News

Autism CRC News The recording of the latest webinar on Adulthood research is now available, featuring Jasmine McDonald from the Curtin University Mentoring program. Thank you to everyone who joined our webinars this year. We look forward to sharing more on our progress in 2017. Visit the website to watch any of the webinars delivered this year across our three research Programs. http://bit.ly/autismspotlight

Autism CRC Quarterly Research Update

Find the latest edition of the Autism CRC Research Update on their website www.autismcrc.com.au/research-update

Autism CRC

The Autism CRC is taking applications for the 2017 Research Academy where autistic adults spend 3 days learning how research works and plan to collaborate with researchers moving forward.

Monday Morning Read: A Melbourne father posted a Facebook post about how hard it was for her 15yr old autistic son to get part time work. The local newspaper ran an article and the family have since been inundated with offers of work. Whilst we won't be posting the article to respect the privacy of the young man (you can easily find it by searching Google if you want to read it), we wanted to ask if you'd had something you needed support with, and been helped by a person/people on social media? If you'd like to share and remain anonymous please send us a message.

Ben Affleck joins the growing army of cinematic savants

Morning read: An interesting read about the pro's/con's of autism being portrayed in film and tv.

Piggery seeks employees on autism spectrum for animal welfare roles

News: Animal Care employment program for people on the autism spectrum. Question: Would you like to see a similar program in Western Australia/your home town? ALSO: Interview on ABC with Dr Robert van Barneveld discussing this project, and one of our PhD scholars Melissa Scott discusses the employment tool she is developing to assist employers in supporting adults on the autism spectrum in the workplace. Dr Robert van Barneveld, CEO and Managing Director of the SunPork Group, which currently employs over 1,000 people, said that autistic individuals often have the skills to do the job extremely well, but social and communication difficulties can create barriers to long term employment. Through this initiative, we hope autistic adults have a better chance to find a job and develop a career. “We know adults on the spectrum have key strengths that are of significant benefit to the workplace. SunPork Farms will harness the diverse skills some autistic individuals have in animal care to provide sustainable employment in the agricultural industry and ultimately enhance the welfare of our livestock,” said Dr van Barneveld. In collaboration with Specialisterne, a pilot program will recruit eight autistic adults in South Australia and Queensland into paid animal care roles with a view for long term employment. The program team will adapt and apply existing Specialisterne techniques used in the IT sector, to support candidates through the recruitment, employment and evaluation process in the agriculture sector. “With appropriate support and training, for both the autistic candidates and SunPork Farms employees, we believe the pilot program will deliver long term benefits to our business.” “Employing autistic adults will bring a range of different views and the capacity to innovate our business to ensure we remain a world leader in pork and food production,” said Dr van Barneveld. “The Autism and Agriculture pilot program has the potential to enhance the human resources capability of the agricultural industry both in Australia and internationally.”

Earlier this year Autism Canada published a document about "preferred language" when discussing autism: http://autismcanada.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/AC_LanguageDocument-2016.pdf What are your thoughts? Background: Autism Canada is a national organization that dedicates itself to facilitating collaboration \between the many groups involved, both personally and professionally, in the conversation on autism, all of which have their own perspectives and their own ways of talking about autism. The complexity of this conversation and the diversity of the groups concerned means \that dialogue can be difficult at times, and the importance of said dialogue requires that we recognize both a need for clarity and a need for sensitivity to each other's perspectives. In this vein, it is necessary to create a shared language that will ensure a productive, positive discourse, respectful of all relevant parties. It is here that we should explain the principles by which we have chosen this language, principles of nuance, humanization, and empathy.

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Event: Youth Development Expo - Including Young People with a Disability. Saturday November 5, Time: 10.30am – 3.30pm. If you’re a young person with a disability, a leader in a youth organisation, a parent, a planner or someone with an interest in accessible and inclusive youth organisations, this expo is for you! Come and find out how the National Disability Insurance Scheme can support young people with a disability to get into youth movements, hear from leaders and youth members with a disability and get practical resources about making youth organisations in WA accessible and inclusive. Swan View Youth Centre, Brown Park Recreation Centre, 116 Salisbury Road, Swan View Guest speakers include Paralympian Priya Cooper OAM, president of the WA Disabled Sports Assn, and speakers from Inclusion WA and Youth Disability Advocacy Network. Community organisations and youth movements will have information available for attendees and leaders will be available to speak with. There are free resources available for participants. This is a free event for people with disability, their families, community organisations and leaders in youth movements. Morning tea and lunch are provided, including gluten free and vegetarian options. More info: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/youth-development-expo-youth-with-disability-tickets-28780815193

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The AASQA will be making a presentation at the Engineers Australia ITEE WA AGM on Thursday, 27 October. ITEE WA has generously donated $5000 to AASQA to help support the running of the CoderDojo and it will be presenting the cheque to AASQA at this event. You have been invited to attend this presentation and to come and lend your support to AASQA. You will also have the opportunity to meet members of ITEE who represents the Information, Telecommunications and Electronics Engineering discipline areas in WA. Please register your attendance before 24 October by following the link below. https://www.engineersaustralia.org.au/portal/event/autism-academy-software-quality-assurance-presentation-and-itee-annual-meeting

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AASQA PRESENTATION AT ITEE WA AGM When: 27th October 2016 between 5:30PM to 7pm Venue: Engineers Australia 712 Murray Street, West Perth The Autism Academy for Software Quality Assurance (AASQA) is a social innovation initiative with the vision of harnessing the talents of people with autism for the collective benefit of individuals with autism, industry and the community. AASQA enables individuals with autism to leverage their unique skills through training, education and mentoring, aiming to develop pathways for long term employment. Associate Professor Tele Tan and Professor Torbjorn Falkmer from Curtin University will be presenting AASQA at the ITEE WA Annual meeting. You have been invited to attend this event. Please register your atendance by the 24th October 2016 using the link below: https://www.engineersaustralia.org.au/portal/event/autism-academy-software-quality-assurance-presentation-and-itee-annual-meeting

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NEW PROJECT: Family Routines: Comparing the experience of couples and single mothers Who are we looking for? We are looking for coupled or single mothers of a child with ASD, who can share their experiences of managing their family routines. If you are a mother of a 2 to 18 year old with ASD, who live in Western Australia and are willing to help, please contact us! What is this study about? We want to understand how mothers view their experiences in managing family routines and the meaning of these experiences. What do I have to do? You will be asked to complete a survey, two questionnaires and record daily routines by using a mobile device. We also would like to meet with you to gain your views around managing family routines. On completion of your participation, you will be rewarded for the time and effort you have given to participating in this study. Who is doing this study? The study is being conducted by Ms Tomomi McAuliffe (PhD Candidate), Associate Professor Reinie Cordier, Dr Sharmila Vaz, Professor Torbjorn Falkmer at Curtin University and Dr Yvonne Thomas at Worcester University in UK. This study is an adjunct to a larger project ‘Autism in Rural Communities: The effect of an ASD diagnosis on rural families and innovative therapies’. Please contact Tomomi McAuliffe via email (tomomi.mcauliffe@curtin.edu.au) to obtain further information.

Autism CRC 2016 Art Prize - Voting now open!

If you haven't voted favourite submission for the Autism CRC's art prize you've only got until Sunday October 9 to do so! Check out all the submissions and cast your vote: http://www.autismcrc.com.au/news/autism-crc-2016-art-prize-voting-now-open