declan is a Board Member on the NSW Ageing and Disability Commission, where he uses his lived experience of CP as well as his academia to provide personal insight and inform people on government about issues and barriers that people with disability are experiencing. He has joined as a CPA champion to do his bit to fight for a more accessible and equitable world.
His passions include cars, science fiction, movies, reading and skiing as well. He loves animals and has an assistance dog called Kara.
Meret is 24 and enjoys the fast-paced nature of film and TV production. Her determination to get into the industry was cemented by asking for plenty of feedback on her independent work, showing her managers that she would not give up when things got too hard.
She was fortunate to undertake a mentorship through her university, connecting her with around 20 peers who were studying media and arts. Meret says it was like a family, because they participated in many social and extra-curricular activities together and was never made to feel as though she was any different to her friends.
Meret joined CPA as a champion to help show people that having a disability isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. She would like to work on educating people about removing the assumptions about what people with disability can and can’t do. It is important to her that people remove their barrier of expectations which can limit opportunities for PWD, especially in workplaces. She says employers should judge a person on their skills and whether they are the right person for the job, instead of being a disability hire.
In her free time Meret enjoys travelling and learning about other cultures, reading, swimming and catching up with friends- especially when she can drive there to see them!
Nicholas is 21 and aspires to be a business entrepreneur, helping to find employment for people with disability as well as innovate the sector. His studies are helping him to narrow down his pathway to do that.
He has become a CPA Champion to help educate people about disability. Nicholas already uses social media, including Instagram stories, to help share knowledge and information about CP. He would like to see a fairer system for the NDIS and more equitable funding for people with disability.
One of his proudest achievements was organising a swimming event called 20ks with 20 Mates, which raised $13,000 for CPA. Nicholas enjoyed the challenge of swimming for a kilometre, to prove to himself that he could. He is inspired by Paralympians like Ellie Cole and Matt Levy, saying they show their passion and strength in their chosen sports.
Daniel is 25 and is passionate about saving the orangutans of Borneo and Sumatra. He and his brother William have raised $965,000 for their cause, co-authored two books and raise awareness of protecting their habitat by presenting at schools to thousands of students. Daniel and his brother were awarded the 2021 Queensland Young Australian of the Year, recognised for their conservation efforts and inspiring the youth of Australia to be passionate for our environment.
Having CP has never held Daniel back, having completed a degree at Macquarie University. He has met with Prime Ministers, Royalty and Ambassadors, currently employed at Griffith University as a research assistant and plays Wheelchair Rugby at a state level!
Daniel finds it empowering to talk about having CP, using his voice to crush stigmas and break stereotypes of people with disability. Bringing awareness to issues such as accessibility and what can be achieved with the right support . That’s why he’s signed on to become a CPA Champion, to be a voice for change.
Sophie is 25 and works with Fighting Chance, which helps to break down barriers to create social and economic inclusion for people with disability. She is also studying inclusive education.
Independence has played a big part in Sophie’s life and is one of the reasons she has signed on to become a CPA Champion, to help mentor younger people and guide them into independence. Growing up with CP and especially during her school years, Sophie felt there was no-one older she could speak to who had been through some of the issues she was experiencing.
Sophie would love to see more workplaces become fairer and equitable with accessibility and disability awareness. She’d also like for employers to remove their assumptions of PWD and what they can do- which is deliver the same outcome but in a different way!
Her passions include travelling, trying new foods, hanging out with friends and taking her dog to the dog park.
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