00:08We've all seen these Apple commercials.
00:12Get creative, innovate.
00:16Our society encourages new ideas and
perspectives, yet
00:21often stigmatizes people who
neurologically think differently.
00:28How many of you have or
know someone with dyslexia?
00:34What about someone on the autism spectrum?
00:40One in 58 people have autism.
00:43One in ten, ADHD,
another one in ten have dyslexia.
00:51And we have always been
neurologically different yet
00:57our education systems,
our schools, our social norms,
01:03are all designed for
the majority or neurotypical mind.
01:09We seek to think differently, yet
we exclude different thinkers.
01:18This is my little brother, Steven.
01:22He is a painter, a philosopher,
a mental health advocate,
01:28and also an awesome little brother.
01:37For those of you who aren't familiar,
the autism spectrum is a continuum
01:43of traits that impacts how a person
perceives or socializes with others.
01:50This difference in brain development
can cause mild to severe impairments.
01:56It is a wide spectrum.
01:59And it affects no two people the same way.
02:02For Steven, he is able to communicate.
02:08And he understands that he has autism,
that he thinks differently.
02:13And yet sometimes, his autism can make it
really difficult to connect with others.
02:22But I am excited for
this time period in history, diversity and
02:26inclusion are being sought after and
celebrated.
02:31Brave change makers have fought
the injustices of authoring,
02:35and we're finally seeing and
appreciating the value of our differences.
02:41There is a long way to go across
previous divides around race,
02:47gender, and sexual orientation.
02:50Yet I don't see inclusion as zero of some,
and
02:54I'd love to add to this rich conversation,
the concept of neurodiversity.
03:04Neurodiversity is a term first
coined in 1988 by Judy Singer,
03:08the Australian sociologist.
03:11And it is a concept that regards
individuals with differences
03:15in brain function and
03:16behavioral traits, as part of the normal
variation in the human population.
03:21Because like biodiversity
that accounts for
03:26the rich vibrance in our natural
environment, neurodiversity accounts for
03:31the fact that all of our brains
are neurologically distinct.
03:35Whether it is autism, ADHD or
another neurodivergency,
03:40we really all do think differently.
03:45I fell in love with this term Because
it doesn't focus first on impairment.
04:03My hope is that through
the lens of neurodiversity,
04:07we can celebrate each others
differences and see the person first,
04:12and not the disability or
different ability.
04:20My hope is to increase your awareness,
your understanding, and
04:24encourage inclusion to build
neurodiverse communities.
04:29Because you can't have inclusion
without increasing your understanding,
04:32and this understanding
requires a broader awareness.
04:36Without these three elements, if you
interact with a neurologically different
04:41person, you may be thinking to
yourself things like, what a weirdo!
04:49This isn't my problem.
04:52I'd love to change instead into a
conversation where we build relationship.
04:58I'd like to take you through my own
journey and all three of these steps.
05:04Let's start with awareness.
05:08As I shared,
I grew up in a neurodiverse home, through
05:12conversations with my brother, I learned
a lot around how autism affects him.
05:17And also through seeing how other
people treat him when we're in public.
05:22If Steven is feeling
overwhelmed in his environment,
05:26because of the sensory changes
with autism, to cope or soothe,
05:31he'll pace back and forth, he may swing
his arms or scratch his head repeatively.
05:40And I've watched how others
respond to this behavior.
05:43I've seen even neighbors move away.
05:51Maybe to the other side of the street,
05:53even shield their
children from my brother.
05:58And I wonder if they think what bullies
have called him his whole life or
06:11Yet I believe all these
people to be good people.
06:16And that if they understood he was
different or how he was different,
06:21if they were aware of the differences
of neurodiversity and autism,
06:25then instead they would
start a conversation.
06:30They would say, hello, how are you?
06:39The next step is understanding.
06:43I spent my summer living in
intentionally inclusive community,
06:47where neurodiverse people lived
together and shared housing and life.
06:53And I found even myself thinking this,
what a pity?
06:57What a pity that my new
roommates have challenges around
07:02things that I take for granted every day?
07:05And when it comes to different abilities,
07:09this can be the default, but
it doesn't have to be our default.
07:18My understanding increased as I built real
relationships with people different from
07:23I met Nadia and
we went dancing all night long.
07:30And Marie, whose love of music took us
to the local music school for lessons.
07:35And my neurodivergent friend Carry,
who despite being only able to communicate
07:40through eye blinks, got her best friend
laughing up a storm every single day.
07:47I learned through my understanding that I
was wrong to start from a place of pity.
07:53And instead, I want to start from a place
of curiosity, expecting connection,
07:59relatability, and friendship.
08:02I started saying, who are you?
08:09The next step is inclusion.
08:12I'd like you to meet Cole.
08:15Cole is the president of spectrum
autism at the University of Berkeley.
08:21And when he joined the autism club,
08:23he found himself to be the only
autistic person in it.
08:27>> [LAUGH]
>> Think for
08:30a moment if our women in management
group here were led by a man.
08:34>> [LAUGH]
>> Or if there were no women in it.
08:42Cole shared with me his story and
his journey to college and
08:47how at times he would hide his
autism to avoid stigma, and
08:51how difficult this made
building genuine community.
08:55So when he arrived at Cal and met students
interested in building neurodiverse
09:01communities, he was embraced and now he's
leading the charge for inclusion there.
09:07He says, I am the first president
of spectrum autism at Cal, but
09:12I will not be the last.
09:16With all the challenges we
have in the world today,
09:19it's not uncommon to think this,
that this is not my problem,
09:24this is not my issue,
this is not my community.
09:29Whether it is in our schools, in our work,
certainly in our neighborhoods,
09:35there are neurodivergent
people everywhere.
09:41And oftentimes, especially with
the challenges of connecting with autism,
09:45there's a lot of isolation.
09:49How can we take one step closer and
make it a little easier to connect?
09:57How can we change this is not my problem,
to this is my opportunity, and
10:02we are in this together.
10:06Hopefully, I have increased your
awareness, increased your understanding,
10:12and encouraged you to think a little
differently about inclusion.
10:22To say hello, how are you?
10:29We are in this together.
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