LeadAbility delivered by Leadership WA, aims to empower Western Australians with disability to become confident leaders and explore their full potential in a dynamic practical leadership program.
This week on In Plain sight we enjoyed the company of Meagan Shand who has just begun her role as the Leadership Development Manager at LeadAbility.

Meagan shared many interesting aspects about this fabulous inclusive program, including that she is the first person in this role who has a disability.
She is an experienced Disability Leader with a rich and diverse experience working across the disability, higher education and social sector across Australia.

To find out more or to apply, or share this opportunity with someone in your community who may be interested in LeadAbility:
leadershipwa.org.au/leadability
Meagan’s email:
Meagan.shand@leadershipwa.org.au

Disability led solutions are the solution

It was a great pleasure to meet and talk with Meagan, and we hope you enjoy this very informative conversation.

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Kyra Cullton is a recent participant of the CPActive Changemakers leadership program conducted by the Cerebral Palsy Alliance Australia. The 12 week CPActive program aims to bring people together to make Australia more inclusive, whilst developing young leaders advocating for change.

This dynamic & impressive young person who lives in the town of Australind, 2 hours South of Perth, made quite an impact on us during our conversation. Kyra has already demonstrated her determination and skill as an advocate with a strong voice and has produced two short films as part of the Focus on Ability Film Festival. Keep a look out for her latest film project “You’ve Got This!” (2026). This documentary was inspired by the mental health challenges Kyra has faced alongside her Cerebral Palsy.

Kyra who has just turned 19 is a fabulous example of leadership in action who is highly motivated to make our Community more inclusive while encouraging others to participate and get involved in their community and beyond.

The CPActive course is an online program offered Australia wide.
We learnt from out time with Kyra Leadership programs such as this participants gain much more than formal skills & training, they can also gain valuable insights into their personal development and growth.
And, small actions can bake a big difference


CPActive website
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://cpactive.org.au__;!!BW9V2p7J0Kl2QvQ!DDIE7utTVW2-19iI3ZLVYZ6KTP0WWMCs3iE2x4EitcBNB1Lz7ymX27s6Cn68FVnyinkQbu29Kc9WayFweDSIISfIWInDUGCb$

Kyra’s film - “Dear Cerebral Palsy’. (2003).
Kyra Culloton - Dear Cerebral Palsy
Focus on Ability Film Festival
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://youtu.be/PABybvPR2RM?si=zluymuPanTIZ2pAM__;!!BW9V2p7J0Kl2QvQ!DDIE7utTVW2-19iI3ZLVYZ6KTP0WWMCs3iE2x4EitcBNB1Lz7ymX27s6Cn68FVnyinkQbu29Kc9WayFweDSIISfIWBGn9df7$

2023 Australian Open Documentary - Focus on Ability Short Film Festival. Full details at
https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.focusonability.com.au__;!!BW9V2p7J0Kl2QvQ!DDIE7utTVW2-19iI3ZLVYZ6KTP0WWMCs3iE2x4EitcBNB1Lz7ymX27s6Cn68FVnyinkQbu29Kc9WayFweDSIISfIWFtXDpnt$

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This week on the show join Simon and Andrew as they chat to Joe Teakle about his career as a filmmaker and host of Film Talk on radio DADAA. He recounts his experience making the documentary 'Theatricality' (2024) for SBS and future plans for acting and film making.

His love of movies has expanded to hosting the show Film Talk on the newly launched Radio DADAA every Wednesday from 11am to 12pm (Perth Time). You can find the accessible website here to see program rosters and learn more. Joe's show discusses films, old and new, diving into stories, the production process and the state of the industry.

We also discuss how Joe's Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) affects his life currently and his goals for the future.

We hope you enjoy this episode and check out Rad Joe's new show.

THIS IS A PROGRAM ENCORE, initially published Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at 6:00 AM

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Lilly is a super impressive young person, who has already written her first book “Blossom, and is now

preparing for an upcoming documentary and her entry into the Focus on Ability Film Festival.

As a WA Youth Awards finalist 2024 & 2025 lily proudly, & boldly uses her voice to create change.

This week at In Plain Sight we are delighted to replay a wonderful conversation wee had with Lily to highlight her great work. Lily wants to make a difference in this world and she will and we are proud to shine a light upon it.

- Also bring attention to her documentary launch event.

This project has brought together a lot of individuals and sectors - an incredible achievement for someone of Lily's age.

Event details and registration:

Date: Sunday 26 July

Time: 2pm-4pm

Venue: Kolbe Catholic College

25 Dowling St, Rockingham

RSVP: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1608729

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This week we’d like to introduce you to a new online platform & app called “Connect Up”.ConnectUp is a free Australian app launched in June 2026 to help people with disability, unpaid carers, and families reduce social isolation and find physical activities. It lets users build online connections, arrange in-person meetups, and discover accessible venues using an interactive map and many other useful functions that makes it easier for people with a disability to connect with others with a similar interest.
We had a very interesting & informative conversation with Craig Thompson, one of the leading researchers & developers from Curtin University; & Nina Butler one of the active Co-Design team.We also enjoyed discovering some of the fabulous interests and pursuits of Nina Butler who is Deafblind and has a physical disability. Nina’s enthusiasm & positive energy was captivating and fun to talk with.
Some of Nina’s interests include; writer, speaker, and advocate. Nina uses her writing as a form of education and advocacy and she also enjoys producing a blog. - You can check out Nina’s blog , “Inner Musings Of A Funny Looking Kid” at www.ninimeany.wordpress.com or like it on Facebook https://m.facebook.com/Inner-Musings-Of-A-Funny-Looking-Kid-151852385305430/
Connect Up - can be found online at; -https://www.connectup.org.au

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This week we speak with Dennis Collins, Arts Mentor from DADAA & Joe Teakle, arts participant and Radio DADAA presenter, about their visit to Canberra to interview some federal politicians, to gain some insights into their views on Arts and Disability Inclusion.

We learn about the background and aims & objectives of this bold project.

During this fun, lively & informative conversation, we explore and discuss many avenues of the importance & relevance of creating and supporting accessible and inclusive arts practice and involvement. People with disabilities want to be part of the conversation that allows for broader representation in and around the Arts Sector. However,; while Art is DADAA’s main focus, the team will also explore and question the politicians around all aspects of important issues for people with disabilities, including areas of funding & the NDIS .

We discover what Radio DADAA has to offer and how people can get involved.

Joe shares his enthusiasm to shift his focus from being a filmmaker to a budding radio reporter and presenter. And, I can highly recommend Joe’s program on Radio DADAA called Film Talk with RadJoe, which is very informative, engaging & entertaining. Check it out sometime soon.

Engaging with the Arts releases aspects of the soul and can be beneficial to the overall welfare and well-being of our society, so it’s important to support and encourage.

Radio DADAA =

https://www.dadaa.org.au/shows/

DADAA web homepage =

https://www.dadaa.org.au

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This week on IPS we are learning about brain injury and living with an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI).
We had a fabulous warm & insightful conversation with Fiona Hopper, Peer Project Coordinator at Brain Injury Matters (BIM). BIM is a membership based peer to peer support group based in Melbourne.

There are many aspects of living with an acquired brain injury (ABI), while firstly acknowledging it can be traumatic and a major stressful change of life and circumstance.
And, BIM has several aims which include supporting people with an Abi and trying to educate and inform the public of what brain injury is and its impacts on people with an ABI.

As both a support group and an advocacy agency BIM aims to;
Help provide support to alleviate the isolation and marginalisation experienced by people living with an Acquired Brain Injury. BIM is also an active advocate that acts as a voice of people with an Acquired Brain Injury to inform local, state, and national bodies around relevant issues affecting people with an ABI.

It was a pleasure to meet and talk with Fiona Hopper who is a passionate skilled peer worker.
Fiona describes some of the important roles and functions of BIM and particularly the peer networks and supports. She helps to coordinate both the in person groups and online catch-ups.

This conversation with Fiona who has an ABI and also happens to be blind reminds us about the importance of good quality supports and keeping connected with people who have similar life experiences to yourself.
It’s a great example of a community working well and working together with the same aims.

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This week we have a very interesting conversation with Adam Schickerling, the CEO of Synapse, one of Australia’s leading support agencies for people with an Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). As it was recently Brain Injury Awareness Week, we thought it would be good to learn more about brain injury and the support and services aimed to assisting people living with an ABI. The theme of Brain Injury Awareness Week 2026 is Brain Injury: Many Pathways, One Community.

Adam highlights some of the impacts on individuals and their families living with a brain injury and why it is important to raise the knowledge & awareness of this often hidden disability. We explore some of the services and assistance that Synapse provides and how they try to make people’s lives a little easier while adapting and living with an ABI.

While there is a variety of causes of a brain injury, two of the areas of interest that Synapse focuses on are injury resulting from family & domestic violence and supporting Aboriginal Communities where brain injuries are present. This was an interesting insight and both good that the service is available and sad that it is needed.

Synapse also provides Advocacy support to help make important decisions about the rights and best interests of people with an ABI and their supporters, along with helping people get connected with others in a similar situation.

Their head office is in Brisbane, with locations throughout Australia.

To find out more contact Synapse

https://synapse.org.au/brain-injury-awareness-week/

Call: 1800 673 074

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