Neurodiversity Episodes

June 10, 2024

Living with cerebral palsy and learning disabilities – with Aashna Pa…

Aashna Parikh is a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) consultant and inclusive marketing specialist based in India. Living with cerebral palsy and learning disabilities, she has consulted and collaborated with Forbes-listed and Fortune 500...

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May 27, 2024

Working in tech as a Black autistic woman – with Martina Kuzenski

Martina Kuzenski is a late-diagnosed autistic woman who received her autism diagnosis at age 28 near the end of her Master’s degree program. She is an IT Specialist for the U.S. federal government. She shares her experiences as a Black autistic...

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May 13, 2024

Hiring people with Down syndrome - with Joshua Hoskins

Joshua Hoskins is a 25 year old man with Down syndrome who lives in Tamworth, England with his parents. He loves his family and friends, and his hobbies are horse riding, boxing, musicals, supporting Newcastle United Football team, going out on trips...

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April 29, 2024

Finding acceptance as an autistic biracial gay woman – with Grace Liu

Grace Liu is an autistic author, blogger, speaker and pet portrait artist based in the Midlands of England. Grace's book, “Approaching Autistic Adulthood: The Road Less Travelled,” was published in October 2021. She blogs about autism,...

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April 15, 2024

Autistic burnout and career change – with Shayonee Dasgupta

Content note: This episode mentions thoughts about suicide and self harm. Shayonee Dasgupta is a Mumbai-based freelance writer and editor who initially pursued a career in law, working with corporate law firms in India. She found out she's autistic and has ADHD in her 30s, prompting a transformativ…

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April 1, 2024

Art, neurodivergence and self-discovery – with Nick Heaney

Nick Heaney is a resident artist and co-founder of Artnova Gallery in Chatham, Massachusetts. Nick has always found art to be his most authentic way of connecting with the world around him. He was diagnosed with dyslexia during elementary school. He...

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March 18, 2024

Down syndrome, leadership & advocacy – with David Egan

David Egan is a leader and advocate who promotes the causes of people with disabilities. He is the first person with Down Syndrome to serve as a Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Public Policy fellow on Capitol Hill and with the National Down Syndrome Society...

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March 4, 2024

Neurodiversity affirming community – with Katie York

Katie York (aka The Distracted Autistic) is a late-diagnosed Autistic who also has ADHD. They are currently program coordinator at the Community College of Baltimore County in Baltimore, Maryland. Katie is also an advocate and community organizer. In...

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Feb. 19, 2024

Supporting the Hispanic Tourette's community - with Claudia Scott

Born and raised in Costa Rica, Claudia Scott was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome in her early teens. Now she lives in the U.S., where she is the Capital Access Manager for Kiva Northwest Arkansas (NWA) at Startup Junkie and an advocate for Tourette's...

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Feb. 5, 2024

How to support employees with invisible disabilities - with Jenn Grin…

Jenn Grindeland has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership. She is also a multiple brain injury survivor. With this background, she teaches leadership skills designed to support equity and inclusion...

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Jan. 22, 2024

Ending epilepsy stigma through filmmaking – with Under the Lights dir…

Miles Levin is a filmmaker and public speaker living with epilepsy. His short film “Under the Lights” starring Pearce Joza and Alyssa Jirrels has become a beacon for epilepsy representation in movies...

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Jan. 8, 2024

Swarit Gopalan – Nonspeaking autistic writer and poet

Swarit Gopalan is a 12-year old autistic nonspeaker who uses a letterboard to spell and a keyboard to type to communicate. He lives with his family in Florida and goes to Invictus Academy for school. Swarit is a talented writer and poet who shares his...

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Nov. 27, 2023

Neurodivergent stories from India - with Aditi Gangrade

Aditi Gangrade is a film director and writer based in India. She is autistic and has ADHD and PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder). She is the co-founder of Much Much Spectrum, an inclusive storytelling content and insights wing of Much Much Media,...

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Nov. 13, 2023

Neurodivergent personal trainer & weightlifting champion Bayley Garnh…

Bayley Garnham is a personal trainer from Auckland, New Zealand. As a teenager, Bayley spent 7 years competing in Olympic Weightlifting at a national level. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Sport and Recreation, with a major in Sport and Exercise...

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Oct. 30, 2023

Neurodivergence and gender identity – with Charlie Ocean

Charlie Ocean is an award-winning LGBTQ+ speaker, trainer, and consultant who is neuroqueer and nonbinary. They have a background in social work and over 15 years of experience with LGBTQ+ community organizing. To date, they've trained thousands of...

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Oct. 16, 2023

Creating an inclusive world through dance – with Marisa Hamamoto

Marisa Hamamoto is the first professional dancer to be named as one of People Magazine’s "Women Changing the World." Her award-winning nonprofit and professional dance company, Infinite Flow, employs disabled and nondisabled artists with a mission to foster inclusion. Marisa is also a stroke surviv…

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Oct. 2, 2023

Tourette Syndrome advocacy – with Jhonelle Bean

Jhonelle Bean is a 28-year-old disability advocate living with Tourette Syndrome and PTSD. Jhonelle shares her experience with Tourette Syndrome through social media to educate others and help destigmatize the condition, especially within communities...

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Sept. 18, 2023

Autistic and dyspraxic actor Ross K. Foad

Ross K. Foad is a professional actor and voice artist in the United Kingdom. A second generation actor, he was just 18 months old when he made his acting debut, but would get his proper start in acting on the London comedy circuit as a stand up comic...

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Sept. 4, 2023

Dissociative Identity Disorder - Amber Louise Ainsworth

Amber Louise Ainsworth is a dissociative identity disorder (DID) system from the UK. Since realizing they are a DID system at age 38, they’ve been working through their healing...

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Aug. 21, 2023

Trans and autistic inclusion at work – with Nate Shalev

Nate Shalev is a leading expert and advisor on inclusivity helping to create workplace cultures where both businesses and people thrive. They were named a LinkedIn Top Voice and have been highlighted in the Harvard Business Review, the New York Times,...

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Aug. 7, 2023

Autistic music therapist and singer Swara Swami

As a young autistic girl, Swara Swami could sing before she could speak. Now Swara is a music therapist and singer who advocates for mental health and autism awareness on her social media. Swara has her Bachelors in Music Therapy from Berklee College...

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July 24, 2023

The Autism-Friendly Cookbook - with Lydia Wilkins

Lydia Wilkins is a freelance journalist and author based in the UK who covers disability and social issues. Her work has appeared in publications such as The Metro, The Independent, Refinery 29, The Daily Mail and PosAbility Magazine. She writes a...

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July 10, 2023

Dyscalculia education and advocacy – with Elena Chambers

Elena Chambers is a disability advocate, writer, poet and photographer. On her blog, , she writes about disability in a social context, societal-level ableism, and her personal experience of growing up with a learning disability. She also posts on...

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June 26, 2023

Autism in Black – with Maria Davis-Pierre

Maria Davis-Pierre is a licensed mental health counselor, autism awareness advocate and founder of the organization Autism in Black. As the parent of two autistic children, and being autistic herself, she uses her professional expertise to connect...

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