Personal Life

On the Platform with Jenny McAllister

Did you know that over 4 million people identify as having disability across Australia? Surprising then, that very few fashion labels, fashion retailers and fashion outlets cater to either inclusive adaptive fashion or provide accessible environments to support the shopping experience of many who live with disabilities. For some of […]

On the Platform with Amanda Perla-Jereczek

Finding inadequate options available to support her journey to return to a quality of life she desired, Amanda Perla-Jereczek created her own, and in doing so, made sure the opportunities to do so were also afforded to others like her. Reading Amanda’s story resonated with me, her story demonstrates how […]

2020…the year that was….

So here we are nearing the end of what has been an incredibly challenging year, I can feel myself breathing a sigh of relief, it has been a long year, full of the unexpected for all of us, peppered with surprising moments of joy and celebration, in amongst the struggles […]

On the Platform with Kate Mulvany

As someone who sustained a disability at a young age, I struggled in the early years to feel confident in who I was and how I looked. It felt like I never saw anyone who looked or lived like me represented in any form of mainstream media or arts. How […]

On the Platform with Carol Taylor

Banner image credit: Richard Smith I first realised that fashion and disability did not necessarily easily go together, when, as a fifteen year old girl with a spinal injury, and desperately longing to get out of the track suits and soft fabrics which were de rigueur in the rehabilitation hospital […]

On the Platform with Ellie – aka Deafie Blogger

Life for the deaf and hard of hearing may have changed significantly in the recent past, with greater awareness, provision of captioning and greater use of interpreters in film and television, as well as new technologies providing solutions for many, yet some hurdles have stayed the same. Our latest storyteller […]

On the Platform with Meg West

Meet Meg, our latest storyteller on the Platform,  who is part of a new wave of those pushing boundaries to prove that disability is not a barrier to providing quality medical care; if an open mind and creative approach to responding to individual needs in both training opportunities  and the […]

On the Platform with Beatriz Lemus

It is with real pleasure that I introduce Beatriz Lemus from Venezuela to the Platform, to share her story with us. I hope you enjoy learning about her life, as much as I did, and learn I did. Beatriz life is lived with tremendous successes, a multitude of daily challenges […]

A conversation with Crystal Marshall

Self-love is a beautiful thing and is something we could all do with practising more often. I know I have struggled to love myself, my disabled body and my appearance over the years. I have let the feeling of not being enough, not looking like everyone else, overwhelm me at […]

A conversation with Ashley and Nicole Llorens

Many people talk about the bond that exists between twins. It is often said that they understand each other and communicate in a way that is described as different, somehow deeper than the bonds of regular siblings, and friendships. I can’t claim to know for sure, but I am sure […]

a woman is sitting in front of a screen and is speaking into a microphone,

A conversation with Nas Campanella

Sometimes it is an incidental advocate, a teacher, a family member or friend who can change the course of our lives.. The power that one person, one experience, negative or positive can have on us cannot be underestimated. It is often not until we are old enough to reflect that […]

a woman sitting in a adapted mountain bike smiling at the camera.

Happy Anniversary!

Have you ever reflected on your life and thought… how did I get here? Well today is that day of reflection for me. Today, 39 years ago, my life changed forever. I was a young, confident energetic 15-year-old girl, doing what I loved the most, riding horses and hanging out […]