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