Nicole Lee

Four must-see events at the Melbourne Writers Festival that will leave you inspired See talks from Ziggy Ramo and Rosie Batty.

This Friday, on International Women's Day, I will be speaking on a panel brought to you by The Australian Neurodivergent Parents Association (ANPA). The panel will be hosted by the wonderful Annie Crowe - NeuroAccess and will include a number of other speakers, including Sarah Langston, President of ANPA.

Join us for an online event where a panel of Neurodivergent parents share their experiences and insights on breaking down ableism.

DATE: Friday 8 March 2024 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM AEDT

LOCATION: Online event

Book now at: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1191415?fbclid=IwAR1cycprae_rCUA6Gek4Le2josEYVfACkx2VnVuAoe7mPpdsYcPdOuN3CP4_aem_AXaG40tqwSicmEHBGYl8m9UR1e5epqEjDyXtWuFziB7ql0SGGOnrM3A4Wly3XpxfsGs



[Image: Yellow pink and grey background with sillhouettes of two adults and a child and three images showing photos of panel speakers with titles: 'Annie Crowe. CEO, NeuroAccess, ANPA Patron.' 'Sarah Langston. President, ANPA' and 'Heidi La Paglia.' Image text reads: ‘Speaking up. Neurodivergent parents discuss dismantling ableism. International Women’s Day. 8 March 2024 11:30AM via Zoom.’ In the bottom right hand corner is the ANPA logo and in the bottom left are four f**s: the LGBTIQA+ flag, the Aboriginal flag, the Torres Strait Islander flag and the Australian flag. In the top right hand corner is an image of brain neurons with text ‘proudly sponsored by NeuroAccess’].

Huge congratulations Carly Myers. It’s amazing to see so many disabled women recognised for all the work they do 💜

OAM recipient won't 'ever stop' advocating for women with disabilities | Melton & Moorabool Carly-Anne Myers is a Ballan woman who has almost a quarter-century’s worth of experience in the not-for-profit sector, and on …

As of today, I resign from both my position as President and Board Director of People with Disability Australia (PWDA). This has not been an easy decision.

I do this with a heavy heart. However, my time with PWDA has come to an unfortunate conclusion. Everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who believed in me by electing me to represent you. It’s been an amazing honour to serve everyone and I’m leaving feeling proud of all that we have achieved together.

I’m especially honoured to have been able to support the community through the release of the Disability Royal Commission report, and the NDIS review report being released publicly, and being able to stand proud alongside my respected sector colleagues during these watershed moments. I want to thank many strong and determined disability advocates who I am proud to have worked alongside for your support especially during the heavy press conferences; Inclusion Australia, Disability Advocacy Network Australia, First People Disability Network, Women with Disabilities Australia, National Ethnic Disability Alliance Children and Young People with Disability Australia. I also cannot forget the countless state-based disability advocates and organisations who have offered and shared with me their valuable time and support.

During the past 14 months, we came together as a collaborative sector showing a sign of strength, and something we should all be proud of. Making my decision today and writing this is hard.

Then to all the disability advocates and community members that have supported me over the past 14 months behind the scenes; your counsel and support has been invaluable.

I have to ask myself whether the public is best served by staying and trying to change things or by leaving. Sometimes you can have a greater impact in holding power to account from the outside.

I also want to thank the entire PWDA board and staff for their friendship, companionship, and tireless support over what has been an intense year for the entire disabled community. I have valued every second of my time serving the community, and while I may be stepping down from my current position, I will continue to advocate passionately for the rights of all people with disabilities.

I know I will continue to be involved in the Australian disability sector, in whatever role or task I take on next.

Thank you all again, regards Nicole Lee
(PWDA President 2022 to January 2024)

PWDA has provided comment on the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) Review on and Telehealth Draft Report.

In line with our COVID-19 Position Statement, we note that for some people with disability, telehealth is critical to avoiding COVID-19 infection and the recommendations need to reflect this. We call for telehealth recommendations to strike the correct balance between access, quality and safety of medical care.

Read our letter to the Medicare Benefits Schedule Review Advisory Committee: https://pwd.org.au/response-to-the-medicare-telehealth-draft-report/

Image: person wearing a headset and sitting in a wheelchair using a computer

Join PWDA at the 46th Sydney Gay and Le***an Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday 2 March 2024.

We’ll be out, loud and proud celebrating pride in our diverse disability community.

Expressions of interest are now open. Apply now to be one of the 80 people marching with us. Priority will be given to PWDA members and people with disability who are LGBTQIA+: https://pwd.org.au/be-in-the-2024-sydney-mardi-gras-parade/

Image: Group photo of PWDA marchers from the 2023 Sydney Mardi Gras Parade, mostly wearing red

Our Final Report: A guide for people with disability and their families 2023 This is a guide to our Final Report on the review of the NDIS. In this guide you will find information on the topics from our Final Report that you told us matter most to you.

People with Disability Australia (PWDA) welcomes additional funding and steps to address gaps in support for people with disability outlined in today’s Independent NDIS Review report.

“This report acknowledges what disabled people have known and experienced our entire lives – that support for us outside the NDIS is sorely lacking and must be improved. We know the NDIS has done some heavy and much-needed lifting, but even with the Scheme people have struggled to access the supports they need to live free and equal lives and participate fully in the community,” PWDA President Nicole Lee said.

Read our full release: https://pwd.org.au/pwda-responds-to-the-ndis-review-more-supports-for-people-with-disability-welcome/

Image: Nicole Lee, President at People with Disability Australia speaks to media after the public release of the NDIS Review Report. Behind Nicole are, from left to right: Catherine McAlpine, Inclusion Australia; Skye Kakoschke-Moore, Children and Young People with Disability Australia; Kelly Cox, First Peoples Disability Network; Jeff Smith, Disability Advocacy Network Australia - DANA; Dwayne Cranfield, National Ethnic Disability Alliance and Carolyn Hodge, PWDA.

Happening tonight

Be part of this joint PWDA and Advocacy for Inclusion - Incorporating People With Disabilities ACT Members ‘Year in Review’ Forum: In Conversation with Dr Rhonda Galbally AC and Craig Wallace, Head of Policy, Advocacy for Inclusion on Thursday 7 December at 6:00 pm AEDT.

Along with other people with disability, let's share, debate and discuss important disability rights issues past, present and future with these seasoned and respected disability advocates.

Register now! https://pwd.org.au/year-in-review-forum/

It’s International Day of People With Disability and 2023 has been a year that has tested all of us with disability.

I call on the disability community to steadfastly maintain our right to full independence in a society where we continue to face barriers and restraints on our full participation on equal footing with our peers without disability.

This IDPWD, we challenge the broader community to accept all of us, respect us, and commit to upholding our human rights and remove the barriers that prevent us from living free and equal lives.

From our People with Disability Australia co-vice President Marayke Jonkers “4.4 million Australians live with disability,” said Ms Jonkers, “yet 45% of us live on or below the poverty line, with lower employment rates compared with others in the community. Our society is fundamentally physically, technologically and attitudinally inaccessible,”.

“The phrase ‘Nothing About Us Without Us’ originated within the disability rights sector in the 1990s by people with disability,” she said. “It remains the clarion call of disability activists worldwide. Today more than ever we need to remind ourselves, our communities, policymakers and governments that people with disability and our representative organisations must be the architects of change with a seat at the table where our voices are heard at every step of the journey towards full inclusion and equality,”.

Until we have a fair, safe and just society, where ALL disabled people are equal, and our rights under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) are upheld, this day will continue to symbolise to us that we will continue to unapologetically advocate that our rights be elevated, respected and affirmed. That the CRPD is not an “aspirational” idea, but rather a non-negotiable standpoint. From the day the CRPD was adopted by the United Nations in 2006, to today, and everyday moving forward.

That IDPWD is a day of both pride and defiance in the face of others pushing us down, and saying we can’t. Don’t sit back and watch us defy the odds, help us break the odds down. Enshrine our rights in law, and build a future where disabled children can grow up equal to their peers.

Claiming our rights this IDPWD - People with Disability Australia Sunday 3 December 2023 On this International Day of People with Disability (IDPWD), People with Disability Australia (PWDA), reflects on another year of advocating for the rights of all people with disability to live in a future that is fully inclusive where the human rights of people with disabilit...

Be part of this joint People with Disability Australia (PWDA) and Advocacy for Inclusion - Incorporating People With Disabilities ACT Members ‘Year in Review’ Forum: In Conversation with Dr Rhonda Galbally AC and Craig Wallace, Head of Policy, Advocacy for Inclusion on Thursday 7 December at 6.00 pm AEDT. https://pwd.org.au/year-in-review-forum/

Along with other people with disability, let's share, debate and discuss important disability rights issues past, present and future with these seasoned and respected disability advocates.

Register now! https://pwd.org.au/year-in-review-forum/

Be part of this joint PWDA and Advocacy for Inclusion - Incorporating People With Disabilities ACT Members' ‘Year in Review’ Forum: In Conversation with Dr Rhonda Galbally AC and Craig Wallace, Head of Policy, Advocacy for Inclusion on Thursday 7 December at 6:00 pm AEDT.

Along with other people with disability, let's share, debate and discuss important disability rights issues past, present and future with these seasoned and respected disability advocates.

Register now! https://pwd.org.au/year-in-review-forum/

Nicole Lee Marayke Jonkers

Jane Britt is a Senior Policy Officer with PWDA working from Yuggera Country. In this article, written for DisabilityPrideAustralia, Jane shares what she wants you to know about deafblindness: https://disabilityprideaustralia.org/what-i-want-people-to-know-about-deafblindness/

Image description: Headshot of Jane Britt wearing a red scarf

Disability Royal Commission report calls for urgent change to end segregation and abuse After four-and-a-half years of testimonies, submissions and public hearings, the Disability Royal Commission has made 222 recommendations for change.

Disability royal commission hands down final report with 222 recommendations for change After an inquiry lasting four-and-a-half-years, the royal commission makes 222 recommendations for change and says "social transformation" is needed to improve the lives of people with disability.

After years of 'harrowing' evidence, the disability royal commission wants these changes After four-and-a-half years of horrific evidence, Australia's biggest-ever investigation into the treatment of people with disability has dropped its final report. Here are the main takeaways.

'Systemic failure': Disability advocates urge end to violence, abuse and exploitation On Friday, the findings and recommendations of the Disability Royal Commission will be made public. This is what it means to the people involved.

Media Release: PWDA is calling for a radical response to end the segregation and discrimination of people with disability ahead of the release of the Disability Royal Commission’s final report later this month.

PWDA President Nicole Lee said:
“The Disability Royal Commission has laid bare our everyday reality of exclusion from the community and the harm this causes. This segregation is not just a form of discrimination, it is a breeding ground for the violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation inflicted on us as disabled people.

“Our segregation is perpetuated by Australia’s laws, policies and frameworks. For too long we’ve been sidelined, and our human rights have been violated; a radical overhaul is needed.”

Read the full release on our website: https://pwd.org.au/pwda-calls-for-a-radical-response-to-end-segregation-and-discrimination/

[ID blue decorative tile with the words media Release in the centre]

People with Disability Australia (PWDA) Calls for a Radical Response to End Segregation People with Disability Australia (PWDA), the country’s peak disability rights and advocacy organisation, is calling for urgent Government action to end the s...

Following today’s Ceremonial Closing Sitting of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability, PWDA President Nicole Lee spoke with Ten News about the need for urgent and bold action to end segregation.

“We gave this evidence with the hope of creating a future for the next generation of disabled people to live a life that is free from violence; to live a life that is free from segregation; where they can go to school alongside their peers; that they can get an education; and that they can go on to engage in open employment alongside everybody else – just like everybody else takes for granted in this community.”

“There’s a lot hanging on the report and there's also a lot hanging on the government's response to the report on the other side of it,” Ms Lee said

ID: PWDA President Nicole Lee

“Our segregation is perpetuated by Australia’s laws, policies and frameworks. For too long we’ve been sidelined, and our human rights have been violated; a radical overhaul is needed,”

https://pwd.org.au/pwda-calls-for-a-radical-response-to-end-segregation-and-discrimination/

Disability Royal Commission

PWDA Calls for a Radical Response to End Segregation and Discrimination - People with Disability Australia As the Disability Royal Commission prepares to issue its final report and recommendations, PWDA is calling for a swift and decisive response from Governments.

Jerusha has some bad experiences on dating apps — now she's trying to change people's attitudes As a study reveals that non-disabled people are reluctant to date people with a disability, these women say they just want to be seen for who they are.