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A rainbow phoenix rises with its wings outstretched in front of a star filled rainbow back drop. Beneath it are the words “D&D& Disability” in the Dungeons and Dragons font.

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A magical haven for disabled, chronically ill, and neurodivergent adventurers!

Looking for a space where you can be yourself and conquer ableism with a roll of the dice? D&D&Disability is an exclusive Discord server designed for people like you—where disability is not just accepted, it’s celebrated.

🦾 Community First
Our server is a vibrant, affirming community of multiply disabled/chronically ill 2SLGBTQIA+ folks, where friendship, understanding, and mutual support come first. Whether you're having a tough flare day or just need some laughs, you’ll find people here who get it—and who are ready to lift you up.

🎲 Two Ongoing D&D Games
Inspired by the heart of Dimension 20 and the storytelling of Critical Role, our custom D&D campaigns take place in a universe where accessibility is woven into the very fabric of reality. Here, your characters’ disabilities aren’t limitations—they're sources of powerful magic. Open portals with your cane. Cast spells through your stim. Turn chronic pain into radiant energy. Travel through realms that reflect your truth, your power, and your beauty.

🌟 Why Join?

Play D&D in an empowering, inclusive space

Make friends with others who share your lived experiences

Laugh, vent, and create magic together

Be seen, heard, and valued—always

✨ Whether you’re here to roll initiative or just find your people, D&D&Disability is a place for you. Come as you are. Stay as long as you like. The adventure—and disabled Joy—starts here: https://discord.gg/zjTyUGFJ

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A rainbow phoenix rises with its wings outstretched in front of a star filled rainbow back drop. Beneath it are the words “D&D& Disability” in the Dungeons and Dragons font.

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Thank you so much for this community! Speaking of community, my partner and I are high-risk for complications from Covid or other respiratory infections (especially my partner due to myeloma) and we started a small Covid-cautious, queer-friendly, nonsmoking fragrance-free community in the Northern California mountains/woods in Sierra City, near the Yuba River, over 40 lakes, waterfalls, Pacific Crest Trail, etc.  “Clean Air Mountain Community”  Feel free to email me for info irinarivkin@yahoo.com  Thanks!

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A space for sensitive souls, mad kin, neurodivergent minds, spoonies, misfits, and mystics.

For everyone who’s ever felt too much, not enough, or out of place.

At The Body Grief Coach, care is offered with intention. It is:

​

Rooted in autonomy, not authority

Trauma-informed and body-trusting

Liberatory, anti-carceral, and accessible

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This is a space to land, to breathe, to be seen.

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The Body Grief Coach is a leading embodied healing practice that offers a range of holistic wellness solutions for individuals going through difficult times. My personalized approach combines yoga, embodied healing and mindfulness techniques to support individuals in their journey towards wellness.

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Jessica (she/they) is a diversely neurodivergent and chronically ill disability activist. She graduated this spring with two bachelor degrees and two minors, and will start graduate school in disability studies this fall.

Still in the early years of her disability advocacy, Jessica founded White Dove Disability Advocacy to create a community-driven nonprofit promoting disability equity and accessibility through creative, educational, and innovative resources by and for disabled communities.

While preparing for her graduate program in disability studies, Jessica is working on various projects, including a digital archive for chronic pain/illness, a zine on the models of disability, and guidebooks for making pride events and zine publications accessible.

LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/neurosunflower

Image description: Jessica wears a sunflower dress and graduation regalia, including a purple sash with a neurodiversity infinity sign accompanying the text “For them” and a dove symbol accompanying the text “For us.” She holds up a disability pride flag behind her and smiles at the camera.

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We are a human-centered, community-driven, grassroots-modeled organization that prioritizes disability empowerment through projects and programs furthering advocacy efforts in disability culture, justice, and access.

If you are interested in joining an upcoming project, you can subscribe to our email newsletter on the home page. If you're interested in collaborating or starting a project, let us know in the contact page!

Website: https://www.whitedovedisabilityadvocacy.org/

Image description: The logo of White Dove Disability Advocacy, a cartoon white dove with disability pride colors for feathers, holding the stem of a sunflower in its beak.

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Hi y'all!

My name is Amanda (she/her), and I'm an African American expressive arts facilitator. I provide individual and group healing sessions for multi-marginalized people using dance, music, writing, and art to help people grow, experience joy, and live life authentically as themselves. Follow me on IG or Facebook (Sunflower Creative Movement) or check out my Ko-fi (ko-fi.com/sunflowercreativemovement) for creative wellness tips and current offerings.

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Stickers by Sol sells cute stickers that promote covid safety, center anti-oppressive politics, and represent marginalized communities. You can use code AVP20 for 20% off your order until 7/11/25.

Sol (they/them) is a covid-conscious, disabled, queer, and non-binary Puerto Rican person. They love stickers, and are passionate about social justice and anti-oppression work.

You can follow Stickers by Sol on instagram (instagram.com/stickersbysol/) and tik tok (tiktok.com/@stickersbysol).

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Saira (they/he/ze/she) started working at a Delaware dinner theater in 2007 and fell in love with the craft of creation. They studied costume design at The Theater School at DePaul University, graduating in 2013 with a BFA. Currently based in Seattle, Saira has produced over three dozen events in town with a variety of queer and erotic collectives. Their films and performance have shown nationally and internationally in theaters, nightclubs, parks and galleries.

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G.J. Hodson | Caregiving Educator & Researcher | Theories of Care

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G.J. Hodson is a social researcher and community educator specializing in LGBTQ+ caregiving and intergenerational communications. Get virtual training, care coaching, and communication services at the intersections of caregiving and identity.

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https://ko-fi.com/esardorian

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Actually autistic advocate who has spent years dedicated to learning the intricacies of relationships and making space in systems for people.

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Polyfreelove Intimacy ConAmore | Instagram, Facebook | Linktree

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Polyamorous Two-Spirit Indigenous Black Pansexual Demisexal Business Person

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Hi community, thanks so much for this community and for having me sing.

Here’s info on joining the virtual “Peaceful Resistance Song Collective”  https://www.facebook.com/groups/745007527864240

email list -- future virtual concert announcements: http://eepurl.com/hhzc7X

Info on the Nevertheless We Persist Scholarship:  https://theneverthelesswepersistscholarship.funraise.org/

For info on any of that or on small Covid-cautious, queer-friendly, nonsmoking fragrance-free community in the Northern California mountains (near the Yuba River, over 40 lakes, waterfalls, Pacific Crest Trail, etc.)  “Clean Air Mountain Community” please feel free to email irinarivkin@yahoo.com

More music at: https://www.youtube.com/irinarivkin

Thanks!

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Image Description: A white woman with long brown hair with some purple and blue streaks. She is wearing a rainbow polkadot romper and has dark blue cat-eye glasses, turquoise eye make-up and red lipstick.  The is a maroon tapestry with different colored chameleons behind her. 

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Catherine is a queer disabled community organizer and activist. She loves helping behind the scenes with administrative labor to help make Disability Justice (DJ) spaces run more smoothly! She is one of the main organizers of Crip Create, a twice weekly disabled co-working and community building space. Donations to support this important labor are always appreciated!

Venmo: @Catherine-StJohn

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I'm a Black and autistic elder with ADHD, PTSD, TBI, depression/anxiety, and mobility issues. I live in Seattle, WA, on the stolen lands of the Duwamish and Salish people. On Wednesday, July 9th, I (Gloria Jackson-Nefertiti) will be one of the panelists on the Black and Poly panel; a live virtual panel discussion, as part of the Week of Visibility for Non-Monogamy, July 7-13. Please scan the QR code to register. And it's free! You can find me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GloriaJacksonNefertiti

and Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gloriajacksonnefertiti/

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Thank you for letting us host!!

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My name is Deej Mamakit and I have wares for sale!

I'm a Black non-binary person who started this little business because I didn't see enough non-binary accessories at shops! I also was suddenly without a job due to what's now diagnosed as multiple sclerosis, ADHD and autism.

I sell buttons of various sizes: 1 inch, 1.25 inches and 2.28. There are pronouns, honorifics, pride flags, funny sayings, The Fuck Series, and buttons with stickers as their designs!

There are also mystery bags! Can't make up your mind about what you want? There are mystery bags that have an assortment of items and also fidget items!

We take online orders and can make custom button designs upon request!

http://instagram.com/mamakitswares

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Greenish black background with stars scattered around. A crescent moon is in the upper right corner. A brown wooden chest is in the center, with purple smoke oozing out and various pride hearts and symbols come out of the chest. The pride hearts are the non-binary, pansexual, genderqueer, transgender and genderfluid flags. The symbols are the non-binary, pansexual and transgender symbols.

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Image of a kayak that is yellow on the water with trees turning reds and oranges like they are on fire

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Pre-order Our Power -The Anthology: A Solitary Reverie 

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Pre-order Our Power -The Anthology: A Solitary Reverie 

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Now is the time to tell our stories! In This anthology black disabled women share their stories. My story is reminiscing on life and lessons I learned while being a disabled black queer child in a small town prior to the Americans with Disabilities act.

This is a pre-order for a signed copy as well as you can get some digital swag bag things! Pre-orders end on July 29th https://bit.ly/preorderourpower

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Hello. I’m Double-4. I’m a AroAce and trans artist that normally draw fanart, but I also have some Pride related stickers. You can check out my physical shop (stickers and prints) here: https://double-4.storenvy.com/. If you are looking for digital stuff (adoptables and profit images) check out my ko-fi here: https://ko-fi.com/double_4_designer/shop

Or go follow me on social media. I’m mostly active on Bsky (https://bsky.app/profile/double-4-designer.bsky.social), but you can find me at a few different sites.

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Hey. Double-4 here. I'm a trans and ace artist that draws mostly fan art. - Online Store Powered by Storenvy

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Hi! I'm Jacen Atlas Wolfe, owner of Wolfe Shark Designs, but you can call me Jace. (The name comes from my initials; J.A.W. like Jaws, and Wolfe like my last name, hence Wolfe Shark. It's okay, you can laugh! It's silly!) I've been crocheting for over 20 years, and I also make jewelry, linocut prints, and do woodburning and digital art (like my business card). I take commissions on a case-by-case basis. You can check out my products at https://ko-fi.com/wolfesharkdesigns/shop and follow me on Instagram at @wolfe.shark.designs ! Give me a follow and check out all the cool stuff that I haven't taken pictures of yet that I really need to get posted! Happy Pride, everyone :)

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A square business card with a drawing of a cartoon shark with a wolf tail coming out of water. The shark has a speech bubble that says "AWOOO" and the title of the business, Wolfe Shark Designs, is in the top right corner.

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Lily is a death and divination witch with 7+ years experience in reading - tarot, oracle, and mediumship - and spell work. Her goal through her craft and offering her services is to help heal, spread self-love, and show others that being their most authentic selves is the most powerful and magical thing they can do.

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My name is Diem Morriswala (they/he), and I am a queer and trans therapist of colour specializing in support for anxiety, LGBTQ2S+ individuals, artists, and fellow therapists. I aim to create an environment where you can feel seen and understood by using techniques from acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and internal family systems (IFS). Deciding to take that step forward to make yourself a priority is a courageous decision, and I would be honoured to be a part of your journey!

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Deep witihin us all are whimsies long forgotten - magic and fantasies we used to get caught up in. Forgotten Whimsies is all about bringing back that joy, inspiration, and hope to our day-to-day lives. Through tarot and oracle readings, guidance and clarity can be found. Spellwork can offer a gentle nudge in the right direction as well, to help with a variety of complications we often face in life.

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Recognizing the enormity of the challenges our society faces, Ability First Ottawa is dedicated to assisting persons with disabilities, and their families, reach their social, educational and employment goals, by offering resource infrastructure and skills development in coordination with our supporting community.

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Jesenia (Jess – N – ee – Ya) is a queer first-generation Indigenous-Venezuelan-American, AutiHD (Autistic & ADHD), living with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome.  She is an artist, community builder and organizer, disability advocate, scientist, cultural producer and activist.

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Jesenia (Jess – N – ee – Ya) is a queer first-generation Indigenous-Venezuelan-American, AutiHD (Autistic & ADHD), living with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. She is an artist, community builder and organizer, disability advocate, scientist, cultural producer and activist. She is the founder of One Free Community.com, an online community center helping decolonizing people connect to community […]

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Maia Mills-Low, also known as Maiamama, resides in Tacoma, WA, and engages in an array of roles including digital producer, podcaster, performer, digital designer, and social justice activist.

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Maia Mills-Low, also known as Maiamama, resides in Tacoma, WA, and engages in an array of roles including digital producer, podcaster, performer, digital designer, and social justice activist. She acknowledges the land she lives on as the stolen territory of the Puyallup people. Previously, she dedicated several years to supporting adults with disabilities as a […]

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Claudia Alick (she/they) is a national leader, performer, producer, designer, writer, designer and inclusion expert.

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Claudia Alick (they/she) is a performer, producer, designer, writer, and inclusion expert. She is currently a curator and access doula with The CripTech Incubator and CripTech GrayArea Metaverse. She is founding producer of the transmedia social justice company CALLING UP whose projects include Producing in Pandemic, The Every 28 Hours Plays, We Charge Genocide TV, […]

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Are you looking for a dynamic and multi-talented professional to elevate your digital projects and campaigns? Look no further than Maiamama! With her extensive expertise as a digital producer, podcaster, performer, digital designer, and social justice activist, she brings a unique perspective to every endeavor. Maia’s journey has been marked by meaningful experiences, including working with adults with disabilities as a caregiver, vocational coach, and advocate.

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Are you looking for a dynamic and multi-talented professional to elevate your digital projects and campaigns? Look no further than Maia Mills-Low, also known as Maiamama! With her extensive expertise as a digital producer, podcaster, performer, digital designer, and social justice activist, she brings a unique and powerful perspective to every endeavor.

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Work with Jesenia

(Jes-N-EE-Ya)

I am a dedicated community facilitator and builder, specializing in serving nonprofits and community-focused organizations. At the heart of my services is a deep commitment to fostering meaningful connections, igniting engagement, and driving positive change. As a seasoned event host and engagement expert, I understand the unique challenges and opportunities your organization faces. Whether it’s community organizing online, creating impactful digital spaces, or championing accessibility and inclusion, I bring a wealth of experience to the table.

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NeuroSpicy Networking - Calling Up Justice!

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In our meetings we will delve into overcoming your obstacles. My goal is to help you find solutions so that you can move forward with confidence and purpose.

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Are you seeking to create a more inclusive and accessible world? Look no further! Claudia Alick, a renowned cultural producer, performer, and inclusion expert, is here to guide you on your journey towards true diversity and empowerment. With a wealth of lived experience and a passion for positive change, Claudia offers a range of services tailored to your unique needs focused through a lens of anti-racism and disability justice.

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Claudia Alick Services - Calling Up Justice!

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My approach is rooted in anti-racism, decolonizing disability justice, and accessible design. I specialize in helping individuals by providing ideas, encouragement, guidance, and a passion for supporting them as they navigate through challenging situations. In our meetings we will delve into overcoming your obstacles. My goal is to help you find solutions so that you can move forward with confidence and purpose.

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Calling Up Justice is available to collaborate with people on a multiplicity of levels. You can join as an artist, administrator, designer, audience member or user. We need people to access our resources and empower themselves. We need you to enjoy all the different types on content on here. We have spaces that provide immediate connection and others that require vetting and invitation. We have roles that are committed to a period of time, and others that are drop-in. Sign-up and we can add you to the mailing list and meet.

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Joining Calling Up Justice - Calling Up Justice!

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Calling Up Justice is available to collaborate with folks on a multiplicity of levels

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Intersection for the Arts is a bedrock Bay Area arts nonprofit that’s dedicated to helping artists grow. Through vital resources, including fiscal sponsorship, low-cost coworking and event space, and professional development programs, we empower people to continue creating, thinking big, and taking weird and wonderful risks.

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We are pleased to share a new exhibition by our fiscally sponsored member Adele Shaw Art Studio, "Second Bite: The Wisdom of the Apple." This exhibition presents a large-scale immersive art installation showcasing women and female experiences worldwide and across time. In a compelling demonstration of beauty, power, and meaning, women are celebrated for every age, culture, and activity. Inspired by the iconic logo of the bitten apple, Second Bite is an immersive multimedia masterpiece using nearly 60 Apple computers to present over 13,000 images to provide an intimate experience of eyes-open meditation. Second Bite is open now through June 21, with open hours on Sundays from 12 PM to 5 PM. The show is located at the SF San Francisco headquarters of the Internet Archive, at 300 Funston Avenue. Join them for artists talks every Sunday at 2 PM, as well as their closing reception on July 21.

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Home - Intersection for the Arts | San Francisco

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Intersection for the Arts is a bedrock Bay Area arts nonprofit, established in 1965, that's dedicated to helping artists grow.

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The SPM Disability Justice Fund is fiscal sponsor. A fiscal sponsor is a 501(c3) nonprofit organization that extends its tax-exempt status to an organization, individual, or group that is doing charitable work related to the nonprofit’s mission.

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Our Impact

$130000

Donated to

Disability Justice

People Impacted ( Coming soon)

Meet
Us

Services

The SPM Disability Justice Fund provides nonprofit infrastructure and expertise, including financial management (monthly financial reports, ad-hoc grant reporting, and budget support), donation receipting over $100, and nonprofit readiness and fundraising resources-while shielding multiply marginalized practitioners from state control and systemic discrimination.

Our Model

The SPM Disability Justice Fund is fiscal sponsor. A fiscal sponsor is a 501(c3) nonprofit organization that extends its tax-exempt status to an organization, individual, or group that is doing charitable work related to the nonprofit's mission.

Awesome Foundation
Disability Chapter

Eligibility

To be eligible for fiscal sponsorship, your work must be:

Led by disabled people of color. We define leadership as at least 50% of your organization's leadership are BIPOC folks with disabilities, i.e., the executive director, management staff, and advisory committee members or governing boards should be represented by a majority of people of color with disabilities

Application :

​

Once you're ready to apply, the process is as follows:

1. Provide financial information

2. Sign the MOU (agreement)

3. Interview with a member of the Board of Directors

We are committed to making application materials available in multiple forms and accessible to all. Other accessible application formats include emailed documents, large print, video, or phone transcripts. For the application in alternative formats, please email us at projects@spmdisabilityjusticefund.org.

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Inspired by Stacey Park Milbern, the SPM Disability Justice Fund is a fiscal sponsor for disability justice initiatives led by disabled Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color (BIPOC).

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One Free Community is a BIPOC led collaborative project working toward building communities and providing disability & neuro-affirming spaces online through Discord. We are a decolonization-focused advocacy organization committed to mutual aid and collective cross-solidarity activism.

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🌐 Join the One Free Community VIRTUAL Protest

Next Date will be posted here...

Not everyone can join in person. Some are due to financial, safety, or inaccessibility. Due to this One Free Community is hosting a VIRTUAL Protest!

How it works!

Join protest from home on your phone or computer

Like, comment, share

Community LIVE rush (supercharge a creators page with LIVE engagement)

Group calls to action!

Watch your favorite content creators talk about activism!

You can also continue the conversation in a post event meet up! Usually the next day after the event.

Protests aren't just calls to action; it's a performance of justice. Let's shift towards community care! ✊

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a BIPOC led collaborative project working toward building communities and providing disability & neuro-affirming spaces online through TikTok and Discord.

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Stimpunks combines “stimming” + “punks” to evoke open and proud stimming, resistance to normalization, and the DIY culture of punk, disabled, and neurodivergent communities. Instead of hiding our stims, we bring them to the front.

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Mutual Aid and Human-Centered Learning for Neurodivergent and Disabled People

Real Help Against the Onslaught

We exist for the direct support and mutual aid of neurodivergent and disabled people.
We, Stimpunks

🧭 Our Mission: Real Help Against the Onslaught

What does that mean?

Easy Read Version of Our Mission Statements

Stimpunks is a community created by and for neurodivergent and disabled people.

We offer support and assistance to each other.

We provide grants to creators within our community.

We offer opportunities for learning and growth.

We conduct research that focuses on the needs and experiences of neurodivergent and disabled people.

We pay fair wages to members of our community.

We believe in the abilities and potential of all individuals.

We believe in the right to make decisions for oneself.

Being disabled in a society that favors able-bodied individuals is challenging.

We provide real help to combat these challenges.

We believe that providing direct support to individuals is the best way to help neurodivergent and disabled people overcome barriers and thrive.

AI Disclosure: The summary above was created with the help of Elephas AI Assistant.

The above is an "accordion". It expands when you click or tap it. Try it out now to read our mission statements in an easy read format with one idea presented per line.

What is "mutual aid"?

Mutual aid is a form of political participation where people care for each other and work to change political conditions.

It involves building relationships, networks of reciprocity, and autonomy from the state.

Mutual aid can include things like ride sharing, disaster response, and food distribution.

It is not charity, but rather an active cultivation of liberatory skills, practices, and solidarity.

Mutual aid projects meet survival needs and build shared understanding.

They mobilize people, expand solidarity, and build movements.

Mutual aid projects are participatory and solve problems through collective action.

Autistic communities are embracing ideas of mutual aid and collective care.

Mutual aid groups aim to fill gaps in services left by the government.

Disabled love and care is different from non-disabled interactions.

Mutual aid is based on a sense of human solidarity and the recognition of the force borrowed from practicing mutual aid.

Kropotkin's ideas on mutual aid are relevant and being rediscovered by new generations of social movements.

Mutual aid should be a foundational concept in social revolutionary projects.

Mutual aid is collective coordination to meet each other's needs, usually from an awareness that the systems we have in place are not going to meet them. Those systems, in fact, have often created the crisis, or are making things worse.

We see examples of mutual aid in every single social movement, whether it's people raising money for workers on strike, setting up a ridesharing system during the Montgomery Bus Boycott, putting drinking water in the desert for migrants crossing the border, training each other in emergency medicine because ambulance response time in poor neighborhoods is too slow, raising money to pay for abortions for those who can't afford them, or coordinating letter-writing to prisoners. These are mutual aid projects. They directly meet people's survival needs, and are based on a shared understanding that the conditions in which we are made to live are unjust.

Three Key Elements of Mutual Aid

1. Mutual aid projects work to meet survival needs and build shared understanding about why people do not have what they need.

2. Mutual aid projects mobilize people, expand solidarity, and build movements.

3. Mutual aid projects are participatory, solving problems through collective action rather than waiting for saviors.

Mutual Aid (Oct 27, 2020 edition) | Open Library

What is mutual aid?

"Solidarity, not charity."

Interdependence, understanding and support

Gives opportunity to help & care for other in on our own terms and within our own capacities

Direct support in a community within a community

It's much easier to practice asking, offering, receiving, and declining among people who "get it"!

Collective Community Care: Dreaming of Futures in Autistic Mutual Aid

Increasingly, autistic communities have been exposed to ideas of disability justice, interdependence, access intimacy, collective/community care, and mutual aid. Care collectives, spoon shares, and other community care groups by and for disabled people, racialized people, LGBTQ2IA+ people (and people at this intersection) are growing in number. Is there a future for autistic spaces to also act as spaces of intentional mutual aid?

Moving from a rights-based perspective to a justice-based one necessitates a look at our care systems and re-envisioning how our communities function to ensure no one is left behind.
Collective Community Care: Dreaming of Futures in Autistic Mutual Aid, Autscape: 2020 Presentations

Non-disabled people in my life don't know how to love me like disabled people do. I'm so thankful for all my disabled friends who know how to provide care, rest, support and love. Disabled love is critically different from my other interactions with the world. 1/4

I really wish non-disabled people could learn to love in the same caring modalities. Love looks like remembering my food intolerances. Love looks like saying "that sucks" when I complain. Love looks like calling to check in and telling me stories. 2/4

Love looks like someone bustling around at home doing everyday things that wanted to call just to be with me across time and space. Love looks like not trying to fix everything and just allowing bad days to be bad. Love looks accepting my need to isolate as much as possible. 3/4

Love looks like spaces for shared grief. Love looks like celebrating our mere existence and survival in a world so set on eradicating us. Love is everywhere in disabled communities. 4/4
Originally tweeted by Nicole Lee Schroeder, PhD (@Nicole_Lee_Sch) on April 15, 2022.

What is "human-centered learning"?

Stimpunks Learning Space offers community and space for passion-based, human-centered learning with purpose. Our learners collaborate on distributed, multi-age, cross-disciplinary teams with a neurodiverse array of creatives doing work that impacts community. Via equity, access, empathy, and inclusivity, we create anti-ableist space compatible with neurodiversity, the social model of disability, and all types of bodyminds. We create space for the neurodivergent and disabled people most ill-served by " empty pedagogy, behaviorism, and the rejection of equity ".

Stimpunks was forged in the quest for survival and educational inclusion. We had to roll our own education, because even the "all means all" of public education failed to include us. We've learned a lot along the way and present to you Stimpunks Space as the synthesis of our forced interdisciplinary learning. That learning connected us with neurodiversity communities, disability communities, educators, doctors, nurses, autism researchers, sociologists, tech workers, care workers, social workers, and a long list of others. We wove together the aspects of these disciplines that were compatible with our community of neurodivergent and disabled people into a human-centered pedagogy and philosophy. We left out the stuff incompatible with and harmful to us, such as all forms of behaviorism. We built a learning space that works for us using a zero-based design approach.

A human-centered education:

Build human-centered classrooms around four values:

Learning is rooted in purpose-finding and community relevance.

Social justice is the cornerstone to educational success.

Dehumanizing practices do not belong in schools.

Learners are respectful toward each others innate human worth.

What is the Human Restoration Project?

Cultivate purpose-driven classrooms by promoting experiential learning & community connection.

Research supports what teachers intuitively understand: that students ask fewer questions the longer they remain in school and engagement steadily declines over time.

"Promoting curiosity in children, especially those from environments of economic disadvantage, may be an important, underrecognized way to address the achievement gap. Promoting curiosity is a foundation for early learning that we should be emphasizing more when we look at academic achievement."

At the same time, rates of depression and anxiety have steadily increased to become among the most diagnosed mental health disorders in children. Kids who feel isolated from school and their community frequently drop out turn to self-harm and self-medication through alcohol and drugs.

Purpose-finding, on the other hand, has been linked to prosocial outcomes and healthier lifestyles, and is inherently tied to positive identity and self-worth. By directly participating in building a better society and reflecting on the experience, students gain valuable insight into their identity in relation to the world around them.
A Human-Centered Education: Cultivates Purpose-Driven Classrooms - YouTube

What is "human-centered research"?

It turns out that there is an emerging research framework-activist research-that is inclusive of multiple disciplines including educational research (Cushman, 1999; DeMeulenaere & Cann, 2013; Fine & Vanderslice, 1992; Knight, 2000; Malone, 2006; Nygreen, 2006), anthropology (Hale, 2006; Speed, 2006; Urla, & Helepololei, 2014) social movements and other social science research fields (Chatterton, Fuller, & Routledge, 2007; Choudry, 2014). A review of the theoretical frameworks, methodologies, findings, ethical issues, and challenges has allowed me to identify three characteristics that delineate activist researcher from other types of research: (1) combination of knowledge production and transformative action; (2) systematic multi-level collaboration; and (3) challenges to power.

The most salient characteristic of activist research is the belief that it must go farther than knowledge production; it must create transformative action. Knowledge production is the epitome of all research, even for studies that seek to expose inequities and call out oppressive systems and structures, but activist research goes further by committing to bringing about change with and for the participants (DeMulenaere & Cann, 2013; Hale, 2001, Fine & Vanderslice, 1992; Nygreen, 2006). Who is changed and how they are changed is a key aspect of activist research. DeMulenaere and Cann note that critical research is not necessarily activist research if it fails to include social transformative change, "at the spaces and sites of research..." (p. 557, 2013). They stress that if the only change that takes place is through reading of the published findings, then the study would not be considered activist research.

Hale contends that researchers who engage in cultural critique are committed to the research institution while activist researchers have dual commitments to the people and their political struggle and the academy (2006, p. 100). And it is this dual commitment that transforms the methodology beginning with the research topic and ending with the production of knowledge that is not only useful but transformative (Hale, 2001). Thus, activist research is an emerging research framework that shifts the focus from traditional knowledge production to commitment to working with others to produce transformative change. Traditional research methods such as ethnography, action research, and feminist research are situated within an activist research framework, leaving the means intact, but striving to change the ends.
From Theorizing in the Ivory Tower to Creating Change with the People: Activist Research as a Framework for Collaborative Action

We believe that participatory research should always be the baseline of any autism research project, whoever it is led by. We agree that it is important to value the voice of the 'other' as a primary source of knowledge production rather than a secondary source within the context of power structures around epistemology.
Doing it differently: emancipatory autism studies within a neurodiverse academic space

For research to be considered emancipatory, it is not sufficient that the research process and production are emancipatory, but dissemination of the research findings should also fulfil this function. Considering the dissemination of research findings, and that the findings themselves are produced in an 'accessible' format, should be a concern of any researcher who is doing emancipatory research.
Doing it differently: emancipatory autism studies within a neurodiverse academic space

Concerns have also been raised about the quality and rigour of autism research. For example, researchers have highlighted key omissions in the reporting of research, such as failures to declare conflicts of interest (Bottema-Beutel & Crowley, 2021) or the presence of adverse events (Bottema-Beutel et al., 2021). Concerns have also extended to the low standards underlying evidence-based practice (Bottema-Beutel, 2023) as well as replication failures (Gernsbacher & Yergeau, 2019). As Dawson and Fletcher-Watson (2021, p.1) note, the standards of research quality and ethics have not been applied to autism research to the extent that they should, which has "profoundly impacted how autistics are regarded and treated".

Two potential solutions have been proposed in relation to these aforementioned issues. The first solution regards greater involvement of the autistic and broader autism communities in research: in identifying research priorities, in deciding the design and conduct of research, in analysing and interpreting research findings, and in disseminating research more broadly (e.g., Pellicano et al., 2014). In essence, this solution involves shifting the traditional power balance in research from autism researchers to the autistic and broader autism communities. Participatory approaches such as these are thought to lead to better quality research that is more easily translated into practice (Balazs & Morello-Frosch, 2013; Forsythe et al., 2019).

The second solution regards greater openness and transparency in the reporting of research (Hobson, Poole, Pearson & Fletcher-Watson, 2022). Open research is an umbrella term for several practices, underpinned by a desire for the products and processes of research to be accessible to those outside of the original research team (Munafo et al., 2017). Open scientific practices are closely aligned with efforts to improve research reproducibility, and reduce the risk of grey research practices, such as hypothesising after results are known (HARKing; Kerr, 1998), and over-analysing data (" p-hacking"; Simmons et al., 2011).

In this paper, we discuss how combining participatory and open research practices may go some way toward addressing key issues inherent within autism research. First, we define both open research and participatory research. Then, we outline three key principles for autism researchers striving to make their work more open and participatory: (1) the need for adequate expertise and infrastructure to facilitate high quality research, (2) the need for a greater degree of accessibility at all stages of the research process, and (3) the need to foster trusting relationships between the autistic and research communities. Throughout this paper, we draw on examples from literature both within and outside the autism research field, and we conclude with reflections on how this may foster an autism research culture that better serves the autistic and broader autism communities.
PsyArXiv Preprints | Towards Reproducible and Respectful Autism Research: Combining Open and Participatory Autism Research Practices

Accordions labelled "What is..." provide definitions, context, and further reading.

"The Sphere of Humanity" is a symbol of our community of neurodivergent and disabled people. It speaks both to our alienation due to our differences and to the fundamental and beautiful interdependence of all earthlings.

It is time to celebrate our interdependence!

🔦 Welcome to this house. We find our people.

This website is an encyclopedia of disability and difference.

Learn about yourself.

Learn about your family.

Learn about your friends, co-workers, patients, and students.

We offer validation for thirsty souls yearning to be seen, heard, and understood.

We offer words on your behalf, ones which call out to include you.

We offer community and belonging.
We, Stimpunks

Often you don't realize how lonely and frightened you've been the whole time, until you find your people.

I believe all persons with Autism need the opportunity to become friends with other Autistic people. Without this contact we feel alien to this world. We feel lonely. Feeling like an alien is a slow death. It's sadness, self-hate, it's continuously striving to be someone we're not. It's waking up each day and functioning in falsehood (French, 1993).
Loud Hands: Autistic People, Speaking

Until one day... you find a whole world of people who understand.
The internet has allowed autistic people- who might be shut in their homes, unable to speak aloud, or unable to travel independently- to mingle with each other, share experiences, and talk about our lives to people who feel the same way.
We were no longer alone. 7 Cool Aspects of Autistic Culture " NeuroClastic

AutisticSciencePerson

In Te Reo Māori the word for Autistic ways of being is Takiwātanga, which means "in their own space and time". Most Autists are not born into healthy Autistic families. We have to co-create our Autistic families in our own space and time.
A communal definition of Autistic ways of being

Until one day... you find a whole world of people who understand.
The internet has allowed autistic people- who might be shut in their homes, unable to speak aloud, or unable to travel independently- to mingle with each other, share experiences, and talk about our lives to people who feel the same way.
We were no longer alone. 7 Cool Aspects of Autistic Culture " NeuroClastic

How can we cultivate spaces where everyone has that soaring sense of inclusion, where we can have difficult and meaningful conversations?
Because everyone deserves the shelter and embrace of crip space, to find their people and set down roots in a place they can call home.
"The Beauty of Spaces Created for and by Disabled People" by s.e. smith in "Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the 21st Century"

Omega hai foleet

We use accordions to expand on a topic without interrupting the main flow. Click/tap this accordion to learn about the importance of finding community.

👏🧷⏰ Stimpunks in a Minute

Everything that was normally supposed to be hidden was brought to the front.
PUNK SUBCULTURE - WIKIPEDIA

Stimpunks Foundation challenges the typical approach to helping people who are neurodivergent or disabled.
We know what it is like to live with barriers and what it means to not fit in and have to forge our own community.
Stimpunks knows that neurodivergent and disabled people have human needs, not special needs.

We offer a humane approach to help our community thrive.

One in four U.S. adults have a disability. However, our community receives only 2% of US grant funding, and only 19% of us are employed. We can't just let that be the truth. We have to challenge the norm and change the narrative around people who are neurodivergent or disabled.

Stimpunks Foundation seeks to do just that with our four pillars.

📓🧐 Our Pillars ⛑️🧰

The place where we belong does not exist.

We will build it.

James Baldwin via Gayatri Sethi in Unbelonging

Staying alive is a lot of work for a disabled person in an ableist society. We provide real help against the onslaught through mutual aid. We believe that direct support to individuals is the most effective approach to alleviating the barriers and challenges that prevent neurodivergent and disabled people from thriving.

We pay creators to create. We buy space to breathe and make. Creativity is a vital force that drives positive change in society. We provide financial support to creators across various fields, including art, advocacy, research, and beyond. We aim to enable creators to fully immerse themselves in their work. We recognize the importance of investing in the creative process and the impact it can have on communities and individuals.

Learn More About Our Pillars

Stimpunks Foundation sponsors and employs neurodivergent and disabled creators and amplifies their work to our clients and throughout society. We exist for the direct support and mutual aid of neurodivergent and disabled people.

We complement mutual aid to creators with learning spaces for creators. Stimpunks Foundation serves neurodivergent and disabled people unserved by public and private schools. Via equity, access, empathy, and inclusivity, we build community learning space respectful of all types of bodyminds.

We pursue passion-based, human-centered learning compatible with neurodiversity and the social model of disability. We create paths to equity and access for our learners. We create Cavendish space of peer respite and collaborative niche construction where we can find relief from an intense world designed against us.

Our research initiative focuses on the sweet spot of digital sociology, neurodiversity studies, disability studies, and syncretism, in the open. We want to improve the scientific experience for the disabled and the neurodivergent by restoring the humanities. We want to bring voice into empirical constructs and translate voice into academic comprehension.

We also help businesses and organizations increase their knowledge and practice of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) by analyzing company practices and coaching leaders to dismantle ableism in their spaces. According to the Harvard Business Review, "There are more than one billion people worldwide - around 15% of the population - living with a disability. As workers, they can ease talent shortages and add to the organizational diversity that drives better decision-making and innovation." Neurodiversity-friendly forms of collaboration hold the potential to transform pathologically competitive and toxic teams and cultures into highly collaborative teams and larger cultural units that work together easier and with more success.

Our additional services include digital and physical accessibility audits, sensitivity reads, and other offerings that focus on increasing DEI in the workplace. Client services are how we live our mission to employ neurodivergent and disabled people as well as how we raise capital for grantmaking.

❤️ Keep on Livin'

Our pillars are how we serve our loved people so we can keep on living through the onslaught.

We provide real help against the onslaught.

I would like to honour all the autistic people who survive the care system somehow.

All those who survive extreme 'therapy'.

All those who are brought to their knees, reading hellish descriptions of their loved people.

And all who did not survive this onslaught.
Ann Memmott

We serve our loved people so we can keep on living through the onslaught.

Look up to the sky, sky, sky
Take back your own tonight You'll find more than you see It's time now, now,get ready

This is your time, this is your life and This is your time, this is your life and This is your time, this is your life and This is your time, this is your life and

You gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)
Gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)
You gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)
Gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)
You gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)
Gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)
You gotta keep on (Keep on livin!) Gotta keep on (Keep on livin!)Keep On Livin' by Le Tigre

We use music all over our website to help us tell our stories. "Keep On Livin'" is a song by and for trauma survivors. It's the theme song for our mission.

🔔 Our "Moment of Obligation"

Stimpunks was created to forge the way for educational inclusion and to give our community the means to thrive. We as a disabled and neurodivergent run organization had to roll our own education, because even the "all means all" of public education failed to include us and those we serve. We had to create our own care systems, because " we realized that the only people who care enough about us to work consistently for our liberation are us." "Responsibility for the survival of entire communities lies with us."

In other words...

One Idea Per Line

Stimpunks was created to advocate for educational inclusion and empower our community.

As a disabled and neurodivergent organization, we had to create our own education because public and private education did not include us.

We had to establish our own care systems because we recognized that the only ones who consistently work for our liberation are ourselves.

We believe that responsibility for the survival of entire communities lies with us.

One Paragraph Summary
Stimpunks is a disabled and neurodivergent-run organization that was created to address the lack of educational inclusion and support for their community. They have developed their own educational programs and care systems to ensure that the needs of disabled and neurodivergent individuals are met. Inspired by the Combahee River Collective, Stimpunks emphasizes the importance of self-care and self-determination, recognizing that the responsibility for the well-being and liberation of their community lies with the community itself. Their goal is to empower their community to thrive and advocate for their rights and inclusion in society.
Five Paragraph Summary
Stimpunks is an organization that was created with the aim of promoting educational inclusion and providing support for the disabled and neurodivergent community. The founders of Stimpunks, who are themselves disabled and neurodivergent, recognized the lack of inclusivity in public and private education systems and decided to take matters into their own hands.

One of the ways Stimpunks addresses this issue is by offering their own educational programs. They have developed courses that cater to the specific needs and learning styles of disabled and neurodivergent individuals. By creating their own education, Stimpunks ensures that the content is accessible and relevant to their community.

In addition to education, Stimpunks also focuses on creating care systems that meet the needs of their community. They understand that the responsibility for the well-being and liberation of the disabled and neurodivergent community lies with the community itself. They have taken inspiration from the Combahee River Collective, a Black feminist organization, which emphasized the importance of self-care and self-determination.

Stimpunks recognizes that traditional systems often fail to adequately support marginalized communities, and they have taken it upon themselves to fill this gap. By creating their own education and care systems, they are empowering their community to thrive and take control of their own destinies.

Stimpunks' approach is not limited to education and care alone. They also advocate for the rights and inclusion of disabled and neurodivergent individuals in society at large. Through their work, Stimpunks aims to challenge the existing systems and create a more inclusive and equitable world for all.

AI Disclosure: The summaries above were created with the help of Elephas AI Assistant.

Accordions labelled "In other words..." explain things in different ways, including easy read, one idea per line, and plain language summaries.

Elevate care as infrastructure.

We need a counterculture of care.

The philosophers Joan Tronto and Berenice Fisher lay out five key elements of care...virtues to be developed if you wanted to APPLY an ethics of care to things in your life. Think of this as a sort of HOW TO manual for moral maturity UNDER an ethics of care. These virtues IN ORDER are:

Attentiveness

Responsibility

Competence

Responsiveness

Plurality

Episode #168 - Introduction to an Ethics of Care â€" Philosophize This!
Episode #168 -Transcript â€" Philosophize This!

The activities that constitute care are crucial for human life. We defined care in this way: Care is "a species activity that includes everything that we do to maintain, continue, and repair our "world' so that we can live in it as well as possible. That world includes our bodies, our selves, and our environment, all of which we seek to interweave in a complex, life-sustaining web" (Fisher and Tronto, 1990, p. 40).

Several aspects of this definition of care are noteworthy: First, we describe care as a "species activity," a philosophical term we use because it suggests that how people care for one another is one of the features that make people human. Second, we describe care as an action, as a practice, not as a set of principles or rules. Third, our notion of care contains a standard, but a flexible one: We care so that we can live in the world as well as possible. The understanding of what will be good care depends upon the way of life, the set of values and conditions, of the people engaged in the caring practice.

Furthermore, caring is a process that can occur in a variety of institutions and settings.

Care is found in the household, in services and goods sold in the market, in the workings of bureaucratic organizations in contemporary life. Care is not restricted to the traditional realm of mother's work, to welfare agencies, or to hired domestic servants but is found in all of these realms. Indeed, concerns about care permeate our daily lives, the institutions in the modern marketplace, the corridors of government. Because we tend to follow the traditional division of the world into public and private spheres and to think of caring as an aspect of private life, care is usually associated with activities of the household. As a result, caring is greatly undervalued in our culture- in the assumption that caring is somehow "women's work," in perceptions of caring occupations, in the wages and salaries paid to workers engaged in provision of care, in the assumption that care is menial. One of the central tasks for people interested in care is to change the overall public value associated with care. When our public values and priorities reflect the role that care actually plays in our lives, our world will be organized quite differently.
An Ethic of Care on JSTOR

Let's organize our lives around love and care Let's write each other letters and call it prayer Let's congregate in the place that isn't anywhere At the temple of broken dreams

"Bread and roses" are what the humans involved in care-the patient and the clinician-want from healthcare.

Over this summer both of us read Rebecca Solnit's latest book, Orwell's Roses,1 which she was inspired to write when she discovered that George Orwell had not only written the bleakest and most powerful portrayals of the totalitarian regimes of the twentieth century,2 but had also planted rose bushes, costing him sixpence each from Woolworths. This apparent contradiction between the bleak worldview and the hopeful act of gardening, reminded Solnit of the political slogan "Bread and Roses" which seems to have emerged in the US around 1910 and was used by women campaigning for votes for women and for workers' rights. Describing the power of the slogan, Solnit wrote:
"Bread fed the body, roses fed something subtler: not just hearts, but imaginations, psyches, senses, identities. It was a pretty slogan but a fierce argument that more than survival and bodily well-being were needed and were being demanded as a right. It was equally an argument against the idea that everything that human beings need can be reduced to quantifiable, tangible goods and conditions. Roses in these declarations stood for the way that human beings are complex, desires are irreducible, that what sustains us is often subtle and elusive."
"Bread and roses" are what the humans involved in care-the patient and the clinician-want from healthcare. Bread is sustenance and therefore life; roses are courage and hope, curiosity and joy, and all that makes a life worth living. Bread is biology; roses are biography. Bread is transactional and technocratic; roses are relational. Bread is science; roses are care, kindness and love.

"Bread and roses" can also describe how healthcare can support care. With apologies to those who bake their own loaves, the parallel here is with the industrial production of bread, so that bread represents the bureaucratic processes that make healthcare efficient and safe, preventing waste and error through standardisation, regulation, and training. Baking bread is like the technologies and innovations that make unhurried conversations and continuity of care possible and feasible, that reduce diagnostic errors, and detect and correct harms early and reliably. Attending to the bread makes sure healthcare retains the potential to attend to the object of care, to the bodies and minds, the fears and feelings of individual patients, and to create the conditions for careful and kind care to emerge.

Roses represent what makes life worth living, all that is good in human relationships, and the stories we use to make sense of our desperate situations and of what is possible with treatment. Roses are what gives us comfort in the face of failure, pain, decay, and death, that is, in the face of living. Attending to roses brings the subject of care into sharp relief so that the scars of injustice, racism, inequity, and violence can be made visible alongside the scars of disease. Roses, like careful and kind care,3 speak of hope-our work of planting and creating conditions of light, soil, and water makes it possible that a flower will appear in the future. Just like roses, care cannot be summoned or coaxed, but must emerge from the right conditions.
Responding to the crisis of care | The BMJ

How to respond to this crisis of care?

Here, Orwell himself holds the clue. The discovery that Orwell had planted those roses led Solnit to reassess his novel 1984. Within all the greyness and cruelty and oppression, there is this great truth:

"What mattered were individual relationships, and that a completely helpless gesture, an embrace, a tear, a word spoken to a dying man, could have value in itself." 2

All the joy, all the roses of health, even in these dire times, exist within relationships, between patients and professionals, and between healthcare colleagues; and in the sure knowledge that all these helpless gestures have value in themselves.

It turns out that the subversive, almost revolutionary thing to do within contemporary healthcare is to build, quietly and unobtrusively, these crucial relationships. We now know that continuity of care, within a unique dyad of patient and doctor, delays disease and prolongs lives5 and thereby supplies bread, but it does so by simultaneously giving us the roses of joy, trust, curiosity, care, kindness, and solidarity. A life worth living tends to last longer.

In fact, care, like love, is abundant and self-sustaining, a potential of everyone. Trained and celebrated, caring is a demanding human capability that swells with the satisfaction of having opted to run towards the pain, that replenishes with the smile and the gratitude with which we evaluate our effectiveness, that regenerates when the care, and love, returns to care givers when they, invariably, must become care receivers. Care, like roses, gives meaning to living. We must cultivate care.

In fighting our way out of this healthcare crisis, in working for careful and kind care for all, we must follow the suffragettes and demand "bread and roses."
Responding to the crisis of care | The BMJ

We gotta really try, Try so hard to get by, And where are we going to?

Don't wanna be free of hope
And I'm at the end of my rope
It's so tough just to be alive
When I feel like the living dead

I'm givin' it up so plain
I'm livin' my life in vain
And where am I going to?
I gotta really try
Try so hard to get by
And where am I going to?

Flip on your TV
And try to make sense out of that
If we were all in the movies
Maybe we wouldn't be so bored

We're givin' it up so plain
We're livin' our lives in vain
And where are we going to?
We gotta really try
Try so hard to get by
And where are we going to?

Life in Vain by Daniel Johnston

Do you know why we have the sunflowers?

Do you know why we have the sunflowers? It's not because Vincent van Gogh suffered. It's because Vincent van Gogh had a brother who loved him. Through all the pain, he had a tether, a connection to the world. And that is the focus of the story we need. Connection.
Hannah Gadsby: Nanette

Being bipolar is a constant system of checks and balances. These days I fight against needing my medication adjusted a lot, against depression and anxiety, mania and hypomania. I still end up flying some days, sometimes for days at a time, because as time goes on, the body changes and you have to adjust to new needs, new doses, new medication.

Coping mechanisms change, life situations go ways you never expected, mania and depression rear their ugly heads. But the day I went on medication was one of the greatest days of my life, because it was the day my creative spark stopped becoming an excuse to keep putting up with an illness that was killing me.
DISABILITY VISIBILITY: FIRST PERSON STORIES FROM THE 21ST CENTURY

Stimpunks exists because our systems effectively don't.

📖 Our Story: Challenging the Norm and Changing the Narrative

Scrollytelling is the fusion of scrolling and storytelling: a way to dynamically tell long-form stories as the user scrolls.
Scrollytelling: How to Transform Your Long-Form Content | Elementor

Art, music, poetry, and prose from our community of neurodivergent and disabled people await.

Join us in challenging the norm and changing the narrative by reframing our states of being.

Let's challenge the norm and change the narrative.

We're going to rewrite the narratives.
Autistic Hoya - A blog by Lydia X. Z. Brown: The neurodiversity movements needs its shoes off, and fists up.

The neurodiversity movements needs its shoes off, and fists up.

We have protests to stage, driven by the fuel of our righteous anger. We have speeches to make, written from the soaring pleas of our individual and collective trauma, and our wildest dreams of joy and freedom and love. We have cultural narratives to rewrite because they really do hate us and they really will kill us, and if we're going to rewrite the narratives, then there's no reason to hold ourselves back from our most radical and defiant rewritings. We have autistic children who need us to support them as architects of their own liberation against the schools and clinicians and institutions and police and prosecutors who would crush and destroy them.

We're going to need our anger and our public celebrations of stimming and our complicated, imperfect, messy selves for this long and hard road, because we need all of us, and all of our tactics and strategies, to keep a movement going and ultimately, to win.
Autistic Hoya - A blog by Lydia X. Z. Brown: The neurodiversity movements needs its shoes off, and fists up.

My kids have been kicked out of many, many places for being different-just like I was.

The question is simple: Is there room for disabled kids at a piano school? On a swim team? In most classrooms?

The answer, right now, seems to be no.
Catapult | The World Doesn't Bend for Disabled Kids (or Disabled Parents)

I, Victoria Lin Tanner, am just one of many people who discovered, after a lifetime of struggle, that I am autistic. This book is about my journey of self-discovery. It is also a scream into the cold, black void where no help is to be found for people like me. Autistic children become autistic adults, so why is there no support for us? I am here to shine a glaring spotlight on the ways that society has failed autistic adults. For many of the 5 million+ autistic Americans, and ~75 million worldwide, life would be made far more manageable and frankly, happier, if our struggles were supported in meaningful ways rather than through #autismawareness retweets and puzzle piece merchandise.
We are here, we are angry, and we are only going to get louder. Autistic adults are not okay. Autistic Adults Are Not Okay - Victoria Lin Tanner, Autistic Adults Not Okay, Autistic Visibility Project

We are not okay. I say this with the utmost compassion. You have inherent value, no matter how often your invisible labor goes unnoticed and unrewarded. You deserve to live, to rest, and to be noticed. It's a sad fact of life that we autistics have had to do the lion's share of our own advocating, but those who don't understand our struggle are simply not motivated enough to push for change. We cannot allow the majority voice to be that of cure-mongerers speaking over us. So, get louder. Get angrier. This is our movement, and we need more than visibility. We need accessible and meaningful support.
Autistic Adults Are Not Okay - by Lin Tanner, Victoria

🌱 It is time to celebrate our interdependence. The parts we need to survive are scattered All amongst us.

Stimpunks is a treasure trove of everything important to the neurodivergent and disabled community.
Feedback from a reader

We challenge the norm and change the narrative with our scrollytelling by first recognizing that "the parts we need to survive are scattered All amongst us."

On this website, we curate the treasures of neurodivergent and disabled cultures.

We weave a colorful cloth of community relationships, voices, knowledge, and skills.

This website isn't one voice. It is many. It is a chorus of interdependence.

It is time to celebrate our interdependence! The Myth of Independence: How The Social Model of Disability Exposes Society's Double Standards " NeuroClastic

This swatch of rainbow woven cloth evokes our biopsychosocial complexity, our diversity, and our interdependence. It evokes the adaptive interdependence of body, mind, and culture.

evoke = to make someone remember something or feel an emotion

biopsychosocial = biological + psychological + social = to understand a person's medical condition it is not simply the biological factors to consider, but also the psychological and social factors

interdependence = our survival is bound up together, we are interconnected and what we do impacts others

What would it mean to weave a colorful, durable cloth of individuals' and communities' relationships, knowledge and skills?

I am fighting for an interdependence that embraces need and tells the truth: no one does it on their own and the myth of independence is just that, a myth.

Interdependence acknowledges that our survival is bound up together, that we are interconnected and what you do impacts others. If this pandemic has done nothing else, it has illuminated how horrible our society is at valuing and practicing interdependence. Interdependence is the only way out of most of the most pressing issues we face today. If we do not understand that we are interdependent with the planet we as a species will not survive.
You Are Not Entitled To Our Deaths: COVID, Abled Supremacy & Interdependence

Abled culture teaches you to act as if you are independent, to buy into the myth of independence. Reject this. Embrace interdependence and know it is the only way we will be able to end this pandemic. Know that if we center disabled people, first and foremost those who are high risk, it will help everyone.
You Are Not Entitled To Our Deaths: COVID, Abled Supremacy & Interdependence

This work is about shifting how we understand access, moving away from the individualized and independence-framed notions of access put forth by the disability rights movement and, instead, working to view access as collective and interdependent.

With disability justice, we want to move away from the"myth of independence," t hat everyone can and should be able to do everything on their own. I am not fighting for independence, as much of the disability rights movement rallies behind. I am fighting for an interdependence that embraces need and tells the truth: no one does it on their own and the myth of independence is just that, a myth.
Changing the Framework: Disability Justice | Leaving Evidence

It is from being disabled that I heave learned about the dangerous and privileged "myth of independence" and embraced the power of interdependence. The myth of independence being of course, that somehow we can and should be able to do everything on our own without any help from anyone. This requires such a high level of privilege and even then, it is still a myth. Whose oppression and exploitation must exist for your "independence?"

We believe and swallow ableist notions that people should be "independent," that we would never want to have to have a nurse, or not be able to drive, or not be able to see, or hear. We believe that we should be able to do things on our own and push our selves (and the law) hard to ensure that we can. We believe ableist heteronormative ideas that families should function as independent little spheres. That I should just focus on MY family and make sure MY family is fed, clothed and provided for; that MY family inherits MY wealth; that families should not be dependent on the state or anyone else; that they should be "able-bodied," essentially. We believe the ableist heteronormative racist classist myth that marriage, "independence" as sanctified through the state, is what we want because it allows us to be more "independent," more "equal" to those who operate as if they are independent-That somehow, this makes us more "able."

And to be clear, I do not desire independence, as much of the disability rights movement rallies behind. I am not fighting for independence. I desire community and movements that are collectively interdependent.

As a disabled person, I am dependant on other people in order to survive in this ableist society; I am interdependent in order to shift and queer ableism into something that can be kneaded, molded and added to the many tools we will need to transform the world. Being physically disabled and having mobility needs that are considered "special," means that I often need people to help me carry things, push my wheelchair, park my car, or lend me an arm to lean on when I walk. It means that much of my accessibility depends on the person I'm with and the relationship I have with them. Because most accessibility is done through relationships, many disabled people must learn the keen art of maintaining a relationship in order to maintain their level of accessibility. It is an exhausting task and something that we have had to master and execute seamlessly, in many of the same ways we have all had to master how to navigate and survive white supremacy, heterosexism, our families, economic exploitation, violence and trauma. This is also one of the main conditions which allow for disabled people to be victims of violence and sexual assault.
Interdependence (exerpts from several talks) | Leaving Evidence

Everyone is causally interconnected with, interdependent with, and fundamentally the same as all other humans.

...the eco-system arises from and responds to the multiple ways in which everyone is causally interconnected with, interdependent with, and fundamentally the same as all other humans, and literary representations of these various types of solidarity, their inherence in human nature, and their benefits to people who recognize and embrace them can help students incorporate these principles into their mental models of human nature and thus both recognize and enact them more productively in their personal, professional, and civic lives.

The most obviously systemic form of interconnectedness is existential: we all depend on other humans for our very existence and survival -that is, for the production and distribution of our food, clothing, and shelter, not to mention the complex technologies that we in the postindustrial world have come to rely on. We are dependent on the work of countless other individuals at every moment in our lives, and we simply could not exist without their direct and indirect contributions to our lives.
Literature, Social Wisdom, and Global Justice: Developing Systems Thinking

'Rebellion' is not enough. We need to build new systems from the ground up, right now.

And it means grounding this effort in completely new frame of orientation, one in which human beings are inherently interconnected, and inter-embedded within the earth; where we are not atomistically separated from the reality in which we find ourselves as technocratic overlords, but are co-creators of that reality as individuated parts of a continuum of being.
Escaping extinction through paradigm shift

The parts we need to survive are scattered All amongst us. Tinu Abayomi-Paul

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🌊 Bodymind Break

Before we continue, let's take a bodymind break.

bodymind = a term used to challenge the idea the body and mind are experienced separately

The swells and textures of nature follow patterns that resonate with the human body through its ability to hear sound. Enjoy a sonic tribute to one of nature's most wonderful experiences, the sound of the ocean's waves. The swells are specially timed to encourage the body to breathe more slowly and more deeply. The sound spectrum is full and is matched to the powerful release of deep sound energy of the Earth's beautiful shores.

Take a moment to breathe. Take a moment to affirm your bodymind.

Some ways to affirm your bodymind and support nervous system regulation:

Press play for ocean waves.

We're not minds riding around in bodies, we're bodyminds.

Neurodiversity, simply put, is the diversity among human minds. For 15 years or so after the term was coined, it was common for people to speak of neurodiversity as ''diversity among brains.'' There still are plenty of people who talk about it that way. I think this is a mistake; it''s an overly reductionist and essentialist definition that's decades behind present-day understandings of how human bodyminds work.

Mind is an embodied phenomenon. The mind is encoded in the brain as ever-changing webs of neural connectivity. The brain is part of the body, interconnected with the rest of the body by a vast network of nerves. The activity of the mind and body creates changes in the brain; changes in the brain affect both mind and embodiment. Mind, brain, and embodiment are intricately entwined in a single complex system. We're not minds riding around in bodies, we're bodyminds.

A lot of people hear neuro and they think, brain. But the prefix neuro doesn't mean brain, it means nerve. The neuro in neurodiversity is most usefully understood as a convenient shorthand for the functionality of the whole bodymind and the way the nervous system weaves together cognition and embodiment. So neurodiversity refers to the diversity among minds, or among bodyminds.

In terms of scholarship, discourse, and praxis, there are two basic ways to approach the biopsychosocial phenomenon of neurodiversity. Sometime around 2010, I started referring to these two approaches as the pathology paradigm and the neurodiversity paradigm.
Toward a Neuroqueer Future: An Interview with Nick Walker | Autism in Adulthood

So much of my perception of my autistic self is embodied.

As indicated by the title, the first essential term for this book is bodymind. Bodymind is a materialist feminist disability studies concept from Margaret Price that refers to the enmeshment of the mind and body, which are typically understood as interacting and connected, yet distinct entities due to the Cartesian dualism of Western philosophy ("The Bodymind Problem and the Possibilities of Pain" 270). The term bodymind insists on the inextricability of mind and body and highlights how processes within our being impact one another in such a way that the notion of a physical versus mental process is difficult, if not impossible to clearly discern in most cases (269). Price argues that bodymind cannot be simply a rhetorical stand-in for the phrase "mind and body"; rather, it must do theoretical work as a disability studies term. Bodymind is an essential concept in chapter 3 in my discussion of hyperempathy, a nonrealist disability that is both mental and physical in origin and manifestation. Bodymind generally, however, is an important and theoretically useful term to use in analyzing speculative fiction as the nonrealist possibilities of human and nonhuman subjects, such as the werewolves discussed in chapter 4, often highlight the imbrication of mind and body, sometimes in extreme or explicitly apparent ways that do not exist in our reality.

In addition to the utility of the term bodymind in discussions of speculative fiction, I also use this term because of its theoretical utility in discussions of race and (dis)ability. For example, bodymind is particularly useful in discussing the toll racism takes on people of color. As more research reveals the ways experiences and histories of oppression impact us mentally, physically, and even on a cellular level, the term bodymind can help highlight the relationship of nonphysical experiences of oppression-psychic stress-and overall well-being. While this research is emergent, people of color and women have long challenged their association with pure embodiment and the degradation of the body as unable to produce knowledge through a rejection of the mind/body divide. Bodymind provides, therefore, a politically and theoretically useful term in discussing (dis)ability in black women's speculative fiction and more.
Bodyminds Reimagined: (Dis)ability, Race, and Gender in Black Women's Speculative Fiction - Dr. Sami Schalk

We urgently need a society that's better at letting people get the rest they need.

Nothing in this culture wants us to have rest. Wants us to have ease. Wants us to have care. The softness was stolen. Our dreamspace has been stolen. Our space to just be has been stolen.
Tricia Hersey, founder of The Nap Ministry.

Our collective rest will save us.
Tricia Hersey

As you listen to ocean waves, imagine you are at the coast watching this friendly solarpunk behemoth.

Artist Statement

When the ancient ones awaken to help out humanity with their climate problem.

This was a piece I've been wanting to do for ages and @stimpunks helped me make this a reality! So thank you so much for this commission! All of my neurospicy friends should definitely check out Stimpunks and give them a follow!

I just wanted an excuse to blend Solarpunk with fantasy art really.

The idea is that an environmental research facility was unwittingly built upon the back of a sleeping earth colossus due to the unique flora and fauna of the area, only for the colossus to suddenly awaken. The behemoth made an agreement with the scientists that they may stay on its back, but only on the condition that they treat the isolated ecosystem with respect and that their research will help heal nature and bring about a world where humans and nature live in harmony again.

The research facility itself is constructed from entirely sustainable materials and is a blend of iron-age and modern architecture. The scientists must stick to strict limestone paths so not to erode any of the earthy areas. Some locations cannot be accessed by foot and are therefore drone-only. The entire facility is powered by those airborne turbines (I probably added more than there needed to be but they look pretty haha).

Here's some concept art for the colossus. I made him a lot less grumpy in the final piece. He has six legs on account of him being extremely front-heavy and he has little tiptoeing ungulate feet. I also worked a lot of fossil motifs into his design, plus I imagine the wooden structures that make his antlers are so ancient that they have started to petrify. I want this creature to feel truly ancient. His face is also inspired by "the green man" a little bit.
Kaya's Kosmos on Tumblr: Solarpunk Colossus.

Ultimately Solarpunk envisions a world that might be slower, but more intentional. One that ties humanity closely to the natural world.

A future with a human face and dirt behind its ears.

Ultimately Solarpunk envisions a world that might be slower, but more intentional. One that ties humanity closely to the natural world.

A future with a human face and dirt behind its ears.
How We Can Build A Solarpunk Future Right Now (ft. @Andrewism)

This is Solarpunk. Finding the appropriate technologies to build aesthetically stimulating and liveable dwellings that tie us tightly with the landscape.
How We Can Build A Solarpunk Future Right Now (ft. @Andrewism) - YouTube

Solarpunk is a movement in speculative fiction, art, fashion and activism that seeks to answer and embody the question "what does a sustainable civilization look like, and how can we get there?" The aesthetics of solarpunk merge the practical with the beautiful, the well-designed with the green and wild, the bright and colorful with the earthy and solid. Solarpunk can be utopian, just optimistic, or concerned with the struggles en route to a better world - but never dystopian. As our world roils with calamity, we need solutions, not warnings. Solutions to live comfortably without fossil fuels, to equitably manage scarcity and share abundance, to be kinder to each other and to the planet we share. At once a vision of the future, a thoughtful provocation, and an achievable lifestyle.
SOLARPUNK : A REFERENCE GUIDE. The below was compiled by... | by Jay Springett | Solarpunks | Medium

But what if we imagined something different? What if we imagined worlds where nature, humanity, and technology not only coexist, but thrive together. Worlds that are rich with the greens and blues of abundance. Utopias? Maybe, but certainly utopias worth striving for.

This is what Solarpunk is all about. A burgeoning genre of art and a movement that casts off the dystopian, technology-heavy futurism of cyberpunk and instead tries to build a world wherein people not only live well, but also live well with the natural world.

Solarpunk is an exercise in imagination, but it is also a call to action. There are very real Solarpunk solutions that already exist or are currently feasible that can start to bring about a Solarpunk future today. And today, we'll look at the viability of some of these solutions and answer the question: how can we build a Solarpunk world right now?

Solarpunk is high and low tech: Before we dive into the promising tools that might aid our quest for a Solarpunk world, we first need to understand the role of technology in the Solarpunk community. As we will soon see, technology doesn't exist in a vacuum.
How We Can Build A Solarpunk Future Right Now (ft. @Andrewism) - YouTube

For those out of the loop, solarpunk is on a bit of a spectrum, from pure aesthetic hopeful imagining to actually building our collective futures here and now.

Solarpunk aims to look beyond the limitations of capitalism and beyond the rift between humanity and nature. Most importantly, it's a project and vision of liberation that we co-create for our unique local conditions, ecosystems, and needs, as we work towards a better society.

Solarpunk isn't something to be imposed from above, through capitalist ventures or state projects. It's grassroots, and must incorporate the voices, experiences, and inputs of a wide range of people.
How We Can Build A Solarpunk Future (ft. @OurChangingClimate) - YouTube

And in the late 2000s, the concept of "solarpunk" emerged. YouTube channel Our Changing Climate with Andrewism published an overview of Solarpunk: "Ultimately Solarpunk envisions a world that might be slower, but more intentional. One that ties humanity closely to the natural world." As Andrewism put in the replies: "A future with a human face and dirt behind its ears."

But if solarpunk is the future with humanity put back in, achieving it means taking control of that future from economic, social, & political forces that seem to be on autopilot to self-destruction, utterly divorced from human desires & human intervention. One path we've imagined already, and its grimy survivalist individualism was the defining feature of Reagan-era science fiction classics. However, in its radical reimagination of economic & social structures, solarpunk resists the nihilism & doomerism of the grim dehumanized technological dystopias that dominate the worlds of Blade Runner, Robocop, & William Gibson's Neuromancer.

Do we have the willingness to challenge the predominant social, economic, & political structures & systems that need to be challenged? To change the very nature of humanity's relationship to the planet? What role does education play in all of this?
Fighting Back Against the Future | Human Restoration Project | Nick Covington Chris McNutt

Solarpunk is a lot of things. Its definitions are still growing, but at its heart, is always about one thing: a vision of a possible future where humanity nature and technology live in harmony beyond the human centric.

Solarpunk worlds are a green, sustainable, and socially just for everyone.
How Solarpunk Fiction Envisions a Better Tomorrow | Video Essay - YouTube

Solarpunk gives us the permission to imagine differently.

Solarpunk gives us the permission to imagine differently; to resist Giroux's "dead zone of imagination."

Imagining a better future isn't naivety, it's essential for a thriving world

We must preserve in the face of everything a positive outlook toward organizing surviving, and building anew or risk becoming stagnant.

Individual actions snowball and propagate through systems, and each act of service, each pushback, each classroom decision can fundamentally build a better future.

It's up to us to make that tomorrow a reality.
Fighting Back Against the Future: Imagining a Solarpunk Education - YouTube

I would call our work to change the world "science fictional behavior"-being concerned with the way our actions and beliefs now, today, will shape the future, tomorrow, the next generations.

We are excited by what we can create, we believe it is possible to create the next world.

We believe.
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds

🐇🕳️🌈 Down the Rabbit Hole: We've Got Space for You

We design for and encourage skimming, so skim-scroll on down and see what grabs your attention.

How We Try to Make This Website More ADHD-Friendly

In this video, Jessica discusses how she made her book more ADHD friendly.

We attempt all of these things on our website at stimpunks.org.

Lots of whitespace.

Every page/screen has something breaking up the text. Break up text with pull quotes, blocks, bullets, bolding, backgrounds, images.

Add attention getters like selective bolding and pull quotes.

Write in conversational style.

Organize so you don't have to read it.

Flip open right to your struggle. Allow people to pick up and go right to what they need.

Format is the same for every chapter.

Make it so people can just read the headers.

Make it engaging and visual.

Add in jokes and feelings.

Put everything in one book so folks have one place to go.

How I Made My Book ADHD-Friendly 🧠📘 - YouTube

What would you do to make our scrollytelling style on stimpunks.org more ADHD-friendly?

A page of neat and tidy typed text in long paragraphs is the least memorable format known.

Our Storytelling Conventions

We love hyperlinks and use them extensively. We consider them a kindness to the reader and a potent weapon in the fight against disinformation. Many of our links lead to our expansive glossary.

We love Stimpunks, their Glossary is a rich source of information presented through an affirming lens. Be more Punk! 🤘🏻✊🏾 https://stimpunks.org/glossary-list/#h-all-glossary-entries
Pebble Autism on X

We use block quotations ( blockquote) heavily. We quote our favorite passages and sources with hyperlinks signposting back to the original work.

We also heavily use " accordions ". Accordions contain more in depth information on a topic that you can reveal at your own pace.

We often break paragraphs of text down into bulleted lists that present one idea per line in plain language.

To listen to our web pages:

Many, but not all, pages on our website provide AI-generated audio of the text.

Press play near the top of each page.

Or click/tap the floating headphones icon on the bottom right of the screen.

We respect ear-reading.

We provide content hierarchy, visual hierarchy, and tables of contents.

We group related elements together in color blocks.

We are iterating toward " digital stories" and " Web-Based Conceptual Portmanteau ".
Consume this content to the depth and breadth of your preference in whatever way and order works for you.
This website is a living document that you can contribute to under a Creative Commons CC BY-SA license. Send us your suggestions and favorite quotes and resources.

We provide "Main Takeaways" on many pages. Main takeaways are presented with one idea per line in a bulleted list format. If you don't have time or energy to read an entire page, reading just the main takeaways will give you what you most need to know.

Readers on the web scan for information, rather than reading everything line-by-line. Chunking your content into smaller sections, called out by larger headings, helps them find the information they're searching for.

When I'm trying to find something quickly, there's nothing more intimidating than jumping onto a site with a giant wall of unbroken content.
Show, Don't Tell | CSS-Tricks - CSS-Tricks

Where possible, break down paragraphs into lists. Lists make scanning easier!
Show, Don't Tell | CSS-Tricks - CSS-Tricks
Our Rules for Scrollytelling

Accordions expand/infodump on a topic without interrupting the main flow.

Accordions labelled "What is..." provide definitions, context, and further reading.

Accordions labelled "In other words..." explain things in different ways, including easy read, one idea per line, and plain language summaries.

One line inline definitions are offered.

Explanatory items are grouped into "What does this mean?" blocks.

Related items are grouped together on a colored background with a group title. This makes it easier to tell what's in a group and skim past it.

Pick colors for groups based on colors in included media, if any.

Pick colors for groups of accordions based on themes like rainbow.

Lots of whitespace.

Every page/screen has something breaking up the text.

Selective bolding of key sentences facilitates skimming.

A table of contents is provided near the top of each page.

Headings are used approximately every 5 screens (on a laptop) or less.

20 headings max.

Put a "coming up" table of contents after 10 headings.

Consider putting a "Bodymind Break" section after 10 headings.

Spacers are used as pause points, fermata.

Spacers are used before headings to accentuate the break.

Long scrollytelling stories signpost to what's ahead.

Break up text with pull quotes, blocks, bullets, bolding, backgrounds, images.

Use lists to present one idea per line.

Make it so people can just read the headers, table of contents and get the gist of the page/section.

Make it engaging and visual.

Write in a conversational style.

Add in jokes and feelings.

There's more about our scrollytelling conventions in our explainer at " 📚🌈♿️ An Encyclopedia of Disability and Difference "

Content on our website is structured in a multimedia, multi-modality, scrollytelling style where the main concepts are presented at the top of the page in plainer language, with more academic language and further detail provided as you scroll down. Read to the depth you're comfortable with. If you don't have time to rabbit hole an entire page or section, read what you can knowing that you got the main ideas up front.

"Down the rabbit hole" = getting deep into something or ending up somewhere strange
Consume this content to the depth and breadth of your preference in whatever way and order works for you.

In other words...

The content on our website is designed to be engaging and accessible to a wide range of readers. We have adopted a multimedia, multi-modality, scrollytelling style, which means that information is presented in a visually appealing and interactive manner.

When you visit our website, you will notice that the main concepts are presented at the top of the page using simpler language. This allows you to quickly grasp the key ideas without getting overwhelmed by technical jargon. As you scroll down, you will find more detailed explanations and academic language for those who want to delve deeper into the topic.

We understand that everyone has different preferences when it comes to consuming content. That's why we encourage you to read at your own pace and to the depth that you feel comfortable with. If you don't have the time to explore an entire page or section, you can still gain a good understanding by focusing on the main ideas presented at the beginning.

We want you to have a flexible and customizable experience on our website. Feel free to consume the content in any way and order that works best for you. Whether you prefer to skim through the main points or dive into the nitty-gritty details, our goal is to provide you with valuable information in a format that suits your needs.

AI Disclosure: The summary above was created with the help of Elephas AI Assistant.

Accordions labelled "In other words..." explain things in different ways, including easy read, one idea per line, and plain language summaries.

Let's scroll.
Let's infodump. Let's share knowledge and information, together.

It is also quite acceptable in autistic culture to "infodump" on a topic whenever it happens to come up. To autists, the sharing of knowledge and information is always welcome.

INFO DUMPING

Talking alot about a topic in great detail

Telling someone about a special interest

A way of building a connection with someone

Sharing extensive knowledge about a topic

A way to initiate an interaction

Longer conversational turns

Overlapping speech during the conversation

Showing someone how much you know about a subject

Sharing excitement about a topic

Neurodivergent people who use speech love to info-dump and is a valid way of sharing information. The feeling of being so passionate about something can feel so exhilarating. To a neurotypical person this is often labelled as: poor turn-taking, social deficits, interrupting, lack of reciprocity, ignores social cues, repetitive, verbose, lack of awareness of social conventions.

It's all about perception. If we re-frame these 'deficits' and view them through a neurodiversity lens, we can acknowledge that autistic communication is just a different way of communicating.
Communication Features | AutisticSLT

We use accordions to infodump on a topic without interrupting the main flow.

Stimpunks provide joy in every page, link, and exploration. An excellent place and space to deep dive.
Lisa Chapman (Speech and Language Therapist) of CommonSenseSLT, author of Humanising Care

Journey down our rabbit hole.

We've got space for you.

Down the rabbit hole: If it exists, you can reasonably assume there will be an autistic person to whom that thing is the subject of intense obsession and time spent.

The reality is that if it exists, you can reasonably assume there will be an autistic person to whom that thing is the subject of intense obsession and time spent, from blankets to drain covers (both of these are special interests of people in my acquaintance) and pretty much anything in between. When engaging in a special interest, autistic people are typically calmer, more relaxed, happier and more focused than they would otherwise be - for many, it is a form of release or even self-medication: a well-timed foray into a special interest can stave off meltdown and be a generally extremely positive force in an autistic person's life.
Learning From Autistic Teachers (pp. 30-31)

Many people with autism are stressed individuals who find the world a confusing place (Vermeulen, 2013). So how does someone with autism achieve a sense of flow? McDonnell & Milton (2014) have argued that many repetitive activities may achieve a flow state. One obvious area where flow can be achieved is when engaging in special interests. Special interests allow people to become absorbed in an area that gives them specialist knowledge and a sense of achievement. In addition, certain repetitive tasks can help people achieve a flow like state of mind. These tasks can become absorbing and are an important part of people's lives. The next time you see an individual with autism engaging in a repetitive task (like stacking Lego or playing a computer game), remember that these are not in themselves negative activities, they may well be reducing stress.

If you want to improve your supports to people with autism from a stress perspective, a useful tool is to identify flow states for that person and try to develop a flow plan. Remember, the next time you see a person repeating seemingly meaningless behaviours, do not assume that this is always unpleasant for them - it might be a flow state, and beneficial for reducing stress.
What is 'flow'?

Official autism criteria say that "special interests" are defined by either intensity or unusualness; what this doesn't capture though is the way of interacting with them, which is mainly through accumulating information in order to dissect and understand, categorise and explore.
- Fochti (@fochti) June 5, 2022

In another moment down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

I am just having a night exploring Stimpunks! I can't keep up with you, your site is just a huge rabbit warren of amazingness, I love it!
Feedback from a reader

It feels like a rabbit warren of underground tunnels and caves where people meet, mainly through online social media platforms. The continuous physical growth of these spaces where people are connecting is slowly creating ripples and heading into real family spaces and showing a genuine need for change in our education system as more and more children are showing how the current frameworks are just not meeting needs and resulting in school attendance difficulties and mental health concerns.
Caverns, Pleats and Folds. The potential to neuroqueer is inside... | by MoreRealms | Medium

The Autistic Rhizome = an interconnected network of knowledge exchange and mutual aid and support

Autistic Rhizome

A growing and evolving network of Autistic communities with no hierarchy or dependence on anothers existence.

Each person forms an integral part and is connected by a flow of energy that not only runs through and between individuals and communities but enables new connections to form. It is a place of safety, support and deep understanding.

The Autistic rhizome creates new energy through the sharing and evolution of ideas which permeates and ripples through into wider society.
@Autis tic Realms

Rhizome: as conceptualised in the work of Deleuze and Guatarri. A network with no single point of origin. No part of the network depends upon the existence of another. I have introduced the idea of this in the context of community here.
Neuro-anarchy and the rise of the Autistic Rhizome - DGH Neurodivergent Consultancy

On discord, there is a growing network of communities. I have lovingly dubbed this collective The Autistic Rhizome. They are an interconnected network of knowledge exchange, and mutual aid and support that have displaced the hierarchical nature of advocate/follower relationships.

We are equal in these spaces.

This doesn't mean that all knowledge shared is useful in advancing the neurodiversity movement. Like any knowledge, some is good, some is bad, most is somewhere in the middle.

This growing network consists of communities that do not depend on each other to exist, but are still enriched by their interconnection. There is no starting or end point. There is no advancing through communities based on levels of knowledge. They just simply exist, and people come and go as they please.
Neuro-anarchy and the rise of the Autistic Rhizome - DGH Neurodivergent Consultancy

Deleuze and Guattari described this kind of thinking as 'Rhyzomatic.'

A rhyzome isn't like a tree, it doesn't have subordinate parts emerging from a core trunk. A rhizome is a root system of pure connections.

How the things connect is how they are defined. By the same logic, how they are disconnected is how they are defined.

Deleuze differed from the poststructuralists like Derrida and Foucault in that he was a Monist. All of it is connected, all of it is one, and the connections and lack of connections between the things, are what define them as things. This is an Ontology of Difference.
Spider-Verse, Identity Politics, Leftist Infighting, and the Oppression Olympics - YouTube

There is a deep yearning for people to feel understood, for their strengths to be celebrated and for their difficulties to be acknowledged. There seems to be a growing number of neurodivergent people seeking support and a growing number of neurodiversity-affirming, neurodivergent-led charities, organisations, and groups emerging to help people who have previously been marginalised and left feeling alone.

Many of the new organisations, groups and online spaces that are evolving are proving to be a wonderful coming together of different minds, a collective response to the long-standing unmet needs of neurodivergent people. They are an example of the internal experiences of neurodivergent people being acknowledged and represented in the community with shared experiences, empathy and understanding. This coming together and uniting through shared experiences and theories such as monotropism could be seen as being like a collective flow state; a combined energy of mutual understanding created by accepting and validating each other's similarities and also differences.
Monotropism & Collective Flow. Exploring the philosophy of Deleuze &... | by MoreRealms | Oct, 2023 | Medium

Our collective flow from within the neurodivergent community is rhizomatically evolving and starting to branch outside the autistic community. Interest is growing that was not here even six months ago; webinars and training sessions are popping up over the internet, and new writing is being shared all the time.

I believe we need to embrace this flow and channel it into productive research and enable the inner experiences of neurodivergent people to drive the research so it is more meaningful for everyone. Neurodiversity is where potential and possibilities lie. Everyone has an integral and equally important role in creating and contributing to our community flow state and in the possibilities that may bring.
Monotropism & Collective Flow. Exploring the philosophy of Deleuze &... | by MoreRealms | Oct, 2023 | Medium

Here's what is coming up on our scrollytelling journey.

Coming Up

Some of the things you'll encounter on your journey...

cat massages

sick, dope, fire art

lots of music

sassy dances

wolpertingers

bunnybadgers

bunny buns

rainbow dragons

Zelda maps

flowerpunks

punkflowers

fractals

hamster + lion = hamlion, rawr squeak

a rainbow shrimp visualizer

punk attitude

the first rule of punk

punky reggae parties

screams into the void

celebrations of interdependence

the entwined nature of queer and neurodivergent people

the entwined nature of queer and neurodivergent liberation

words that have the power to change attitudes

political and cultural connection with the neurodiversity and disability rights movements

🖼️ Our Ways of Being

Reframe these states of being that have been labelled deficiencies or pathologies as human differences.
Normal Sucks: Author Jonathan Mooney on How Schools Fail Kids with Learning Differences

Reframing is essential to all our pillars. Reframe yourself and others. This is hard and important work necessary to all other work. Challenge the norm, and change the narrative.

We Reframe

We reframe out of the confines of the medical model and pathology paradigm and into the respectfully connected expanse of the biopsychosocial model and the Neurodiversity paradigm. We reframe from deficit ideology to structural ideology.
We, Stimpunks

What does that mean?

In other words...

One Idea Per Line

We shift away from the medical model and pathology paradigm.

We embrace the biopsychosocial model and Neurodiversity paradigm.

We move away from focusing solely on deficits.

We adopt a more holistic approach that considers social structures and systems.

We prioritize respectful connections.

One Paragraph Summary

We are changing the way we think about medical conditions and disabilities. Instead of focusing on what is wrong with someone, we are looking at the whole person and how their biology, psychology, and social environment all play a role in their well-being. We are also recognizing and celebrating the unique strengths and perspectives of people with different ways of thinking and processing information. Instead of blaming individuals for their challenges, we are acknowledging that societal structures and systems can create barriers for them. By addressing these barriers, we hope to create a more fair and supportive society for everyone, regardless of their differences. This new way of thinking will help us understand, accept, and empower individuals with diverse neurological experiences.

Four Paragraph Summary

We reframe out of the confines of the medical model and pathology paradigm and into the respectfully connected expanse of the biopsychosocial model and the Neurodiversity paradigm. We reframe from deficit ideology to structural ideology. In this shift, we move away from viewing individuals solely through a medical lens, focusing on their perceived deficits and pathologies. Instead, we embrace a more inclusive and holistic approach, known as the biopsychosocial model. This model recognizes the interconnectedness of biological, psychological, and social factors in shaping an individual's well-being.

Furthermore, we adopt the Neurodiversity paradigm, which celebrates and values the diverse ways in which individuals' brains function. Rather than pathologizing differences, we acknowledge and respect the unique strengths and perspectives that neurodivergent individuals bring to society.

As we reframe our thinking, we also transition from a deficit ideology to a structural ideology. Rather than solely blaming individuals for their challenges, we recognize the impact of societal structures and systems that may hinder their full participation and inclusion. By addressing these structural barriers, we aim to create a more equitable and supportive environment for all individuals, regardless of their neurodivergence.

In embracing this new framework, we strive to foster understanding, acceptance, and empowerment for individuals across the neurodiversity spectrum. By shifting our perspective and adopting these inclusive paradigms, we can create a more compassionate and inclusive society for everyone.

AI Disclosure: The summaries above were created with the help of Elephas AI Assistant.

Accordions labelled "In other words..." explain things in different ways, including easy read, one idea per line, and plain language summaries.

What is "framing"?

Frames are mental structures that shape the way we see the world. As a result, they shape the goals we seek, the plans we make, the way we act, and what counts as a good or bad outcome of our actions. In politics our frames shape our social policies and the institutions we form to carry out policies. To change our frames is to change all of this. Reframing is social change.
The ALL NEW Don't Think of an Elephant!: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate

When we successfully reframe public discourse, we change the way the public sees the world. We change what counts as common sense. Because language activates frames, new language is required for new frames. Thinking differently requires speaking differently.
The ALL NEW Don't Think of an Elephant!: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate

We also know frames through language. All words are defined relative to conceptual frames. When you hear a word, its frame is activated in your brain.

Yes, in your brain. As the title of this book shows, even when you negate a frame, you activate the frame. If I tell you, "Don't think of an elephant!," you'll think of an elephant.

Though I found this out first in the study of cognitive linguistics, it has begun to be confirmed by neuroscience. When a macaque monkey grasps an object, a certain group of neurons in the monkey's ventral premotor cortex (which choreographs actions, but does not directly move the body) are activated. When the monkey is trained not to grasp the object, most of those neurons are inhibited (they turn off), but a portion of the same neurons used in grasping still turn on. That is, to actively not grasp requires thinking of what grasping would be.

Not only does negating a frame activate that frame, but the more it is activated, the stronger it gets. The moral for political discourse is clear: When you argue against someone on the other side using their language and their frames, you are activating their frames, strengthening their frames in those who hear you, and undermining your own views. For progressives, this means avoiding the use of conservative language and the frames that the language activates. It means that you should say what you believe using your language, not theirs.
The ALL NEW Don't Think of an Elephant!: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate

I used to tell my students that ideology never announces itself as ideology. It naturalizes itself like the air we breath. It doesn't acknowledge that it is a way of looking at the word; it proceeds as if it is the only way of looking at the world. At its most effective, it renders itself unassailable: just the way things are. Not an opinion, not the result of centuries of implicit and explicit messaging, not a means of upholding a power structure. It just is.
the shame is ours

For me this space of radical openness is a margin a profound edge. Locating oneself there is difficult yet necessary. It is not a "safe" place. One is always at risk. One needs a community of resistance.

Living as we did on the edge we developed a particular way of seeing reality. We looked both from the outside in and from the inside out. We focused our attention on the centre as well as on the margin. We understood both.
Choosing the Margin as a Space of Radical Openness, bell hooks

What is the "pathology paradigm"?

The pathology paradigm ultimately boils down to just two fundamental assumptions:

1. There is one "right," "normal," or "healthy" way for human brains and human minds to be configured and to function (or one relatively narrow "normal" range into which the configuration and functioning of human brains and minds ought to fall).

2. If your neurological configuration and functioning (and, as a result, your ways of thinking and behaving) diverge substantially from the dominant standard of "normal," then there is Something Wrong With You.

It is these two assumptions that define the pathology paradigm. Different groups and individuals build upon these assumptions in very different ways, with varying degrees of rationality, absurdity, fearfulness, or compassion - but as long as they share those two basic assumptions, they're still operating within the pathology paradigm (just as ancient Mayan astronomers and 13th Century Islamic astronomers had vastly different conceptions of the cosmos, yet both operated within the geocentric paradigm).
THROW AWAY THE MASTER'S TOOLS: LIBERATING OURSELVES FROM THE PATHOLOGY PARADIGM * NEUROQUEER

What is the "neurodiversity paradigm"?

The neurodiversity paradigm is a specific perspective on neurodiversity - a perspective or approach that boils down to these fundamental principles:

1.) Neurodiversity is a natural and valuable form of human diversity.

2.) The idea that there is one "normal" or "healthy" type of brain or mind, or one "right" style of neurocognitive functioning, is a culturally constructed fiction, no more valid (and no more conducive to a healthy society or to the overall well-being of humanity) than the idea that there is one "normal" or "right" ethnicity, gender, or culture.

3.) The social dynamics that manifest in regard to neurodiversity are similar to the social dynamics that manifest in regard to other forms of human diversity (e.g., diversity of ethnicity, gender, or culture). These dynamics include the dynamics of social power inequalities, and also the dynamics by which diversity, when embraced, acts as a source of creative potential.
What It Doesn't Mean:
The neurodiversity paradigm provides a philosophical foundation for the activism of the Neurodiversity Movement, but the two aren't the same. For instance, there are people working on developing inclusive education strategies based on the neurodiversity paradigm, who don't identify as social justice activists or as part of the Neurodiversity Movement.
Example of Correct Usage:"Those who have embraced the neurodiversity paradigm, and who truly understand it, do not use pathologizing terms like 'disorder' to describe neurocognitive variants like autism."NEURODIVERSITY: SOME BASIC TERMS & DEFINITIONS * NEUROQUEER

What is "respectful connection"?

The notion of Neurodiversity can allow you to embrace your child for who they are, and it can empower you to look for respectful solutions to everyday problems. It can also help you to raise your child to feel empowered and content in their own skin. Respectfully Connected | Neurodiversity Paradigm Parenting FAQs

Instead of intensive speech therapy - we use a wonderful mash-up of communication including AAC, pictures scribbled on notepads, songs, scripts, and lots of patience and time. Instead of sticker charts and time outs, or behavior therapy - we give hugs, we listen, solve problems together, and understand and respect that neurodivergent children need time to develop some skills Instead of physical therapy - we climb rocks and trees, take risks with our bodies, are carried all day if we are tired, don't wear shoes, paint and draw, play with lego and stickers, and eat with our fingers. Instead of being told to shush, or be still- we stim, and mummies are joyful when they watch us move in beautiful ways. Respectfully Connected | #HowWeDo Respectful Parenting and Support

Be patient. Autistic children are just as sensitive to frustration and disappointment in those around them as non-autistic children, and just like other children, if that frustration and disappointment is coming from caregivers, it's soul-crushing.

Presume competence. Begin any new learning adventure from a point of aspiration rather than deficit. Children know when you don't believe in them and it affects their progress. Instead, assume they're capable; they'll usually surprise you. If you're concerned, start small and build toward a goal.

Meet them at their level. Try to adapt to the issues they're struggling with, as well as their strengths and special interests. When possible, avoid a one-size-fits all approach to curriculum and activities.

Treat challenges as opportunities. Each issue - whether it's related to impulse control, a learning challenge, or a problem behavior - represents an opportunity for growth and accomplishment. Moreover, when you overcome one issue, you're building infrastructure to overcome others.

Communicate, communicate, communicate. For many parents, school can be a black box. Send home quick notes about the day's events. Ask to hear what's happening at home. Establish communication with people outside the classroom, including at-home therapists, grandparents, babysitters, etc. Encourage parents to come in to observe the classroom. In short, create a continuous feedback loop so all members of the caregiver team are sharing ideas and insights, and reinforcing tactics and strategies.

Seek inclusion. This one's a two-way street: not only do autistic children benefit from exposure to their non-autistic peers, those peers will get an invaluable life lesson in acceptance and neurodiversity. The point is to expose our kids to the world, and to expose the world to our kids.

Embrace the obsession. Look for ways to turn an otherwise obsessive interest into a bridge mechanism, a way to connect with your students. Rather than constantly trying to redirect, find ways to incorporate and generalize interests into classroom activities and lessons.

Create a calm oasis. Anxiety, sensory overload and focus issues affect many kids (and adults!), but are particularly pronounced in autistic children. By looking for ways to reduce noise, visual clutter and other distracting stimuli, your kids will be less anxious and better able to focus.

Let them stim! Some parents want help extinguishing their child's self-stimulatory behaviors, whether it's hand-flapping, toe-walking, or any number of other "stimmy" things autistic kids do. Most of this concern comes from a fear of social stigma. Self-stimulatory behaviors, however, are soothing, relaxing, and even joy-inducing. They help kids cope during times of stress or uncertainty. You can help your kids by encouraging parents to understand what these behaviors are and how they help.

Encourage play and creativity. Autistic children benefit from imaginative play and creative exercises just like their non-autistic peers, misconceptions aside. I shudder when I think about the schools who focus only on deficits and trying to "fix" our kids without letting them have the fun they so richly deserve. Imaginative play is a social skill, and the kids love it.

A parent's advice to a teacher of autistic kids

I just want to do what is best for my child. Can this notion of Neurodiversity help me do that?
Yes, absolutely! The notion of Neurodiversity can allow you to embrace your child for who they are, and it can empower you to look for respectful solutions to everyday problems. It can also help you to raise your child to feel empowered and content in their own skin.
Do you think I am ableist? I thought I was helping my child...
Yes, I think you're ableist. I think most of us are ableist (even if we are ourselves disabled), and because the social climate is ableist, it takes a lot to question ourselves. They way to be respectful is not about being perfect, but we can question our own ableism so as not to let it interfere with our children and their rights.
That is hard for me to hear. I didn't think I was ableist and it hurts to be told I am.
That's fair enough. However, if you want to do what is best for your child you will need to move past that in order to begin to shed this ableism from your everyday reactions and choices.
How does it feel to be autistic?
That is really complex and difficult to answer. I cannot explain that in as much depth as would give you a good knowledge of it, however there are so many autistic writers you can look to for guidance on that. If you are asking me to to describe how I experience life, as compared to how you experience life, this is a huge question.
Is there a quick way to understand all this?
No, not really. The hardest part is challenging yourself and dominant social assumptions. It is a long road but the great thing is that you're already on it. You've started; because you're questioning yourself.
Respectfully Connected | Neurodiversity Paradigm Parenting FAQs

1. Learn from autistic people

2. Tell your child they are autistic

3. Say NO to all things stressful & harmful

4. Slow down your life

6. Value your child's interests

7. Respect stimming

8. Honour & support all communication

9. Minimise therapy, increase accommodations & supports

10. Explore your own neurocognitive differences
Respectfully Connected | 10 'Autism Interventions' for Families Embracing the Neurodiversity Paradigm

Meeting our children where they are doesn't mean giving up on them. It means seeing them as a whole person, broadening their access to communication, helping them figuring out their unique learning styles, helping them figuring out their sensory profile, and putting accommodations in place. When we work with our children instead of against them, instead of trying to fix them, we end up with happier children. And that is a goal worth striving for.
Meghan Ashburn, I Will Die On This Hill

Applying ABA in therapeutic practice is entirely unacceptable to us. Therapist Neurodiversity Collective does things differently:

Zero ABA, including positive reinforcement

Zero desensitization, tolerance, or extinction targets or approaches

Zero neuronormative goals (masking of sensory systems, monotropic interests systems, anxiety)

Zero training neurotypical social skills

We are trauma-informed and respectful of sensory systems, diversity in social intelligence, autistic learning styles, including monotropic interest systems.

We take the research framework from developmental and relationship-based therapy models, use our knowledge of client and caregiver perspectives (no goals for masking, eye contact, whole body listening, appearing neurotypical, etc.), and apply our clinical background to implement therapy practices which are respectful, culturally competent, trauma-sensitive and empathetic.
Non-ABA Evidence Based Practice | Therapist Neurodiversity Collective

We presume competence.

We believe that AAC has no prerequisites.

We respect sensory differences.

We respect body autonomy.

Most importantly, we continually learn from our neurodivergent mentors as to what therapy approaches and methodologies are respectful and uphold human rights and self-determination.
Non-ABA Evidence Based Practice | Therapist Neurodiversity Collective

The target of intervention is not autistic children, but their social and physical environments. Autistic children [need to be] supported in families and communities to develop as unique and valued human beings, without conforming to the developmental trajectory of their neurotypical peers.
Briannon Lee

What is the "biopsychosocial model"?

Within the biopsychosocial model of neurodiversity, understanding work-related intervention and treatment becomes more about adjusting the fit between the person and their environment than about treating a disorder. Critical review of the extant biopsychosocial research supports the social model proposition that the individual is not disabled, but the environment is disabling.

Exclusion rates point to an economic, social and moral imperative to improve outcome-based research, from which we can advise practition-ers and individuals on which adjustments improve inclusion, within a biopsychosocial model.

A reductive, medical paradigm of research is incongruent with the legal status of neurominorities as protected conditions in most developed countries, to which organizations must adjust.

The aim of occupational accommodations for neurominorities is to access the strengths of the spiky profile and palliate the struggles.
Neurodiversity at work: a biopsychosocial model and the impact on working adults | British Medical Bulletin | Oxford Academic

The Biopsychosocial model was first conceptualised by George Engel in 1977, suggesting that to understand a person's medical condition it is not simply the biological factors to consider, but also the psychological and social factors 1.

Bio (physiological pathology)

Psycho (thoughts emotions and behaviours such as psychological distress, fear/avoidance beliefs, current coping methods and attribution)

Social (socio-economical, socio-environmental, and cultural factors suchs as work issues, family circumstances and benefits/economics)
Biopsychosocial Model - Physiopedia

Autistic People Recognize Challenges Associated with Autism
Despite viewing autism as central to identity, autistic participants in the study by Kapp et al. (2013) did not differ from non-autistic participants in negative emotions toward autism or in the perceived importance of supports to help autistic people gain adaptive skills. This overlap between the neurodiversity movement and the medical model indicates a more nuanced perspective on disability than the standard social model wherein impairments are believed to arise solely from societal factors. The perspective of autism endorsed by many members of the neurodiversity movement is more consistent with a biopsychosocial model (Engel, 1977) of autism, wherein internal differences interact with social factors to create challenges associated with autism (Kapp, 2013). For example, an autistic researcher pointed out that reduced theory of mind, which has been postulated to be a core deficit within autistic people ( Baron-Cohen et al., 1995), is not an impairment that resides within autistic people but rather a mutual difficulty relating, as neurotypical people also face often unacknowledged challenges understanding the minds of autistic people ( Milton, 2012). Further evidence that autistic adults' perceptions of autism align with a biopsychosocial model arises from research demonstrating that some autistic adults recognize that autistic traits interfere with employment and socialization, and attempt to pass as "normal" (Griffith et al., 2012).

These findings provide support for the importance of listening to autistic people and becoming more familiar with their experiences in order to address and counter stigma. Indeed, people aware of the neurodiversity movement are more likely to view autism as a positive identity that does not need a cure ( Kapp et al., 2013). Although superficially surprising, our finding that numerically more autistic participants supported (55%), rather than opposed (26%), the medical model in their definitions of autism is consistent with prior research demonstrating overlap between the medical model and the neurodiversity movement in terms of shared recognition of challenges associated with autism (Kapp et al., 2013), which is consistent with a biopsychosocial model of autism (Kapp, 2013).
Frontiers | Whose Expertise Is It? Evidence for Autistic Adults as Critical Autism Experts

What is "deficit ideology"?

What is "structural ideology"?

This is equity literacy: having the knowledge that a commitment to equity requires us to ask these questions and then having the will to ask them. There is no path to equity literacy that does not include the adoption of a structural ideology because there is no way to cultivate equity through an ideological standpoint, like deficit or grit ideology, that is formulated to discourage direct responses to inequity.
Poverty and the ideological imperative: a call to unhook from deficit and grit ideology and to strive for structural ideology in teacher education: Journal of Education for Teaching: Vol 42, No 4

'Everybody works hard?' one student asked timidly. 'There must be more to the story than hard work?' another proposed.
With this we began our exploration on socioeconomically based educational outcome disparities and how to eliminate them.
Poverty and the ideological imperative: a call to unhook from deficit and grit ideology and to strive for structural ideology in teacher education: Journal of Education for Teaching: Vol 42, No 4

In this article I explore the educational equity implications of three popular ideological positions that drive teachers' and teacher educators'understandings of, and responses to, poverty and economic injustice in schools: deficit ideology, grit ideology, and structural ideology. The educator's ideological position, I illustrate, determines their understandings of conditions such as socio-economic-based outcome disparities. Those understandings, in turn, determine the extent to which the strategies they can imagine have the potential to eliminate or mitigate those disparities. I then argue that teacher education for equity and economic justice must equip pre- and in-service educators with a structural ideology of poverty and economic injustice, based on a sophisticated understanding of relationships between structural inequalities and educational outcome disparities, rather than a deficit or grit ideology, both of which obscure structural inequalities and, as a result, render educators ill-equipped to enact equitable and just teaching, leadership and advocacy.

'Everybody works hard?'one student asked timidly.'There must be more to the story than hard work?' another proposed.

With this we began our exploration on socioeconomically based educational outcome disparities and how to eliminate them.

In this essay, I draw on the principles of equity literacy (Gorski 2016a; Gorski and Swalwell 2015; Swalwell 2011) in order to demonstrate what my students and I began to uncover in class that day. The students were not lacking desire to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to create equitable learning environments for their future students. nor, thanks to their more methods-oriented coursework, were they short on practical strategies or ideas for solving the 'achievement gap'. The trouble, instead, was that a majority of the students had been socialised to fundamentally misunderstand poverty and its impact on educational outcome disparities. as a result, despite good intentions, the strategies they were capable of imagining - trendy instructional interventions, the cultivation of grit in students experiencing poverty, programmes designed to encourage higher levels of parent involvement by economically marginalised families - sidestepped completely the causes of the disparities they felt desperate to redress. The trouble was not dispositional or practical. Instead it was ideological, borne of faulty belief systems that, if not reshaped, would undermine their potentials to be the equitable teachers they hoped to be.

With this in mind, my purpose is to argue that when it comes to issues surrounding poverty and economic justice the preparation of teachers must be first and foremost an ideological endeavour, focused on adjusting fundamental understandings not only about educational outcome disparities but also about poverty itself. I will argue that it is only through the cultivation of what I call a structural ideology of poverty and economic justice that teachers become equity literate (Gorski 2013), capable of imagining the sorts of solutions that pose a genuine threat to the existence of class inequity in their classrooms and schools. After a brief clarification of my case for the importance of ideology, I begin by describing deficit ideology, the dominant ideological position about poverty that is informed in the US and elsewhere by the myth of meritocracy (Mcnamee and Miller 2009), and its increasingly popular ideological offshoot, grit ideology (Gorski 2016b). after explicating these ideological positions and how they mis- direct interpretations of poverty and its implications, I describe structural ideology, an ideological position through which educators understand educational outcome disparities in the context of structural injustice and the unequal distribution of access and opportunity that underlies poverty (Gorski 2016a). I end by sharing three self-reflective questions designed to help me assess the extent to which my teacher education practice reflect the structural view.

On the other end of the continuum are people who tend to understand poverty and issues such as the family involvement disparity as logical, if unjust, outcomes of economic injustice, exploitation, and inequity. adherents to a structural ideology (Gorski 2016b), they are likely to define gaps in in-school family involvement as interrelated with the inequities with which people experiencing poverty contend. So, recognising people experiencing poverty as targets, rather than causes, of these unjust conditions, they might understand lower rates of in-school involvement as a symptom of in-school and out-of-school conditions that limit their abilities to participate at the same rates as their wealthier peers. These conditions, such as families' lack of access to transportation or schools' practices of scheduling opportunities for in-school involvement in ways that make them less accessible to people who work evenings (as economically marginalised people are more likely than their wealthier peers to do) are rendered invisible by the deficit view.
Poverty and the ideological imperative: a call to unhook from deficit and grit ideology and to strive for structural ideology in teacher education: Journal of Education for Teaching: Vol 42, No 4

StimPunks has a great, up-to-date glossary that reflects the breadth and richness of this global neurodivergent community. It captures a reflection of the autistic, neurodivergent and disabled culture and language used within these communities. It is a beautiful display of acceptance, belonging and connecting (NATP). An example of this is their page Five Neurodivergent Love Locutions (Stimpunks, 2022), where they expanded on Myth's (@neurowonderful) original Twitter/ X post:
"The five neurodivergent love languages: info-dumping, parallel play, support swapping, Please Crush My Soul Back Into My Body, and "I found this cool rock/button/leaf/etc and thought you would like it" (Myth, 2021).
These examples show the different ways many autistic people create a sense of belonging by sharing stories and developing friendships online, as these spaces are often not available or accessible elsewhere. It is through these online spaces that I have grown to feel more accepted and continue to un-learn and re-learn more authentic ways of being with the support of other neurodivergent people who 'get it'.
Autistic Community: Connections & Becoming

I have grown to feel more accepted and continue to un-learn and re-learn more authentic ways of being with the support of other neurodivergent people who 'get it'.
Autistic Community: Connections & Becoming

Learn about our authentic ways of being.

Autistic ways of being are human neurological variants that can not be understood without the social model of disability.

Autistic ways of being are human neurological variants that can not be understood without the social model of disability.

If you are wondering whether you are Autistic, spend time amongst Autistic people, online and offline. If you notice you relate to these people much better than to others, if they make you feel safe, and if they understand you, you have arrived. A communal definition of Autistic ways of being

Autistic people / Autists must take ownership of the label in the same way that other minorities describe their experience and define their identity. Pathologisation of Autistic ways of being is a social power game that removes agency from Autistic people. Our suicide and mental health statistics are the result of discrimination and not a "feature" of being Autistic.
A communal definition of Autistic ways of being

All Autistic people experience the human social world significantly different from typical individuals. The difference in Autistic social cognition is best described in terms of a heightened level of conscious processing of raw information signals from the environment, and an absence or a significantly reduced level of subconscious filtering of social information.

Autistic children tend to take longer to learn how to decode non-verbal signals from the social world, in particular signals related to abstract cultural concepts related to the negotiation of social status.

Many Autistic people are also hyper- and/or hypo-sensitive to certain sensory inputs from the physical environment. This further complicates social communication in noisy and distracting environments. With respect to Autistic sensory sensitivity there are huge differences between Autists. Some Autists may be bothered or impaired by a broad range of different stimuli, whereas others are only impacted by very specific stimuli.

Individually unique cognitive Autistic lenses result in individually unique usage patterns of the human brain, and often in unique levels of expertise and creativity within specific domains of interest and in related Autistic inertia and perseverance.

Autistic inertia is similar to Newton's inertia, in that not only do Autistic people have difficulty starting things, but they also have difficulty in stopping things. Inertia can allow Autists to hyperfocus for long periods of time, but it also manifests as a feeling of paralysis and a severe loss of energy when needing to switch from one task to the next.

Autistic neurology shapes the human experience of the world across multiple social dimensions, including social motivations, social interactions, the way of developing trust, and the way of making friends.
A communal definition of Autistic ways of being

Every autistic person experiences autism differently, but there are some things that many of us have in common.

1. We think differently. We may have very strong interests in things other people don't understand or seem to care about. We might be great problem-solvers, or pay close attention to detail. It might take us longer to think about things. We might have trouble with executive functioning, like figuring out how to start and finish a task, moving on to a new task, or making decisions.
Routines are important for many autistic people. It can be hard for us to deal with surprises or unexpected changes. When we get overwhelmed, we might not be able to process our thoughts, feelings, and surroundings, which can make us lose control of our body.

2. We process our senses differently. We might be extra sensitive to things like bright lights or loud sounds. We might have trouble understanding what we hear or what our senses tell us. We might not notice if we are in pain or hungry. We might do the same movement over and over again. This is called "stimming," and it helps us regulate our senses. For example, we might rock back and forth, play with our hands, or hum.

3. We move differently. We might have trouble with fine motor skills or coordination. It can feel like our minds and bodies are disconnected. It can be hard for us to start or stop moving. Speech can be extra hard because it requires a lot of coordination. We might not be able to control how loud our voices are, or we might not be able to speak at all-even though we can understand what other people say.

4. We communicate differently. We might talk using echolalia (repeating things we have heard before), or by scripting out what we want to say. Some autistic people use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) to communicate. For example, we may communicate by typing on a computer, spelling on a letter board, or pointing to pictures on an iPad. Some people may also communicate with behavior or the way we act. Not every autistic person can talk, but we all have important things to say.

5. We socialize differently. Some of us might not understand or follow social rules that non-autistic people made up. We might be more direct than other people. Eye contact might make us uncomfortable. We might have a hard time controlling our body language or facial expressions, which can confuse non-autistic people or make it hard to socialize.
Some of us might not be able to guess how people feel. This doesn't mean we don't care how people feel! We just need people to tell us how they feel so we don't have to guess. Some autistic people are extra sensitive to other people's feelings.

6. We might need help with daily living. It can take a lot of energy to live in a society built for non-autistic people. We may not have the energy to do some things in our daily lives. Or, parts of being autistic can make doing those things too hard. We may need help with things like cooking, doing our jobs, or going out. We might be able to do things on our own sometimes, but need help other times. We might need to take more breaks so we can recover our energy.

Not every autistic person will relate to all of these things. There are lots of different ways to be autistic. That is okay!
About Autism - Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Autism + environment = outcome. Understanding the sensing and perceptual world of autistic people is central to understanding autism.

I have written elsewhere about what I refer to as 'the golden equation' - which is:
Autism + environment = outcome
What this means in an anxiety context is that it is the combination of the child and the environment that causes the outcome (anxiety), not 'just' being autistic in and of itself. This is both horribly depressing but also a positive. It's horribly depressing because it demonstrates just how wrong we are currently getting things, but positive in that there are all sorts of things we can do to change environmental situations to subsequently alleviate the anxiety.
Avoiding Anxiety in Autistic Children: A Guide for Autistic Wellbeing, Dr Luke Beardon

ADHD (Kinetic Cognitive Style) is not a damaged or defective nervous system. It is a nervous system that works well using its own set of rules.

ADHD or what I prefer to call Kinetic Cognitive Style (KCS) is another good example. (Nick Walker coined this alternative term.) The name ADHD implies that Kinetics like me have a deficit of attention, which could be the case as seen from a certain perspective. On the other hand, a better, more invariantly consistent perspective is that Kinetics distribute their attention differently. New research seems to point out that KCS was present at least as far back as the days in which humans lived in hunter-gatherer societies. In a sense, being a Kinetic in the days that humans were nomads would have been a great advantage. As hunters they would have noticed any changes in their surroundings more easily, and they would have been more active and ready for the hunt. In modern society it is seen as a disorder, but this again is more of a value judgment than a scientific fact.
Bias: From Normalization to Neurodiversity - Neurodivergencia Latina

First thing and this really is probably the most important thing that defines the syndrome is the cognitive component of ADHD: an interest-based nervous system.
So ADHD is a genetic neurological brain based difficulty with getting engaged as the situation demands.

People with ADHD are able to get engaged and have their performance, their mood, their energy level, determined by the momentary sense of four things:

Interest (Fascination)

Challenge or Competitiveness

Novelty (Creativity)

Urgency (Usually a deadline)

Defining Features of ADHD That Everyone Overlooks: RSD, Hyperarousal, More (w/ Dr. William Dodson)

The most important feature is that attention is not deficit, it is inconsistent.
"Look back over your entire life; if you have been able to get engaged and stay engaged with literally any task of your life, have you ever found something you couldn't do?"

A person with ADHD will answer, "No. If I can get started and stay in the flow, I can do anything.
Omnipotential People with ADHD are omnipotential. It's not an exaggeration, it's true. They really can do anything. Defining Features of ADHD That Everyone Overlooks: RSD, Hyperarousal, More (w/ Dr. William Dodson)

Performance is usually the only aspect that most people look for.

Boredom and lack of engagement is almost physically painful to people with an ADHD nervous system.

When bored, ADHDers are irritable, negativistic, tense,
argumentative, and have no energy to do anything.

ADDers will do almost anything to relieve this dysphoria. Self-medication. Stimulus seeking. "Pick a fight."

When engaged, ADHDers are instantly energetic, positive, and social.

This shifting of mood and energy is often misinterpreted as Bipolar Disorder.

Defining Features of ADHD That Everyone Overlooks: RSD, Hyperarousal, More (w/ Dr. William Dodson)

People who have ADHD nervous systems lead intense passionate lives. Their highs are higher, their lows are lower, all of their emotions are much more intense.

At all points in the life cycle, people who have an ADHD nervous system lead intense, passionate lives.

They feel more in every way than do Neurotypicals.

Consequently, everyone with ADHD but especially children are always at risk of being overwhelmed from within.
An ADHD Guide to Emotional Dysregulation and Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (w/ William Dodson, M.D.)

Rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD) is extreme emotional sensitivity and pain triggered by the perception that a person has been rejected or criticized by important people in their life. It may also be triggered by a sense of falling short-failing to meet their own high standards or others' expectations.
How ADHD Ignites Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria

We have a couple of theme songs for KCS/DREAD/ADHD in our community: Guided by Angels by Amyl and the Sniffers and Monkey Mind by The Bobby Lees.

Guided by angels
But they're not heavenly
They're on my body
And they guide me heavenly
The angels guide me heavenly, heavenly
Energy, good energy and bad energy
I've got plenty of energy
It's my currency
I spend, protect my energy, currency

Guided by Angels by Amyl and the Sniffers

Monkey Mind
It's just my monkey mind
Monkey Mind
It's just my

I take him out, and then I sit him down
I look him in the eye, and say no more
monkeying around
Now you look-y here, you gonna leave me
alone
Cause there's no room here for a little
monkey in my home

Monkey Mind
It's just my monkey mind
Monkey Mind
It's just my
That monkey mind, he likes to eat himself alive
Think he's done, and then he takes another bite
Now see, I gotta learn to be kind
To my monkey mind, cause he'll be with me till I die

Monkey Mind
It's just my monkey mind
Monkey just my

Monkey Mind by The Bobby Lees

Redefining Autism Science with Monotropism and the Double Empathy Problem

If we are right, then monotropism is one of the key ideas required for making sense of autism, along with the double empathy problem and neurodiversity. Monotropism makes sense of many autistic experiences at the individual level. The double empathy problem explains the misunderstandings that occur between people who process the world differently, often mistaken for a lack of empathy on the autistic side. Neurodiversity describes the place of autistic people and other ' neurominorities ' in society.
Monotropism - Welcome

Monotropism and the Double Empathy Problem are two of the biggest and most important things to happen to autism research. In the previous two issues of the Guide to the NeurodiVerse, " From an Ivory Tower Built on Sand to Open, Participatory, Emancipatory, Activist Research" and " Mental Health and Epistemic Justice ", we tackled some bad trends in autism science. Here, we celebrate two trends that get it right.

Monotropism is a theory of autism developed by autistic people, initially by Dinah Murray and Wenn Lawson.

Monotropic minds tend to have their attention pulled more strongly towards a smaller number of interests at any given time, leaving fewer resources for other processes. We argue that this can explain nearly all of the features commonly associated with autism, directly or indirectly. However, you do not need to accept it as a general theory of autism in order for it to be a useful description of common autistic experiences and how to work with them.
Welcome - Monotropism

These two videos, totaling less than 10 minutes, are wonderful ways to get in touch with modern autism science.

Understanding monotropism and the double empathy problem will help you get things right, instead of wrong, when interacting with autistic people.

If an autistic person is pulled out of monotropic flow too quickly, it causes our sensory systems to disregulate.

This in turn triggers us into emotional dysregulation, and we quickly find ourselves in a state ranging from uncomfortable, to grumpy, to angry, or even triggered into a meltdown or a shutdown.

This reaction is also often classed as challenging behavior when really it is an expression of distress caused by the behavior of those around us.

How you can get things wrong:

Not preparing for transition

Too many instructions

Speaking too quickly

Not allowing processing time

Using demanding language

Using rewards or punishments

Poor sensory environments

Poor communication environments

Making assumptions

A lack of insightful and informed staff reflection

An introduction to monotropism - YouTube

⛺️ We Are a NeurodiVenture

NeurodiVenture : an inclusive non- hierarchical organisation operated by neurodivergent people that provides a safe and nurturing environment for divergent thinking, creativity, exploration, and collaborative niche construction.
NeurodiVentures | Autistic Collaboration

We are a NeurodiVenture and a Teal organization running on:

We Run On

The NeurodiVenture Operating Model

We do it in a trauma and neurodiversity informed way using polyvagal theory and the neuroscience of community.

NeurodiVentures create safe spaces for groups of autistic and otherwise neurodivergent to share knowledge, to cultivate collective intelligence, and to offer their gifts to the world in the form of genuinely innovative and unique services.
The Beauty of Collaboration at Human Scale: Timeless patterns of human limitations

By definition, the main purpose of existence of a NeurodiVenture is the creation of a psychologically safe and egalitarian communal space for neurodivergent people.
The Beauty of Collaboration at Human Scale: Timeless patterns of human limitations

What does that mean?

In other words...

One Idea Per Line

NeurodiVenture is an organization run by neurodivergent people.

It provides a safe and nurturing environment for divergent thinking, creativity, exploration, and collaborative niche construction.

It is inclusive and non-hierarchical.

It operates on principles such as the advice process, psychological safety, self-determination theory, the prosocial framework, mutual trust, collaborative niche construction, open source, restorative practices, and transformative justice.

It is trauma and neurodiversity informed, using polyvagal theory and the neuroscience of community.

NeurodiVentures create safe spaces for groups of autistic and neurodivergent individuals.

These spaces allow for sharing knowledge, cultivating collective intelligence, and offering unique and innovative services to the world.

One Paragraph Summary
NeurodiVenture is an organization that is run by neurodivergent people. It aims to create a safe and supportive environment for different ways of thinking, creativity, exploration, and working together on specific interests. They use various methods and theories, such as the advice process, psychological safety, self-determination theory, prosocial framework, mutual trust, collaborative niche construction, open source, restorative practices, transformative justice, trauma-informed approaches, and neurodiversity-informed approaches. The goal is to provide a space where autistic and other neurodivergent individuals can come together, share knowledge, and use their unique skills and talents to create innovative and valuable services for the world.
Extended Summary
NeurodiVenture is an organization that is operated by neurodivergent individuals and aims to create a safe and nurturing environment for divergent thinking, creativity, exploration, and collaborative niche construction. It is an inclusive organization that values the contributions and perspectives of neurodivergent people.

The organization follows the principles of Teal organizations, which emphasize self-management and distributed decision-making. They use the advice process, where decisions are made by seeking advice from those who will be affected by the decision, rather than relying on a hierarchical structure.

Psychological safety is a key aspect of NeurodiVenture, ensuring that individuals feel safe to express themselves and share their ideas without fear of judgment or criticism. This fosters an environment that encourages open communication and collaboration.

The organization also follows the principles of self-determination theory, which focuses on supporting individuals' autonomy, competence, and relatedness. This means that individuals have the freedom to make choices, develop their skills, and build meaningful relationships within the organization.

NeurodiVenture operates within the prosocial framework, which promotes behaviors that benefit others and society as a whole. This framework encourages cooperation, empathy, and compassion among members of the organization.

Mutual trust is another important aspect of NeurodiVenture. Trust is built through open and honest communication, reliability, and respect for each other's perspectives and contributions.

Collaborative niche construction is a concept that involves creating and shaping environments that align with the unique strengths and abilities of neurodivergent individuals. This allows them to contribute their innovative and unique services to the world.

The organization also embraces open source principles, which means that knowledge, information, and resources are shared openly and freely. This fosters a culture of collaboration and continuous learning.

Restorative practices and transformative justice are approaches used by NeurodiVenture to address conflicts and restore relationships within the organization. These approaches focus on repairing harm, building understanding, and promoting healing.

NeurodiVenture takes a trauma-informed and neurodiversity-informed approach, recognizing and accommodating the unique needs and experiences of individuals who have experienced trauma or who are neurodivergent. This ensures that the organization is sensitive to their needs and provides a supportive environment.

Polyvagal theory and the neuroscience of community are used to understand and support the social and emotional well-being of individuals within NeurodiVenture. These theories provide insights into how the nervous system responds to social interactions and how to create environments that promote connection and belonging.

Overall, NeurodiVenture is a collaborative and inclusive organization that values the contributions of neurodivergent individuals. It provides a safe and nurturing environment for them to share their knowledge, cultivate collective intelligence, and offer innovative and unique services to the world.

AI Disclosure: The summaries above were created with the help of Elephas AI Assistant.

We're co-creating Autistic collaboration at human scale.

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🌈♿️ Mutual Aid and Human-Centered Learning for Neurodivergent and Disabled People

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Real Help Against the OnslaughtWe exist for the direct support and mutual aid of neurodivergent and disabled people. We, Stimpunks 🧭 Our Mission: Real Help Against the Onslaught Stimpunks is created by and for neurodivergent and disabled people. We provide mutual aid, creator grants, learning opportunities, human-centered research, and living wages for our community.

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A weekly online co-working and socializing space by and for all Disabled people

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CripCreate, A weekly online co-working space by and for all Deaf and Disabled people. This is a Disability Justice-centered co-working space for all Disabled (sick, Disabled, Mad/mentally ill, Deaf, Hard of Hearing, low vision/blind, neurodiverse, or otherwise chronically ill) people.

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 San Francisco Disability Cultural Center 

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 San Francisco Disability Cultural Center 

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The San Francisco Disability Cultural Center is a virtual and in-person gathering space for disability communities and our people.

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Disability Cultural Center – San Francisco

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The San Francisco Disability Cultural Center is a hybrid gathering space for disability communities in the Bay Area and beyond. Disability is different for everyone and so is disability culture. At the DCC, it’s coming together as whole, beautiful people and showing real care for ourselves and each other. We are all co-creating culture as we live, thrive, and fight for a better world.

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Mouthwater has been a collaborative space for the Disabled dancers to share their parallel and overlapping interests in theater, dance and erotic ritual. With grant support from the Mellon Foundation and fiscal sponsorship from Velocity Dance Center, Mouthwater will be launching our disabled arts festival in Seattle, WA on September 23 to October 13, 2024.

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Mouthwater has been a collaborative space for the Disabled dancers to share their parallel and overlapping interests in theater, dance and erotic ritual. With grant support from the Mellon Foundation and fiscal sponsorship from Velocity Dance Center, Mouthwater will be launching our disabled arts festival in Seattle, WA on September 23 to October 13, 2024.

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Disability Justice Culture Club (DJCC) is a
collective of disabled and/or
neurodivergent QTBIPOC rooted in
Disability Justice, cultivating joyful
resistance and interdependent community
in East Oakland to center, uplift, and
empower our people through shared
resources, relationships, and liberatory
spaces where no body-mind is left behind.

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a collective of disabled QTBIPOC rooted in Disability Justice cultivating joyful resistance based in Oakland, CA.

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A 24/7 virtual community center for BIPOC folks practicing pandemic safety.

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A 24/7 Drop-In Gather Town space for COVIDing BIPOC folks