Celebrating Five Years, with Global Autism Community

Discover what’s possible when what you have to say matters. Would you like to share your experiences with like-minded people who can relate to the same struggles? Are you looking for an easy way to form friendships and not feel isolated? If so, you’ll want to listen to this episode, where members of our Global Autism Community talk about how being part of our online space has helped them feel support, connection, and a sense of belonging. This week we are celebrating the 5-year anniversary of this podcast, as well as the 4-year anniversary of our online Global Autism Community!  It’s been an eye-opening journey that continues to surprise, inspire, and move us. We’ve learned so much from self-advocates sharing their experiences, family members talking about acceptance, and professionals discussing best practices in the field of autism services.  We’ve covered a wide range of topics, such as ableism, bullying, masking, the neurodiversity movement, intersectionality, disability rights, dating, communication, personal growth, cultural humility, and international collaboration, and even controversial topics like person-first vs. identity-first language, the puzzle-piece symbol, and ABA therapy. Five years after launching Autism Knows No Borders, we are more energized than ever to keep going. There are still countless meaningful stories out there, and we want to bring them to you. We will continue to elevate autistic voices. We want their stories to keep traveling across the world, so that more and more people can join us in the cause for autism awareness, acceptance, and hope. A huge thank you to all of our guests for educating us with their unique perspectives, as well as to our team members who keep making this podcast happen: our visual creator, social media manager, and community moderator, Danielle Terrell; our administrative associate, Aldjun Medenilla; and our sound designer and editor, Marc Aliana. And, of course, many thanks to you, our dedicated listeners, for tuning in each week, sharing your takeaways, and ultimately giving meaning to what we’re doing.  If you’re a new listener, we’d like to welcome you as well!  Our online Global Autism Community has been growing over the past few years. This is a space where members have the possibility to share insights, listen to different perspectives, and create real change in their own communities – whether they’re autistic individuals, family members, or service providers.  Special shout out to our community moderators, Danielle Terrell, Hattie-Angelys Fox, Adrian Sanchez, and Bob Schmus. Our moderators monitor posts daily to ensure that our online space remains safe and respectful. If you’re interested in joining our moderator team, you can send me a direct message in the community.  Last week, some members of our community got together virtually to celebrate our anniversary and reflect on the podcast’s impact over the years. Today you’ll hear an excerpt from that special event, featuring our CEO Molly Pinney and Autistic Self-Advocates Hattie-Angelys Fox, Amira Collantes, Adrian Sanchez, Mary Johnston, and Corben Havener. ----more---- Are you a self-advocate willing to share your story and educate others? Or a professional seeking to hear directly from autistic voices and improve your practice? Or maybe you’re a family member hoping to support and empower your loved one?  Whatever your connection to autism is, we’d love to hear your takeaways from this episode in our online Global Autism Community, where hundreds of people from all over the world come together to support each other and know that they’re not alone. Join us today at community.globalautismproject.org. Let’s work together to transform how the world relates to autism.  ----more---- We appreciate your time. If you enjoy this podcast and you’d like to support our mission, please take just a few seconds to share it with one person who you think will find value in it too. Follow us on Instagram: @autismpodcast Join our community on Mighty Networks: Global Autism Community Subscribe to our YouTube channel: Global Autism Project We would love to hear your feedback about the show. Please fill out this short survey to let us know your thoughts: Listener Survey