By Shana Jones From the first Alinker deliveries to ecstatic customers, people previously marginalized by society have been re-imagining and re-purposing their lives. She says she’s not an activist, but I respectfully disagree. She has built schools in Afghanistan and taught carpentry to deaf children in Kenya. She challenges the refuge […]

Meeting Cole Sibus for the first time, it will be immediately evident that he is an extrovert. His effervescent personality cascades throughout a conversation, humour seamlessly interwoven, eliciting frequent bouts of laughter from conversation partners. Witty, charming, fun-loving, daring, eager to try new things, compassionate and quite the conversationalist, Cole is

At 20 years old, a car accident resulted in Marcela Marañon being confined to a wheelchair, paralyzed from the waist down. Fast forward to today. The adult Marcela enjoys a very influential spot in the social media space. Her Instagram account, @thejourneyofabravewoman, which she started in 2017 “reflects my life,” Marcela said.

Avi is a stroke and aphasia survivor. He was an New York City paramedic and about to start medical school when he had a stroke. Prior to his stroke, he loved many outdoor sports like horseback riding, kayaking, sailing, bicycle riding, snowboarding, etc. Now, post-stroke he has aphasia (difficulty communicating) and

by Alexandra Nava-Baltimore [ This interview has been edited for length and clarity. ] Spanning a powerful 30 year career, Katy Neas, the Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (United States Department of Education), works tirelessly as she continues her plan to create a clear

Support entrepreneurs with disabilities Margaux Wosk (they/them) is an autistic self-taught artist and designer as well as an activist and advocate for people with disabilities. They fight really hard for those who own their own business so that these entrepreneurs are able to have the same rights and benefits that are

Brooke & Elena gives us a peek into their world Brooke Pagé and Elena Pauly of Vancouver, BC, started the Wives and Girlfriends of Spinal Cord Injury (WAGS of SCI) group after becoming caregivers for their partners, both of whom are quadriplegic. In 2014, Evan, Brooke’s boyfriend at the time, got

Rianna Patterson is a personal development coach, TEDx speaker founder of a youth-led dementia charity called Dominica Dementia Foundation which she launched when she was 18, in memory of her grandfather. She is also the film director of: Dementia: The Island Journey film, a documentary on dementia in the Caribbean www.dominicadementiafoundation.org This is an

“My journey of self-acceptance . . . in progress” From a young age, I have clear memories of being shamed for my body image and size. From the innocence of my reception classmates saying I “looked funny” . . . to the 15-year-olds shouting “freak” down the secondary school corridors. Be

The word ‘Shalva’ means ‘peace of mind’ or ‘serenity’ in Hebrew. The Shalva Band, based in Israel, consists of members who represent a variety of intellectual developmental disabilities and physical impairments. The Band members’ disabilities include blindness, Down syndrome, and Williams syndrome. The Shalva Band was established in 2005 and has