Dec. 27, 2024

CMCL Interview: Dr. Lucy Reynolds

Julie meets with Dr. Lucy Reynolds, the Managing Director of We Are All Disabled, to discuss the Affirmative Model of Disability. Dr. Lucy shares her efforts to change societal perceptions of disability through her PhD research and personal experiences. She also shares some exciting personal news contributing to her community and mission.

Dr. Lucy Reynolds is a public speaker, consultant, academic researcher, writer/blogger, and advocate for disability rights.

She is passionate about challenging common perceptions of disability by sharing the insights and knowledge she has gained from her PhD research and first-hand experiences as a disabled person.

She works with businesses and organizations in all areas of diversity and inclusion, which aligns with her aim to promote an Affirmative approach and normalize disability as part of the human experience.

She is the Founder and Managing Director of We Are All Disabled, a Community Interest Company that inspires people to think differently about disability through challenging perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors in a safe and supportive way. Dr. Lucy is open to engaging with people in the corporate world and other sectors about her work and the Disruptor Programme offered by We are All Disabled. 

To discuss speaking and training requirements, please contact Lucy@wearealldisabled.org.

Transcript

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All right.

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Welcome to the last episode of 2024

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of Changing Minds

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and Changing Lives podcast.

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My name is Julie Sowash.

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I am the Executive Director

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and one of the co-founders

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of Disability Solutions.

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And just kind of thinking about

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wrapping up 2024 and looking into 2025.

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We have had so many awesome conversations

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in 2024,

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and people

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I never would have imagined to meet,

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never would have been engaged with

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if it wasn't for this podcast

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and the opportunity to meet new people.

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So as we're planning 2025

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and the conversations we want to have,

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we would love to hear from you,

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our listeners or viewers and friends.

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What are some topics or guests

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you want to hear from and about in 2025?

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You know

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what amazes me about the

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the world of disability is it's so big.

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There's so many of us,

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and there

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are so many people in our community

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that are just doing incredible work,

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that there's no way for me to know

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all of the work that's happening.

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And I know that you all know

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so many people in our community,

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and we would love to know

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the ones that you're most interested in

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so we can meet them,

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get them scheduled to

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have amazing conversation

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with conversations

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with us about changing minds

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and changing lives in 2025.

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So you guys know where to find me.

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LinkedIn, email,

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DisabilityTalent.org.

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Give us some,

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give us some guest names,

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but as we wrap up 2024,

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I get the honor of having

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another great guest

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that I never would have had

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the, the opportunity to meet

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if it wasn't for this podcast.

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So let's introduce

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Doctor Lucy Reynolds, who is the founder

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and managing director of

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We Are All Disabled.

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Doctor Reynolds, welcome to the show.

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Thank you. Hi there, Julie. 

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We are so excited to have you.

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I was just saying

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before we started recording,

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I've been spending

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a little time on your website

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and it's just so well done.

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And I love the quotes that are on it

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and the way that you kind of set

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everything up on We Are All Disabled,

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but before we get into that,

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tell me about Doctor Lucy Reynolds.

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I'm Doctor 

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Lucy Reynolds

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I’m a

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social entrepreneur,

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public speaker,

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advocate for disability rights,

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founder and managing director of We Are All Disabled

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And I’m chair 

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of a charity, Disability North

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Um,

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I’ve had cerebral palsy 

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all my life, just like the colour of my eyes,

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and my love of dogs,

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it is an intrinsic part  

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of who I am.

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I did a PhD in the perceptions

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 of disability.

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I really wanted to get 

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myself out there

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as a public speaker, to change the narrative around disability

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I think

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I wanted to,

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my mission and my passion

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is to challenge  

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and change perceptions

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of disability.

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Amazing. Amazing.

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And so your

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Let let me see this a different way.

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So your PhD research was inspired

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by how people perceive disability?

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Well, it was inspired by 

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my own lived experience with disability,

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both positive and negative,

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we want to get the,

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we want to do this research into why

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people perceive disability in the way,

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in the way that they do,

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and the way that they do.

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Because, yeah, I think as a disabled person

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people see, people think 

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that because I have cerebral palsy 

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It's very, it's very visible.

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I have involuntary movements, I use 

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the wheelchair, as you can see,

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as you can hear , my speech is impacted

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And I really wanted to 

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understand people’s

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biases,

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and unintentional biases around

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the way that people think 

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about a disability, so

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I had to just research into it,

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what I came up with...

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I used a tool called the affirmative model of disability.

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Now, you sure

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you must have all heard

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of the social model

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around disability, in that it allows 

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reasonable adjustments and access 

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and attitudinal 

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barriers, and physical barriers

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but the Affirmative model of disability

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is somewhat different

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It’s a non-tragic 

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view of disability,

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and it embraces 

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the positives 

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in disability.

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and its thinking well... 

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And

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it’s changing the narrative

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around it and look at seeing disability 

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as a positive thing

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both collectively and individually.

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So this is it.

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And I was

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I was reading this on your website.

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So, you know, we we talk a lot about,

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you know, there's

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the medical model of disability,

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there's the social model of disability.

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We then for some work we did

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last year, talked about the

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bio psychosocial model of disability.

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And so there's so many ways of,

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of talking about it.

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But what I love with what you've,

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what you're speaking of

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is the affirmative model.

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And.

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Yeah.

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And, and I think we've talked about it

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that way when we're just chatting.

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But to like sort of put a, a

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nomenclature around it

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that this is an affirmative model,

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that you are not broken,

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that this is intrinsic to who you are.

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And having people with disabilities in

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our world is a positive thing,

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is a positive things, we should all see it

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We should all

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we should all be proud of it

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it’s about closing the binary divide

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between disabled people and non-disabled people

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1 in 4 people are disabled. 

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We are all going to experience disability

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at some point in our lives,

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whether that's direct or indirect,

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so let's embrace it.

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and

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you know,  the idea

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I set up the blog

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because in 2020

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when I wanted to go out there as a public speaker, 

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it was like, Covid happened.

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And of course, 

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everything was canceled,

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all of my speaking engagements

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So the blog 

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We Are All Disabled, so the title 

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We Are All Disabled, came about for the blog 

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because

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 what a better time to say that we are 

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marginalized 

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 by society in some way, and for me

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that gave people more empathy and more understanding 

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of what it could be like to be disabled

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and we can be disabled by all kinds of 

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physical impairments, learning, 

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you know, mental health 

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you know, my colleague that I work with,

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she has anxiety, you know some days

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Its harder for her 

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to get out of the house,

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you know, 

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and that she's, that is disability.

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and it is

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just really interesting to look at it that way

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Yeah.

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And I could I couldn't agree more.

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We,

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we really saw during the pandemic

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people who don't have disabilities

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that prevent them

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from being out of the house

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and doing things.

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Everyone learned what it was like

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to lose control

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of some of the environment around you.

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Yeah, we wanted to go out.

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We wanted to do things,

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but the environment was not built

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for us to

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to do so during Covid and, and for me

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and the companies and,

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and the people that we work with,

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that opened up conversations

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that I don't know

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that we ever would have had,

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you know, with, with the abled community

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if it wasn't for the pandemic

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and what happened with

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our ability to move around.

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Yeah.

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Exactly.

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So, you know, I think, it just gave people 

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a different way

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to think about how we’re all living through that time. 

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Yeah.

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And I, I also appreciate you

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you calling out the,

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the mental health side

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mental health disabilities.

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Because again those are

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then the even in our own community

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a lot of times

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mental health disabilities get dismissed.

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And for you to talk about them

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inclusively is very meaningful to me.

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And then

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they’re non-visible and people

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don’t see it 

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And

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for people who don’t see how people are feeling

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on a daily basis

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so...

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So, and I think because the blog was so well received,

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we set up We Are All Disabled

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as a CIC — community interest company in 2021.

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and we where looking,

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we have what we call a

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Disruptor Workshops 

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Which explores perceptions, attitudes,

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behaviors, and disruptive 

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narrative around disability to create real 

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positive change. 

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Yes.

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And these workshops are great. 

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We do it in a safe and supportive space where 

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people can speak their truth 

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and get comfortable with being uncomfortable. 

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And the conversations that, 

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that all 

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because

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I present my findings from research.

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I always,

279
00:11:34,978 --> 00:11:36,967
I also talk about my own

280
00:11:36,967 --> 00:11:39,951
lived experience with disability. 

281
00:11:39,951 --> 00:11:43,349
you know, the way that I talk today, for example, 

282
00:11:45,131 --> 00:11:46,457
I live on my own with

283
00:11:46,457 --> 00:11:48,653
with my poodle

284
00:11:48,653 --> 00:11:51,637
I have 24 hour support

285
00:11:51,927 --> 00:11:55,035
and I talk about, you know, 

286
00:11:55,035 --> 00:11:58,474
all these attitudes that I experience on a daily basis. 

287
00:11:58,888 --> 00:12:01,914
And that really encourages people to open up 

288
00:12:02,452 --> 00:12:05,436
and be honest about their own situations 

289
00:12:05,519 --> 00:12:08,502
and get comfortable with being uncomfortable. 

290
00:12:09,580 --> 00:12:11,486
And the the idea behind it,

291
00:12:11,486 --> 00:12:14,511
we work with organizations

292
00:12:14,843 --> 00:12:16,542
both, 

293
00:12:16,542 --> 00:12:18,987
the corporate sector, 

294
00:12:18,987 --> 00:12:21,804
we will we will the corporate sector

295
00:12:21,804 --> 00:12:24,788
but we will

296
00:12:25,575 --> 00:12:26,487
secure

297
00:12:26,487 --> 00:12:28,642
a wide reach

298
00:12:28,642 --> 00:12:31,750
And it's because people want to

299
00:12:33,117 --> 00:12:35,355
they either want to

300
00:12:35,355 --> 00:12:38,339
employ more disabled people, 

301
00:12:38,587 --> 00:12:41,405
or they want to better support the disabled people 

302
00:12:41,405 --> 00:12:43,270
people within their 

303
00:12:43,270 --> 00:12:44,969
organization

304
00:12:44,969 --> 00:12:47,290
and they don’t know how to do it.

305
00:12:47,290 --> 00:12:49,071
Yeah. And you know what, Julie, 

306
00:12:49,071 --> 00:12:52,469
the simplest thing is to be able

307
00:12:52,718 --> 00:12:56,240
to be confident, have that compensation

308
00:12:56,323 --> 00:12:57,939
and just ask.

309
00:12:57,939 --> 00:12:59,390
Yes it is.

310
00:12:59,390 --> 00:13:01,710
What do you need. Yeah.

311
00:13:01,710 --> 00:13:02,871
Just ask,

312
00:13:02,871 --> 00:13:05,233
How do you feel?

313
00:13:05,233 --> 00:13:07,843
Can I help you?

314
00:13:07,843 --> 00:13:08,134
Yeah.

315
00:13:08,134 --> 00:13:10,496
And people are so scared. Yeah.

316
00:13:10,496 --> 00:13:11,905
And go ahead.

317
00:13:11,905 --> 00:13:13,313
People are so scared

318
00:13:13,313 --> 00:13:13,976
because there’s so much 

319
00:13:13,976 --> 00:13:16,048
awkwardness around 

320
00:13:16,048 --> 00:13:19,156
disability, and I  know from my own,

321
00:13:19,198 --> 00:13:22,181
my own disability, people would rather shy away

322
00:13:22,637 --> 00:13:24,419
People would rather...

323
00:13:24,419 --> 00:13:27,403
people don’t understand what I’m saying

324
00:13:27,983 --> 00:13:30,304
and I think 

325
00:13:30,304 --> 00:13:33,536
they would rather just avoid 

326
00:13:33,909 --> 00:13:34,282
having

327
00:13:34,282 --> 00:13:37,721
the conversation, walk away, rather than say to me,

328
00:13:38,011 --> 00:13:39,462
“Hey, Lucy,

329
00:13:39,462 --> 00:13:40,208
sorry, 

330
00:13:40,208 --> 00:13:43,191
I didn’t catch that, could you please repeat it?”

331
00:13:43,316 --> 00:13:46,258
Yeah. How easy is that? 

332
00:13:46,258 --> 00:13:46,879
And, you know,

333
00:13:46,879 --> 00:13:49,034
and that's the thing that I think is

334
00:13:49,034 --> 00:13:51,852
that we're missing so much is that

335
00:13:51,852 --> 00:13:54,421
those uncomfortable conversation

336
00:13:54,421 --> 00:13:55,706
and one of, you know,

337
00:13:55,706 --> 00:13:58,151
just being comfortable to say,

338
00:13:58,151 --> 00:14:00,057
can you say that again

339
00:14:00,057 --> 00:14:00,844
by avoiding

340
00:14:00,844 --> 00:14:02,916
those were missing all of these amazing

341
00:14:02,916 --> 00:14:04,781
relationships in our lives,

342
00:14:04,781 --> 00:14:06,231
and in our workplaces

343
00:14:06,231 --> 00:14:08,593
because we're just not sure.

344
00:14:08,593 --> 00:14:09,298
And I like

345
00:14:09,298 --> 00:14:12,530
I know I everyone has their own biases

346
00:14:12,530 --> 00:14:14,312
and we all get uncomfortable

347
00:14:14,312 --> 00:14:15,390
with certain things,

348
00:14:15,390 --> 00:14:17,586
whether it's disability or not.

349
00:14:17,586 --> 00:14:20,652
And sometimes we have to force ourselves

350
00:14:20,652 --> 00:14:22,103
into those conversations

351
00:14:22,103 --> 00:14:23,512
because we're never

352
00:14:23,512 --> 00:14:24,796
going to get comfortable

353
00:14:24,796 --> 00:14:29,230
if we are not willing to just be patient

354
00:14:29,230 --> 00:14:31,344
with ourselves and have time to

355
00:14:31,344 --> 00:14:32,628
to learn about others.

356
00:14:34,576 --> 00:14:37,560
Mhm. And it’s so important, isn’t it? 

357
00:14:38,927 --> 00:14:41,040
So...

358
00:14:41,040 --> 00:14:43,071
I love the the disruptor challenge.

359
00:14:43,071 --> 00:14:44,066
And that's kind of

360
00:14:44,066 --> 00:14:45,433
what you've been telling about us

361
00:14:45,433 --> 00:14:47,505
and telling us about.

362
00:14:47,505 --> 00:14:51,483
And one thing that you said that I love

363
00:14:51,483 --> 00:14:53,928
is just an opportunity

364
00:14:53,928 --> 00:14:55,378
to tell their truth.

365
00:14:55,378 --> 00:14:56,746
And I think

366
00:14:56,746 --> 00:14:57,575
as a,

367
00:14:57,575 --> 00:14:58,279
as a person

368
00:14:58,279 --> 00:14:59,108
with a disability,

369
00:14:59,108 --> 00:15:02,547
as people with disabilities, we have to

370
00:15:03,708 --> 00:15:06,981
also allow people who are not disabled

371
00:15:06,981 --> 00:15:08,763
to say things

372
00:15:08,763 --> 00:15:10,255
that we're uncomfortable

373
00:15:10,255 --> 00:15:13,322
with, go ahead

374
00:15:13,985 --> 00:15:16,347
Absolutely, and that’s

375
00:15:16,347 --> 00:15:19,330
really important.

376
00:15:20,325 --> 00:15:20,615
Yeah.

377
00:15:20,615 --> 00:15:23,640
I mean, I mean, you,

378
00:15:24,262 --> 00:15:28,406
let me talk about the word “inspiring.”

379
00:15:29,566 --> 00:15:32,550
So I received an award. 

380
00:15:33,420 --> 00:15:35,989
An Inspiring Female Awards,

381
00:15:35,989 --> 00:15:39,677
from the North East Chamber of Commerce,

382
00:15:39,967 --> 00:15:43,614
within the small businesses, so it’s a business award

383
00:15:44,816 --> 00:15:46,888
Now I've got to get comfortable 

384
00:15:46,888 --> 00:15:49,913
with this word, “inspiring”

385
00:15:49,913 --> 00:15:52,150
As a disabled person

386
00:15:52,150 --> 00:15:54,347
theres lots of things

387
00:15:54,347 --> 00:15:58,283
that are inspirational porn, for disabled people. 

388
00:15:58,532 --> 00:16:02,220
People think your inspiring because you like

389
00:16:02,469 --> 00:16:05,577
you get up in the morning, 

390
00:16:06,157 --> 00:16:08,146
and you take your dogs on a walk, or

391
00:16:09,182 --> 00:16:10,881
you can cook a meal or 

392
00:16:10,881 --> 00:16:13,906
You know, or you just,

393
00:16:14,652 --> 00:16:16,972
manage your day to day tasks.

394
00:16:16,972 --> 00:16:19,417
and I find that

395
00:16:19,417 --> 00:16:23,478
Very uncomfortable when we say that word, “inspiring”

396
00:16:24,141 --> 00:16:27,249
so when I got this award, actually

397
00:16:27,415 --> 00:16:30,937
I’ve been writing a blog about it this week,

398
00:16:31,559 --> 00:16:34,294
It will be out next week

399
00:16:34,294 --> 00:16:37,319
and I got this award, and I...

400
00:16:37,319 --> 00:16:41,753
I need to embrace this Inspiring People’s award

401
00:16:41,753 --> 00:16:45,566
because I am inspiring.

402
00:16:45,566 --> 00:16:46,146
Because what I’m doing 

403
00:16:46,146 --> 00:16:49,792
to help both disabled and non-disabled people 

404
00:16:51,036 --> 00:16:54,061
to have a better understanding 

405
00:16:54,351 --> 00:16:56,754
of disability

406
00:16:56,754 --> 00:16:59,779
and better awareness around it.

407
00:17:00,277 --> 00:17:02,307
Our training program

408
00:17:02,307 --> 00:17:06,037
than disability awareness training with a difference

409
00:17:07,736 --> 00:17:10,761
So yeah, it's me, but

410
00:17:11,672 --> 00:17:13,081
embrace that.

411
00:17:13,081 --> 00:17:16,106
Because you know, I’m one of the most...

412
00:17:17,888 --> 00:17:18,966
At this year, 

413
00:17:18,966 --> 00:17:20,499
I’m one of the...

414
00:17:20,499 --> 00:17:22,654
I’m one of the most 

415
00:17:22,654 --> 00:17:25,513
inspiring people in the North East,

416
00:17:25,513 --> 00:17:27,709
females in the North East,

417
00:17:27,709 --> 00:17:30,900
in the north east business community,

418
00:17:31,315 --> 00:17:32,889
and that is quite inspiring,

419
00:17:32,889 --> 00:17:34,422
 isn’t it?

420
00:17:34,422 --> 00:17:35,251
Yes. Yeah.

421
00:17:35,251 --> 00:17:37,406
It's I mean, seriously, I love it.

422
00:17:37,406 --> 00:17:38,484
I got your,

423
00:17:39,561 --> 00:17:39,892
got it.

424
00:17:39,892 --> 00:17:40,763
Just a little snippet.

425
00:17:40,763 --> 00:17:43,083
So the Northeast Chamber of Commerce

426
00:17:43,083 --> 00:17:45,114
in the UK,

427
00:17:45,114 --> 00:17:48,429
gave you an Inspiring Female Award.

428
00:17:48,429 --> 00:17:49,962
So I love that

429
00:17:49,962 --> 00:17:52,946
because you not only get to,

430
00:17:53,029 --> 00:17:54,562
showcase the amazing work

431
00:17:54,562 --> 00:17:56,717
you're doing in the disability community,

432
00:17:56,717 --> 00:18:00,115
but you're also a female business leader

433
00:18:00,488 --> 00:18:02,270
entrepreneur.

434
00:18:02,270 --> 00:18:03,098
So you've got, like,

435
00:18:03,098 --> 00:18:05,088
all of these identities

436
00:18:05,088 --> 00:18:08,071
that are part of you that you're being,

437
00:18:08,237 --> 00:18:09,977
not recognized for,

438
00:18:09,977 --> 00:18:12,422
but recognized for your impact.

439
00:18:12,422 --> 00:18:14,453
And all the other women

440
00:18:14,453 --> 00:18:16,773
who are also disabled or not disabled

441
00:18:16,773 --> 00:18:18,017
get to see what it's like

442
00:18:18,017 --> 00:18:20,544
to see another female leader

443
00:18:20,544 --> 00:18:21,746
in their community.

444
00:18:21,746 --> 00:18:22,161
And,

445
00:18:22,161 --> 00:18:23,818
I mean, I'm all about the girl

446
00:18:23,818 --> 00:18:25,766
power and disability power.

447
00:18:25,766 --> 00:18:26,968
So I love that.

448
00:18:26,968 --> 00:18:27,838
And then and yeah,

449
00:18:27,838 --> 00:18:31,567
and isn’t that greater inclusivity

450
00:18:32,106 --> 00:18:34,634
within the business community?

451
00:18:35,877 --> 00:18:36,540
So you've got a

452
00:18:36,540 --> 00:18:38,239
really good business community

453
00:18:38,239 --> 00:18:39,565
that I mean that's amazing.

454
00:18:39,565 --> 00:18:40,642
And that's something that,

455
00:18:40,642 --> 00:18:43,170
we are inclusive,

456
00:18:43,170 --> 00:18:44,041
we are here

457
00:18:44,041 --> 00:18:45,118
in the north east,

458
00:18:45,118 --> 00:18:48,765
in the business community.

459
00:18:49,718 --> 00:18:50,961
Do you feel like,

460
00:18:50,961 --> 00:18:54,069
your, your part of, of England does

461
00:18:54,483 --> 00:18:55,644
better than maybe

462
00:18:55,644 --> 00:18:56,555
like the south

463
00:18:56,555 --> 00:18:59,580
or central parts, in inclusion?

464
00:19:00,741 --> 00:19:03,724
I haven’t really thought about that.

465
00:19:04,470 --> 00:19:07,495
I just think it’s something to 

466
00:19:07,951 --> 00:19:10,520
shout about

467
00:19:10,520 --> 00:19:13,504
within the north east  business community.

468
00:19:13,504 --> 00:19:15,659
Okay. Awesome.

469
00:19:15,659 --> 00:19:17,855
So let's let me go back

470
00:19:17,855 --> 00:19:18,808
just a little bit.

471
00:19:18,808 --> 00:19:20,341
What I would love, since we

472
00:19:20,341 --> 00:19:22,040
we got into the conversation

473
00:19:22,040 --> 00:19:24,278
about you being,

474
00:19:24,278 --> 00:19:25,770
the founder and the,

475
00:19:25,770 --> 00:19:26,847
the managing director of

476
00:19:26,847 --> 00:19:28,546
We Are All Disabled.

477
00:19:28,546 --> 00:19:30,784
How did you come to start?

478
00:19:30,784 --> 00:19:32,234
We are disabled in.

479
00:19:32,234 --> 00:19:34,141
And why did you decide

480
00:19:34,141 --> 00:19:35,840
to take that journey as a,

481
00:19:35,840 --> 00:19:37,746
as a female business leader?

482
00:19:39,984 --> 00:19:40,439
Because I

483
00:19:40,439 --> 00:19:43,464
wanted to get my voice out there

484
00:19:43,755 --> 00:19:45,868
After my PhD research, 

485
00:19:45,868 --> 00:19:46,821
I wanted to get my 

486
00:19:46,821 --> 00:19:49,432
voice out there

487
00:19:49,432 --> 00:19:52,457
and I wanted to

488
00:19:53,037 --> 00:19:53,949
change how people 

489
00:19:53,949 --> 00:19:56,932
think about disability. So like I said, 

490
00:19:57,802 --> 00:19:59,336
it started with the blog

491
00:19:59,336 --> 00:20:02,361
and the blog was so well received, 

492
00:20:02,609 --> 00:20:05,759
so we said that in 2021

493
00:20:07,334 --> 00:20:08,991
we set

494
00:20:08,991 --> 00:20:11,146
20

495
00:20:11,146 --> 00:20:11,850
21

496
00:20:11,850 --> 00:20:15,083
was a movement for positive change. 

497
00:20:18,273 --> 00:20:19,641
That's

498
00:20:19,641 --> 00:20:20,221
that's great.

499
00:20:20,221 --> 00:20:23,246
So you started in 2021?

500
00:20:23,578 --> 00:20:24,987
And that really then

501
00:20:24,987 --> 00:20:27,349
now you're doing the disruptor challenge.

502
00:20:27,349 --> 00:20:28,177
You're doing

503
00:20:28,177 --> 00:20:31,161
speaking outside of the disruptor challenge

504
00:20:31,410 --> 00:20:34,145
and and using your research

505
00:20:34,145 --> 00:20:35,471
to really drive home

506
00:20:35,471 --> 00:20:36,507
Yeah.

507
00:20:36,507 --> 00:20:38,454
The need for change. Yeah.

508
00:20:38,454 --> 00:20:41,935
The Disruptor workshops are workshops 

509
00:20:42,267 --> 00:20:46,245
that we run with individual organizations

510
00:20:47,447 --> 00:20:49,684
and they really teach

511
00:20:49,684 --> 00:20:52,668
to discuss, and

512
00:20:53,373 --> 00:20:54,657
to change 

513
00:20:54,657 --> 00:20:57,641
the narrative around disability.

514
00:21:00,707 --> 00:21:03,277
Sorry.

515
00:21:03,277 --> 00:21:04,437
No. That's fantastic.

516
00:21:04,437 --> 00:21:04,976
So what

517
00:21:04,976 --> 00:21:07,959
what do you have planned for 2025,

518
00:21:08,788 --> 00:21:11,937
2025-To move this disruptor

519
00:21:11,937 --> 00:21:14,009
program forward,

520
00:21:14,009 --> 00:21:15,584
even more

521
00:21:16,869 --> 00:21:19,438
Pushing out to 

522
00:21:19,438 --> 00:21:22,422
charitable  

523
00:21:22,422 --> 00:21:23,540
organizations,

524
00:21:23,540 --> 00:21:25,488
corporates,

525
00:21:25,488 --> 00:21:28,472
corporates,

526
00:21:28,720 --> 00:21:31,704
and, you know,

527
00:21:32,781 --> 00:21:35,806
both locally and nationally. 

528
00:21:35,972 --> 00:21:38,666
Our ultimate 

529
00:21:38,666 --> 00:21:42,644
aim is to have a global movement

530
00:21:43,100 --> 00:21:47,161
which is founded in North East on England.

531
00:21:49,979 --> 00:21:52,548
So we always love

532
00:21:52,548 --> 00:21:55,532
to end our podcast with two questions.

533
00:21:55,946 --> 00:21:57,686
And I never tell the two questions.

534
00:21:57,686 --> 00:21:59,427
First unless you've, you've listened

535
00:21:59,427 --> 00:22:01,499
and then you'll know.

536
00:22:01,499 --> 00:22:04,524
The first question is, is what is

537
00:22:05,104 --> 00:22:06,844
one thing that you would tell

538
00:22:06,844 --> 00:22:08,792
a business leader

539
00:22:08,792 --> 00:22:09,414
that would help

540
00:22:09,414 --> 00:22:10,533
change their minds

541
00:22:10,533 --> 00:22:12,522
about people with disabilities

542
00:22:12,522 --> 00:22:15,505
and our value in their workforce?

543
00:22:17,370 --> 00:22:18,945
I would tell them to 

544
00:22:18,945 --> 00:22:22,591
to get in touch, to get in touch

545
00:22:23,006 --> 00:22:26,031
and, and,

546
00:22:26,155 --> 00:22:28,973
to sign up for 

547
00:22:28,973 --> 00:22:32,040
our disruptor workshop

548
00:22:32,495 --> 00:22:35,520
because they really are

549
00:22:36,432 --> 00:22:38,380
changing

550
00:22:38,380 --> 00:22:39,747
how you think...

551
00:22:39,747 --> 00:22:42,234
how do you think about disability.

552
00:22:44,098 --> 00:22:46,460
And last question,

553
00:22:46,460 --> 00:22:46,875
what is

554
00:22:46,875 --> 00:22:49,651
something that someone did for you

555
00:22:49,651 --> 00:22:51,143
in your journey

556
00:22:51,143 --> 00:22:54,127
that helped change your life?

557
00:22:54,334 --> 00:22:57,359
Give me the confidence, to,

558
00:22:58,436 --> 00:23:02,042
to get myself out there,

559
00:23:02,042 --> 00:23:05,025
to get myself out there in the business 

560
00:23:06,351 --> 00:23:08,548
community.

561
00:23:08,548 --> 00:23:09,791
Amazing, amazing.

562
00:23:09,791 --> 00:23:11,904
So, Doctor Lucy Reynolds,

563
00:23:11,904 --> 00:23:14,846
if someone wants to connect with you,

564
00:23:14,846 --> 00:23:17,374
where should they find you?

565
00:23:17,374 --> 00:23:20,772
I'm on LinkedIn and also my website,

566
00:23:21,477 --> 00:23:23,880
WeAreAllDisabled.org

567
00:23:23,880 --> 00:23:26,201
We are All Disabled dot org

568
00:23:26,201 --> 00:23:29,101
So thank you so much for helping me

569
00:23:29,101 --> 00:23:31,505
wrap up 2024

570
00:23:31,505 --> 00:23:32,624
on the Changing Minds

571
00:23:32,624 --> 00:23:34,240
Changing Lives podcast.

572
00:23:34,240 --> 00:23:36,519
It has been such a pleasure,

573
00:23:36,519 --> 00:23:37,265
Doctor Reynolds,

574
00:23:37,265 --> 00:23:39,503
and I'm sure that we will,

575
00:23:39,503 --> 00:23:40,746
follow your work.

576
00:23:40,746 --> 00:23:43,854
Congratulations on your award.

577
00:23:44,434 --> 00:23:47,003
And thank you for showing young women

578
00:23:47,003 --> 00:23:47,915
and and women

579
00:23:47,915 --> 00:23:48,744
with disabilities

580
00:23:48,744 --> 00:23:50,360
what it's like to get out there

581
00:23:50,360 --> 00:23:51,893
and have that confidence and,

582
00:23:51,893 --> 00:23:54,504
and give us that inspiration,

583
00:23:54,504 --> 00:23:56,700
which is very positive inspiration.

584
00:23:56,700 --> 00:23:58,813
So you guys, thank you so much.

585
00:23:58,813 --> 00:24:00,471
Happy 2025.

586
00:24:00,471 --> 00:24:03,910
We can't wait to see you send us people

587
00:24:03,910 --> 00:24:05,319
you want to talk to, topics

588
00:24:05,319 --> 00:24:07,764
you want to talk about in 2025,

589
00:24:07,764 --> 00:24:09,546
and we will make sure it happens

590
00:24:09,546 --> 00:24:11,038
until next year.

591
00:24:11,038 --> 00:24:12,406
Thanks for joining us.

Dr. Lucy Reynolds Profile Photo

Dr. Lucy Reynolds

Doctor of Philosophy, Managing Director of We Are All Disabled

Dr. Lucy Reynolds is a public speaker, consultant, academic researcher, writer/blogger, and advocate for disability rights.

Dr. Reynolds is also the Founder and Managing Director of We Are All Disabled [https://wearealldisabled.org/], a Community Interest Company that inspires people to think differently about disability through challenging perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors in a safe and supportive way.