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You are invited to the Yellow Ladybugs 2026 Conference – Reclaiming the Past to Shape the Future. This year, we’re travelling back to the 80s to reflect on the experiences of autistic girls and gender-diverse people who grew up unseen, misunderstood, or unsupported. By revisiting that era, we honour the voices that were missing then and reclaim those stories to create a brighter, more inclusive future for the next generation.
This three-day event, Supporting Autistic Girls and Gender-Diverse Students at School and Beyond, brings together over 50 lived and professional perspectives from around the world. It’s led by an autistic-run charity that has always stood proudly for empowerment, understanding, and community. Together, we’ll explore how far we’ve come and how much further we can go through neuro-affirming, trauma-informed discussions that celebrate growth, belonging, and hope.
Join us for a transformative experience that blends the nostalgia of the 80s with the progressive spirit of today. Our immersive online platform features a virtual stage, sensory room, and resource booth that recreate the feeling of a live event. For those who prefer an in-person connection, the hybrid ticket offers the option to join us in Melbourne for Day 3. Whether you’re a parent, educator, allied health professional, or a ladybug yourself, this conference offers tools, insights, and inspiration to help every young person shine past, present, and future.
Em (she/her) is an Autistic and ADHD speech pathologist and artist. She’s the creator of @NeuroWild, a social media platform sharing educational illustrations on neurodiversity. She’s also a mom to three neurodivergent kids.
Katie (she/her) is the CEO and creator of Yellow Ladybugs, an autistic-led charity supporting autistic girls, women, and gender-diverse individuals. She brings lived and professional experience, advocating for systemic change. She has worked across accounting, marketing, HR, and teaching.
Fun facts: Loves cats, sparkles, and Golden Girls.
Natasha (she/her) is a founding director of Yellow Ladybugs and a policy expert. She focuses on amplifying autistic perspectives and creating empowering resources for autistic individuals. She’s also a parent to neurodivergent teens.
Sandhya (she/her) is an AuDHD Developmental Psychologist and author of The Brain Forest, The Rainbow Brain, and My Body’s Power Pack. She helps children and families embrace their neurotype through early self-identity education.
She brings an intersectional, multicultural perspective from her Singaporean background.
Dr. Alberto (he/him) is a Child and Family Psychiatrist and General Paediatrician, fellow of RANZCP and RACP. He focuses on emotional development and connection-based approaches for children and adolescents with various mental health and neurodivergent conditions.
Associate Professor Josephine Barbaro is a multiply neurodivergent researcher and child psychologist at the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, La Trobe University. She leads research in autism identification and diagnosis and is Clinical Director of a neuro-affirming early assessment clinic for children under three. Josie developed early identification tools now used across the world and led the creation of ASDetect, the first evidence-based mobile app for early autism identification. Her work centres on translating research into practice, working alongside Autistic communities, particularly those historically under-served, and improving early pathways so children and families feel understood, supported, and empowered from the very beginning.
Adina Levy (she/her) is a proud AuDHDer (Autistic ADHDer), Speech Therapist, Professional Educator, Podcaster, Speaker, and Business Coach for Neurodivergent folks. She runs Play. Learn. Chat. and Differently Aligned Business Coaching. Adina is on a mission to shift the perception of the global community, to understand neurodivergence as difference (which is fine!). She believes (and lives) that it's possible to be Neurodivergent and thrive. To live outside of burnout and stress. This takes greater acceptance of neurodivergence from others, shifting environments to be most supportive, and a dash of self-acceptance.
Allison is the founder and co-director of online company ‘Allison Davies, Music and The Brain’. Her primary role is to educate teachers, parents and service providers to use music as a regulatory tool and to implement trauma informed and neuro-affirming frameworks into their homes, schools and workplaces. She is a former Neurologic Music Therapist with 16 years experience in clinical and community settings, an award winning autism advocate and educator and international keynote speaker. Allison is team leader of the complex Mental Health team at Rural Health, Tasmania/Lutrurita.
Substack is https://allisondavies.substack.com/
Amanda Moses is a neurodivergent psychologist, educator, and PhD researcher passionate about changing how we understand autism—especially in young people who’ve flown under the radar. Through Amanda Moses Psychology, she has trained thousands of health professionals worldwide in neurodiversity-affirming practice and assessment. In her clinical work, Amanda has a special interest in identifying autism and ADHD in those with subtle or internalised presentations. Her PhD at the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre (OTARC), La Trobe University, focuses on improving identification and assessment for autistic youth. Amanda brings evidence, lived experience, and a little sparkle to everything she does.
Amelia (she/they) is an Autistic and ADHD, senior social worker living and working on Kaurna country. Following the completion of her graduate certificate in Autism studies, and after 5 years working in therapeutic programs, she started a private practice supporting children and adults across the lifespan through a neurodiversity-affirming lens. Amelia blends lived experience of neurodivergence and queer identity, with professional insight, to create safe, collaborative spaces for individuals and families to thrive on their own terms. When they’re not info-dumping about AuDHD, Amelia is typically busy with her Labrador sidekick Nora, sewing vintage-inspired fashion, watching scary movies or playing country music.
Annabelle is an almost 15 year old queer AuDHDer living in Sydney with her mum, Dad, her occasionally crippling anxiety, 2 younger brothers and her beloved dogs Ruby and Jack. Her entire family is neurodivergent. Annabelle attended her first YLB conference in 2023 when her ‘what matters’ speech about leaving mainstream school to homeschool was played. Since then, Annabelle has homeschooled, returned to mainstream at a new school, and is currently doing The Big Picture Programme. She has experienced burnout, the ups and downs of school life, seen the importance of relational safety in action and has found a way to learn that truly suits her double rainbow brain. She's also really excited to be back at the YLB conference for 2026!!
Annelil (she/they) is an AudHD registered clinical psychologist. Annelil uses their personal experiences, along with evidence-based practice to work with Autistic and ADHD individuals.
Their special interests include neurodivergence, mind/body connection, sexual health, dating, intimacy, relationships, attachment, and spirituality
In her spare time, you will find Annelil doing a select few activities, including spending time with her cats Subu and Eos, doing yoga and sitting in front of the heater watching their favourite tv shows.
Instagram
Bernadette Grosjean is a psychiatrist with 30 years of experience across Belgium and California, working in private practice, community hospitals, and with underserved populations including the homeless. A former UCLA Associate Professor of Psychiatry (2005-2016), she's now a late-discovered autistic adult who has spent the past decade specializing in autistic adults without intellectual disability. As an advocate for neuroaffirmative care and Psychiatric Lead for Autistic Doctor International, she co-authored three comprehensive French-language patient guides on BPD, Bipolar Disorder, and Adult Autism. She lectures internationally, bridging clinical expertise with lived autistic experience.
Social Media:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqf-P0t8Gtbxm5uX2FhoWYg
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernadettegrosjean/
Caroline Gaddy (she/they), MFA, MA, CCC-SLP (they/she) is a speech-language pathologist, AAC specialist, disability advocate, and neurodiversity educator. They have presented at both state and national conferences and co-authored articles on neuro-affirming practices, AAC, and Autistic communication styles. Caroline is passionate about disability justice and inclusion, and firmly believes that communication is a fundamental human right.
Chenai (she/her) is the Founder and Co-Director of Rainbow Muse Clinic which offers art therapy, psychology, play therapy and yoga in an inclusive environment that celebrates diversity.
She is also founder of Tandara Pa Rainbow a not-for-profit initiative, born from Rainbow Muse Clinic.
It is a community-focused space for creativity, connection, culture, and collective care. Chenai is passionate about working with who are minoritised and have intersecting identities.
She is also doing her PhD is Community Psychology and is a mum to a magical toddler.
Dr. Alberto (he/him) is a Child and Family Psychiatrist and General Paediatrician, fellow of RANZCP and RACP. He focuses on emotional development and connection-based approaches for children and adolescents with various mental health and neurodivergent conditions.
Dr Michelle Garnett PhD is a clinical psychologist who has specialised in autism for more than 30 years as a clinician, clinic director, author, presenter and researcher. Alongside Tony Attwood she co-founded Attwood & Garnett Events to enhance autism awareness globally. She has co-authored seven books on autism and many peer-reviewed journal articles. She has been an invited keynote speaker and conference presenter internationally for over two decades. Dr Garnett is autistic and has ADHD, late diagnosed.
Dr Ruth Moyse is a highly experienced trainer facilitator, course developer and mentor with over twenty years’ experience in education. She is the Head of Training and Co-Production at AT-Autism, and recent partnership roles include Co-Director of the NHS-commissioned National Autism Trainer Programme in England. She is also a Visiting Fellow at the University of Southampton. A teacher by profession, her research interest lies in the education of autistic children and young people, particularly the female experience, and more widely in autistic mental health and wellbeing. Ruth is an advocate for participatory research and the co-production of knowledge and chooses creative methods of engagement and collaboration. She is also autistic.
Dr Zayna Adamu is an AuDHD paediatrician dedicated to providing neurodiversity-affirming care. She combines her lived and clinical experience to understand each person’s unique context and provide evidence-based, compassionate, and strengths-focused guidance. Zayna co-chairs a neurodiversity special interest group for paediatricians with lived experience of neurodivergence - supporting colleagues and promoting neuroaffirming practice across the profession. She is committed to challenging outdated models of care, improving clinical pathways, and empowering families. Zayna is passionate about using her unique perspective to bridge the gaps between lived experience and medical expertise to create environments where neurodivergent children and young people can thrive.
As a Neuro-Sensory Education Specialist (trained teacher and neurodevelopmental therapist) Ebony (she/her) helps educators, therapists and parents understand the ‘why’ behind the behaviours of children with complex communication profiles, using a neuro-affirming approach. Her work enables you you to move from feeling overwhelmed or inadequate to enjoying teaching/parenting again, without second-guessing everything you do. Ebony assists you to interpret behaviours through a neurosensory lens, so you can respond with intention, clarity, and compassion, shining a light on how the interactions between a child's body, brain, nervous system, and the environment, impact their daily functioning and communication in each moment.
Eden is a neurodivergent occupational therapist with ADHD who works across the lifespan.
She works part-time in the NDIS space and community health, supporting First Nations children.
Eden has the ability to (most definitely) talk under water and enjoys being active and spending time with friends and family.
Elaine McGoldrick has over 30 years teaching experience in Irish mainstream and special education settings. Diagnosed at 54, autistic burnout led to early retirement.
She remains actively engaged in advancing autistic perspectives through research collaborations, participation at conferences and presenting webinars with national autism organisations. As lead author of “Autistic Space for Inclusive Education,” published in Neurodiversity (August 2025), she demonstrates her ongoing commitment to shared understanding for inclusive education.
Elaine is currently pursuing doctoral research at London South Bank University, drawing upon her experiences as an autistic educator and mother of two autistic individuals to focus on enhancing collaboration between autistic parents and educators.
Emma Gilmour (she/her) is a late diagnosed AuDHD mum of two AuDHD PDA teens, and a registered counsellor and psychotherapist in Naarm/Melbourne. Her family's journey through school can't and autistic burnout/chronic fatigue taught her to work collaboratively with schools, allied health and medical systems to create child led solutions. Both her teens are emerging from burnout through honouring monotropic flow states, special interests and safety (physical, emotional & relational). Emma primarily supports neurodivergent adults healing from childhood masking and trauma (relationships: alcohol, food, body, self, others). She fosters community connections for families navigating isolation. You'll find her swimming in the bay or ice skating with menopausally warm cheeks.
Podcast Menopause, Meltdowns & Magic Two AuDHD Mums, Two Countries and Too Many Tabs Open
Esther Fidock (she/her) is an autistic ADHDer psychologist and founder of The Neuro Nurture Collective, an online clinic supporting neurodivergent adults with therapy and assessment across Australia. She is passionate about creating spaces where people feel warmth, safety, and understanding. Her work is grounded in neurodiversity-affirming and trauma-informed practice, with a focus on authenticity, connection, and collaboration. Esther leads a team of wonderful clinicians who share her commitment to affirming, evidence-based care, and she is dedicated to shaping a more inclusive future for mental health services through training, advocacy, and community collaboration.
Frances Brennan (she/her) (Owner/Director) is an experienced speech pathologist currently leading the team at The Speech Tree, a private speech pathology practice in Melbourne’s outer eastern suburbs.
Frances is autistic with ADHD. Together, Frances combines her professional and personal experience to support children/young people, families and schools with a focus on advocating for a safer environment for autistic people to be their authentic selves.
Han is a queer, trans and autistic comedian who has appeared at many Melbourne Comedy Festivals.
Helen Edgar (AuDHD) (she/her) is a teacher, educational consultant, and founder of Autistic Realms, a platform promoting neurodiversity-affirming support for Autistic and otherwise neurodivergent people. Her work focuses on the theory of monotropism and how it relates to learning, well-being, and burnout. Drawing on both professional and lived experience, Helen creates resources, training, and writing that bridge theory and practice. She is passionate about helping educators, families, and professionals understand diverse ways of thinking, communicating, and connecting, and about building environments that honour curiosity, authenticity, and neurodivergent flourishing.
Hibak Hassan is an AuDHD and PDA occupational therapist and the founder of Haven Hues OT, where she works with neurodivergent people across the lifespan through assessment, therapy, education, and resource development. She also works in public mental health as an Autism assessor in hospital settings. Hibak brings both clinical knowledge and lived experience as an Autistic ADHD woman into her practice, with a strong interest in culture, identity, and how environments shape everyday functioning. Alongside her clinical work, she creates content and practical resources that support neurodivergent communities and families.
Jacinta Interligi (she/they) has been enthusiastically working as a secondary education teacher since graduating with Honours in 2022. Specialising in Theatre and Performance studies, Literature, and History, the majority of her professional teaching has been in the English and literary studies space as she aims to create a safe and inclusive educational experience for all students. Jacinta is a proud later-in-life diagnosed AuDHDer who is passionate about working with students and families to embrace the ‘rebirth’ of understanding and living as an authentic neurodivergent person.
Jess Rowlings is a qualified speech pathologist and co-founder/CEO of Next Level Collaboration, a social enterprise that supports neurodivergent children to develop collaborative skills and social connection through cooperative video games. Jess is also an Honorary Enterprise Fellow and researcher at the University of Melbourne Faculty of Education who specialises in video game-based intervention to build social capacity in neurodivergent children. Informed by her lived experience of receiving autism and ADHD diagnoses as an adult as well as her lifelong love of games, Jess is completing her PhD investigating the experiences of neurodivergent women in gaming communities.
Jessica Benson-Lidholm is an AuDHDer, registered psychologist and mum who grew up as a young ladybug without knowing her neurotype until adulthood. She now brings together clinical wisdom, lived experience and systems-level advocacy to strengthen outcomes for neurodivergent young people, their families and the wider communities that hold them.
Joanne Hatchard is an award winning neurodivergent therapist, parent, and founder of Better Being Me. With lived experience and a background in social work, she supports late-identified women and neurodivergent families navigating identity, burnout, and the emotional load of everyday life. Joanne is known for her neuro-affirming, emotionally honest approach that centres recognition over outdated resilience narratives. Through her flagship program BBMe Completely and her podcast Talking Twaddle, she blends therapeutic insight with practical, real-world strategies. Joanne’s work champions self-understanding, sustainable change, and the power of seeing neurodivergence as a meaningful, legitimate way of being.
Katie (she/her) is the CEO and creator of Yellow Ladybugs, an autistic-led charity supporting autistic girls, women, and gender-diverse individuals. She brings lived and professional experience, advocating for systemic change. She has worked across accounting, marketing, HR, and teaching.
Fun facts: Loves cats, sparkles, and Golden Girls.
Kelsie Olds, also known as “The Occuplaytional Therapist,” is an occupational therapist who shares every day with thousands of people online—parents, teachers, fellow professionals, and adults healing their own childhoods—about the power of play in children's lives. Kelsie has worked with kids in all kinds of settings: from rural Oklahoma, to an Air Force base in England, to their current home in Geelong, Victoria. Their experiences across different countries and systems give them a unique perspective on how healthcare and education shape childhood.
@occuplaytional on FB, IG, TikTok
@occuplaytionaltherapist on Substack
Kizzy Searle (she/her) is a neurodivergent speech pathologist, lived experience advisor, mental health advocate, and speaker on the topic of trauma-informed practice. She brings an intersectional lens shaped by her CALD background, psychosocial disability, neurodivergence, and experiences of complex trauma. Through her work in private practice and across the mental health sector, Kizzy champions trauma-responsive, neuro-affirming support that centres safety, consent, and genuine connection. She is passionate about the role communication plays in wellbeing, especially for young people navigating school systems that often misunderstand distress. Kizzy shares practical, hopeful reflections that bridge lived experience and everyday support for families and professionals
Kristy Forbes (she/her) is a pioneering advocate and educator for PDA and autistic identity and culture, offering trauma-informed, non-judgmental, neuroaffirming education and support for individuals, parents and carers.
Louise Rogers realised that her children needed her at home not long after qualifying as a primary school teacher in 2014. Her career would have to wait. She accepted a role as an early childhood music presenter, hoping to work as a classroom teacher once her boys were older. Then came the day in 2018 when she found herself stuck in the school car park, with a boot full of instruments and puppets, 5 minutes from work, but unable to get there, because her little one could not be convinced to go into school. Now Louise is an administrator of the School Can’t Facebook Group, a peer support group for parents supporting children and young people who struggle to attend school. The group provides peer support for over 15,000 members across Australia. In a former life, Louise was an IT consultant, holding various roles from programmer to business analyst. She loves to sing, listen to audio books, and to go on walks with her golden retriever, Draco.
Lumen Gorrie (they/them) is a queer, trans, AuDHD PDA, chronically ill person from Naarm. They are a clinical psychologist, advocate, board-approved supervisor, educator, and founder of the Appetite for Change Project. Lumen’s work focuses on supporting neurodivergent, LGBTQIA+SB, chronically ill, disabled, and otherwise marginalised folk, alongside those with eating differences, difficulties, and disorders. They uphold an intersectional, depathologising, anti-oppressive, trauma-informed framework, centring lived experience, autonomy, and community wisdom. They’re also passionate about transforming models and systems that harm marginalised folk, creating approaches that are more inclusive, affirming, and accessible for all. Outside of this, Lumen adores hanging with their pets, reading, playing piano, infodumping about their SpIns, and crafting trinkets.
Maisie Soetantyo, M.Ed. is the founder and chairman of the board for Autism Career Pathways, a 501(c)3 organization with the mission of expanding the hiring and long-term retention rates of autistic individuals. This nonprofit marks the realization of a lifelong dream for Maisie, who has been working with autistic children and adults for almost thirty years.
Maisie started her journey in the field of Autism as a behavioral interventionist in 2001 as an undergraduate at UCLA, however, she realized that aiming to change her clients’ autistic identity did not help them to attain quality of lives in meaningful ways. After receiving her certification in Relationship Development Intervention program, she has been coaching parents and professionals for the past 20 years. Maisie also obtained a M.Ed. in Instructional and Curriculum Design.
Her late diagnosis of Autism empowers her to work towards changing the narrative on autism spectrum disorders definition, away from a deficit model. It is her mission to create a training curricula for neurodivergent individuals of all ages with emphasis on strength-based and person-centered approach. Maisie believes that “Before you can be anything, you have to be you first”.
Margo is a Certified Practising Nutritionist and the founder of Whole Body Nutrition. Her practice specialises in supporting Neurodivergent individuals of all ages, genders, and backgrounds to cultivate an emotionally healthy relationship with food.
As a proud AuDHDer and mother of two, Margo understands the challenges that both her clients and their families are navigating when they present to her in the clinic.
Margo has developed a unique style of practice that draws from a neuro-affirming, trauma informed and lived experience lens. She gently encourages her clients to understand and accept that there are different ways of eating and takes the time to validate all sensory feeding differences, which further builds on their therapeutic relationship.
Marni Kammersell (she/her) is a late-identified Autistic researcher, writer, and consultant who supports families in creating neuro-affirming learning environments. Her doctoral research focuses on family resilience and how autonomy-supportive environments foster growth and well-being. With over 15 years of experience in alternative education, Marni draws on both research and lived experience to support neurodivergent youth and their families. Her greatest teachers are her own three children, who have never been to school. Learn more at wanderingbrightly.com.
My Substack - https://wanderingbrightly.substack.com/
Podcast - PDA Resistance and Resilience
Dr. Megan Anna Neff (she/they) is a clinical psychologist, author, and founder of Neurodivergent Insights. She is the author of Self-Care for Autistic People and has an upcoming book on autistic burnout. Dr. Neff contributes regularly to Psychology Today and has been featured in outlets like CNN, PBS, and The Los Angeles Times. After discovering her own neurodivergence at age 37, she became passionate about raising awareness of non-stereotypical presentations of autism and ADHD. Through Neurodivergent Insights, she creates educational and wellness resources for the neurodivergent community, while also co-hosting the Divergent Conversations podcast.
Millie Carr is a Victorian educator, Learning Specialist, and neurodiversity advocate with lived experience as an AuDHDer, parent and professional. With over a decade of teaching and coaching across P-9 settings, she specialises in creating neuro-affirming classrooms and practical, accessible resources for students, families and educators. Through Unmasking Education, Millie designes evidence-informed tools, courses and digital supports that centre agency, regulation and inclusive practice. As a mother to neurodivergent children and a lifelong learner herself, she blends research, real world insight and compassion to empower educators and families to understand brains, reduce masking and build environments where every child can thrive.
Mish Kumar-Jonson (they/them) is a South Indian non-binary, queer, neurodivergent, and disabled mental health social worker based on unceded Kulin Nation lands. As a practitioner, EMDR Consultant, researcher, and supervisor, Mish integrates anti-colonial, healing-centred practices across the contexts and communities they’re involved in and support. As the Chair of The Iceberg Foundation and Principal Practitioner at Niram EMDR & Trauma Counselling, they support LGBTIQAP+ and neurodivergent communities, especially people of the global majority, by centring affirmation of identity, cultural humility, intergenerational healing, and joy, creating spaces where clinicians and participants alike can connect, heal, find and step into their favourite selves.
Monique (she/her) is an Autistic and ADHD’er Clinical Psychologist in Brisbane Australia. She is Co-Director of Divergent Futures which focuses on neurodiversity affirming training, has consulted on the National Autism Strategy and has co-authored ‘The Neurodivergence Skills Workbook for Autism and ADHD’ (2024) by New Harbinger with Jennifer Kemp. Monique has an interest in Autism and ADHD particularly in women and girls, and co-occurring chronic pain/illness, and trauma. Monique also co-hosts The Neurodivergent Woman Podcast with Clinical Neuropsychologist Dr Michelle Livock which shares free clinical and lived experience information on Neurodivergence in Girls and Women for professionals, neurodivergent people and their loved ones. The podcast has over 1.7 million downloads and is in the top 1% of podcasts on Spotify.
Natasha (she/her) is a founding director of Yellow Ladybugs and a policy expert. She focuses on amplifying autistic perspectives and creating empowering resources for autistic individuals. She’s also a parent to neurodivergent teens.
My name is Patrick Saunders and I’m a 16-year-old nonspeaker who communicates with a letterboard. I am Autistic, have ADHD and I love to bushwalk, advocate for Autistic nonspeakers' human rights, communicate with people and learn about the world. I have Apraxia and Developmental Coordination Disorder which affects my motor planning and how I move.
I am the youngest and first ever nonspeaking Autistic person selected for the South Australian Disability Minister's Advisory Council. I am the first Autistic nonspeaker to address South Australia's Parliament via a letterboard. As a result of my advocacy work the Attorney General listed me as an inspirational South Australian on the Government's website. I am an Ambassador for Walking SA, have appeared on the ABC show BTN and work as an international and national guest presenter and content creator. I am an entrepreneur, an Autistic advocate and a consultant for National Parks SA.
If you would like to contact me, purchase some of my products or collaborate on something please head to my website or my instagram page. On both of these platforms I share experiences and stories about nonspeaking autism using spelling to communicate
My name is Percy or Lavender, but most people probably know me as Kiku.
My pronouns are He/Fae. I am a deafblind, nonverbal/nonspeaking autistic trans man with multiple other disabilities. I am a full time multimodal AAC user with complex communication needs and a part time mobility aid user. I am queer and in a polyamorus relationship, I have two partners who are also my caregivers and I love them very much. I love to collect stuffed animals and toys, watch cartoons, draw, sew, crochet, knit, and listen to music. My favorite colors are pink and purple.
Instagram
Rachel Dorsey, M.S., CCC-SLP (she/her) is an autistic Speech-Language Pathologist with a decade of clinical experience in early intervention, the public schools, and private practice. She is the owner of Rachel Dorsey: Autistic SLP, LLC. where she provides clinic-based therapeutic services to preschool through college-aged autistic clients. The heart of her work focuses on helping her clients access social connectedness. She takes a holistic approach, often incorporating various forms of creation (e.g. visual arts, stand-up comedy and improv, music, dance, video game programming) into her neuro-affirming care. Rachel has presented educationally on the topics of gestalt language development, cognitive flexibility, and emotionally accessible social communication therapy for the autistic population in the local community and at the state and national level. She is the creator of the course Goal Writing for Autistic Students and co-creator alongside Caroline Gaddy, MFA, MA-CCC-SLP of the AOTA approved course Supporting Communication of Interoception in Gestalt Language Processors. Outside of work, Rachel enjoys art and illustration, listening to hyperpop and metal music, playing roguelite video games, and spending time with her husband and cat.
Raelene is an Autistic and ADHDer Educational and Developmental Psychologist, Play Therapist, Author, Lecturer and parent. She has over 20 years experience working with neurodivergent children and their families, and regularly presents on topics associated with neurodiversity affirming practice and neurodivergence both locally and internationally. Raelene is the author of 5 books including “A Therapist’s Guide to Neurodiversity-Affirming Practice with Children and Young People” (2023). Raelene is passionate about supporting Neurodivergent children to understand and accept who they are, and to empower them to be themselves in a society that still has a long way to go in celebrating difference.
Rebecca (she/they) is a multiply neurodivergent Educational and Developmental Psychologist, proud Wiradjuri human, parent and advocate. Rebecca is privileged to work with Autistic people across the lifespan and is unapologetically committed to neurodivergence-affirming care. Rebecca also trains and supervises Psychologists, Educators and Allied Health Clinicians in neuro-affirming assessment/support. When not working, Rebecca enjoys Lego, doom metal, Animal Crossing and reading Coroner's reports. Rebecca dreams of a world where radical acceptance is the norm, where harmful systems are dismantled, and in which all neurodivergent people are safe and free to take up space as their authentic selves.
Renee works as a Koorie Education Worker and has been in this role for seven years.
She is a proud mum to three busy boys who keep her on her toes, with family at the centre of everything she does.
Sandhya (she/her) is an AuDHD Developmental Psychologist and author of The Brain Forest, The Rainbow Brain, and My Body’s Power Pack. She helps children and families embrace their neurotype through early self-identity education. She brings an intersectional, multicultural perspective from her Singaporean background.
Sarah (she/her) is an Educational and Developmental Psychologist and fully registered teacher who works in private practice on the Gold Coast. She specialises in Neurodiversity especially in women and girls. Sarah provides therapy to children and assessments for children and adults.
Sarah is an AuDHD’er who has found her Ikigai in working with neurodiverse individuals. Sarah practices Neurodiversity Affirming therapy and assessments helping neurodivergent people explore their unique profiles and thrive. Sarah uses a lot of Lego in her work and has an assistance dog named Hamilton who is the star of the show.
Sarah (she/her) is an autistic ADHDer with a passion for understanding neurodivergence with a dialectical focus. Sarah believes that dialectical thinking gives us a way to understand and acknowledge the conflict we often find within our lived experience of neurodivergence and disability. Over the last 2 years, Sarah has built NeuroDialectical; an online space for those who want to unpack and embrace being a walking contradiction.
Sarah is continually working with the challenging reality that comes with being neurodivergent, and hopes to help others do the same. NeuroDialectical aims to be a safe place for people to let their minds be messy, and get comfy with the uncomfortable.
Sarah Middleton (she/her) is an AuDHD social worker, educator, and somatic integration coach, and the founder of Brilliant Little Gems. With more than two decades of experience across education, health, and community sectors, she blends trauma-informed practice, embodiment, and relational neuroscience to help create the conditions — both inner and outer — for people to thrive. Her work supports neurodivergent women, parents, and professionals to deepen self-awareness, process patterns shaped by trauma, and integrate current research in grounded, sustainable ways. The ethos behind her work is that each of us is inherently brilliant, and when we create the conditions for our most authentic expression — we truly shine.
Siobhan is a Neurodivergent Educator, Speaker, Writer and Advocate. Her husband, three children and herself are all Neurodivergent with a mix of Autism, ADHD, giftedness, Dyslexia and Dysgraphia. An experienced teacher with a demonstrated history of working in the education industry for over 20 years in Special Education (specializing in Autism, ADHD, Giftedness and Dyslexia), Edit photoScience and Maths in both Australia and Singapore. Siobhan started her career completing a BSc (hons) and then simultaneously completing a PhD in Physical/Theoretical Chemistry and a Masters of Teaching.
Sonny Jane (they/them) is a multiply neurodivergent advocate, author, creator and public speaker with a national and international presence.
Sonny was diagnosed with Autism as a child and grew up only hearing a deficit narrative about their neurodivergence. Since then, they have gone on to build an audience of over 100,000 people online, written two books, spoken at various conferences and summits and worked with organisations and services around Australia to help change the narrative around neurodivergence.
Through their workshops and public speaking, Sonny Jane encourages professionals and individuals to shift to the neurodiversity paradigm and both unpack and challenge neuronormativity.
Steph Robertson is an experienced neurodivergent occupational therapist, speaker and advocate, with a commitment to trauma responsive and neurodiversity-affirming practice. She holds a Bachelor degree of Occupational Therapy and a Master degree of Advanced Occupational Therapy Practice where she completed a research study into parents' and carers' experience of family centered practice in early childhood intervention. As an Autistic, ADHD, cPTSD individual and a plural system, Steph draws on her professional, research and lived experience in her work to support neurodivergent people and their families to challenge neuronormativity and build a life that works for them! With over a decade of experience, Steph offers impactful talks, trainings, and resources designed to support the deep socio-political shift to more inclusive and affirming spaces for all people. When not working, Steph can be found wandering in nature, reading or playing with their many animals.
Tara Kent is an Autistic and ADHD Developmental Educator, with a diverse background across the disability, education and human rights context. Tara has worked as a clinician, teacher, lawyer, company director and currently is the Director of multiple organisations providing neurodivergent affirming services to the sector. Tara also provides free and accessible education to the public via her social media profile of Miss_DivergAntz and by a free course she wrote which is provided via the DivergAntz Collective website.
Instinct Au: In this company, we are NDIS Registered and provide behaviour (neuroscience based) support to NDIS participants.
DivergAntz Collective: In this company we do diagnostic assessments, functional capacity assessments and have a range of Allied Health providing telehealth therapies and services. We also have a free course for people to do on how to provide ND affirming services and covering Autism and ADHD from the ND lens.
The Experience Collectors: In this company we provide therapies to children in our clubhouses in South East QLD (Brisbane and Gold Coast). We provide these therapies in small social environments to enable connection with other ND peers.
Miss_DivergAntz: This isn’t a company, just a profile I use to provide neurodivergent affirming information to the public. I have TikTok, YouTube and Fb presence.
Tash is a Yorta Yorta AuDHDer and Paediatric Occupational Therapist and dopamine dresser. She works in community health and in supporting kindergarten teachers. Her special interests are the ocean, Lego and Halloween.
Tiffany Westphal wears many hats. As a parent supporting her own daughter who experienced school can't, she came to join School Can't Australia (SCA) and is now involved in the operation and advocacy work of SCA, which has over 16,000 parent/carer members. As a social worker working in the "school can't" space, Tiffany developed a resource called Student Stress Investigation which is designed to support students to communicate about the difficulties they are experiencing at school. She seeks to amplify the voices of those with lived experience including students and assist people to understand the impact of chronic stress on capacity and wellbeing.
Dr. V Tisi, CCC-SLP (龔玉蓮) is an Autistic and ADHD speech-language pathologist, lecturer, professional development provider, and parent consultant specializing in heritage language maintenance, trauma-informed social-emotional learning, and identity-affirmative care for the autistic community. Their work centers on culturally responsive, neurodiversity-affirming support for multilingual autistic individuals and families. Dr. Tisi is particularly interested in protective factors for mental health at the intersection of alexithymia, interoception differences, PDA, RSD, and communication-style differences, especially within education and the family-unit. Their clinical and educational practice integrates research, lived experience, and strengths-based approaches to challenge systemic injustices in order to foster more inclusive environments.
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