Speak My Language (Disability)

Daha kapsayici topluluklar yaratmak (Creating Inclusive Communities)

Cogu zaman engelli insanlarin karsina cikan bariyerler, onlarin engelleri degil, toplumun onlara karsi tutumlari ve bakis acilari degil midir?

Canli yayinimizin bu son bolumunde, kapsayiciligin onemi hakkinda konusacagiz. Kapsayicilik, herkesin topluma tam anlamda dahil olmasi, herhangi bir engel veya ayrimcilikla karsilasmadan her seyin tadini cikarabilmesi anlamina gelir.

 

Zeliha İşcel, görme bozukluğu olan Avustralyalı Bir Türk göçmendir. Zeliha şu anda WA'nın önde gelen engelli savunucularından biri olmasının  yani sira, kendi danışmanlık şirketinin de sahibi olan başarılı bir  is kadinidir. Hayat yolculuğundaki deneyimleri, bize körlüğün iyi yaşamanın önünde bir engel olmadığını gösteriyor.

Konuk konuşmacım Tolun, 11 yıl önce Avustralya'ya göç etmiş,şu an profesyonel olarak engelliler ile çalışmakta olan Türk asilli bir Avustralyalıdır.  Demans, Zihinsel Engellilik, Ölümcül Alkol Spektrum Bozukluğu ve Otizm sahibi, kültürel ve dilsel açıdan gelen farklı bireyler ve özellikle gençlere hizmet verirken, onların engellerine rağmen toplumda daha iyi yaşamalarına destek olmaktadır.
 

Transcript 

Tolga: Speak My Language programimizin canli yayinlari sirasinda, bircok engelli arkadasimizin daha iyi yasama sekilleri ile ilgili heyecan verici hikayeler dinledik. Ister spor, ister sanat, ister mesleki hedeflerinin pesinden kosmak olsun, misafirlerimizin hepsi bize toplumun aktif ve degerli uyeleri oldugunu gosterdiler.
Cogu zaman engelli insanlarin karsina cikan bariyerler, onlarin engelleri degil, toplumun onlara karsi tutumlari ve bakis acilari degil midir?
Canli yayinimizin bu son bolumunde, kapsayiciligin onemi hakkinda konusacagiz. Kapsayicilik, herkesin topluma tam anlamda dahil olmasi, herhangi bir engel veya ayrimcilikla karsilasmadan her seyin tadini cikarabilmesi anlamina gelir.
Engelli olmayanlarimiz icin de kapsayici olmayi dikkate almak hala ciddi onem teskil etmekte zira kapsayicilik hepimizi etkilemekte. Biliyorsunuz hepimiz yaslaniyoruz ve yas aldikca engelli olmaya egilimimiz artmakta. Ilerleyen yasamimizda bir kaza gecirebilir yada engele sebep olacak bir duruma maruz kalabiliriz. Bu nedenle, tam da su anda toplumumuzu daha kapsayici bir hale getirmeyi dusunmek hepimizin cikarinadir.
Bugunku ilk konugunuz Bati Avustralyanin onde gelen engelli haklari savunucularindan, gorme engeline sahip bir Turk Avustralyali gocmen Zeliha Iscel. Zeliha, bir devlet danismani ve engelli haklari savunucusu olarak, bizimle kulturel acidan farkli engelli insanlara kucak acan, erisilebilir kuruluslar hakkinda bazi bilgiler paylasabilir misin?
Zeliha:  Savunmalik yapiyoruz, Advocacy diyoruz, savunmalik yapiyoruz yine ama Systemic savunmasi oluyor bizimkisi, mesela bir olay birkac kisiyi etkiliyorsa onun uzerindel lobi veya uyari yapmaya calisiyoruz. Mesela su anda ben daha basa gecmeden cok once Perth Korler Dernegi tren istasyonlarinda, tren istasyona varinca, trenin varisini haber veren bir anons uygulatmak icin lobi yapmisti, su anda ise trenin hangi istasyona varacagini, Perth trenlerinin hepsinde tren istasyona varmadan once anons ediyorlar, bu Sydneyden bile cok once gerceklesti. Bizim korler dernegi bayaga guclu burada yani.
Tolga: Simdi de uzmanligi ile Demans, Zihinsel Engellilik, Fetal Alkol Spektrum Bozuklugu ve Otizmli kisilere destek olan, serbest engelli calisani Feyyaz Tolun Savuti le beraber olacagiz.
Tolun, engelli insanlarin guvenli ve kapsayici toplumsal alanlara ve etkinliklere erisimlerini desteklemeyi bir misyon haline getirdin. Bize biraz bundan bahsedebilir misiniz?
Tolun: Bununla ilgili bir ornek vereyim, engelli bir kisinin evinden cikip hicbir engelle karsilasmadan kaldirimda ilerleyip otobus duragina gelip otobuse binebilmesi ve ondan sonra da tabi otobusten inip gormeye niyetlendigi filmi sinema salonunda rahatlikla izlerken bir yandan patlamis misir ve kolasini tuketmesi gibi bir manzara cizebiliriz ama buradaki en basit sey olan otobuse binebilmesi bile en azindan 20-30 yillik yogun cabalarin bir sonucu. Simdi butun community center’lar ve kamuya acik yerlerde yapilmasi gereken degisiklikler ile ilgili olarak hukumetlerin federal yada local seviyede cok buyuk finansal ve know-how destekleri var. Bunlarla herkes engellilerin katilmayi isteyecegi alanlari onlarin kullanimina uygun hale getirmekle yukumluler.
Tolga: Evet, maalesef ki, toplum icerisinde yeralan onyargi ve yanlis bilgilendirme konusu engelli insanlara karsi bircok problem dogurmakta. Bu konuda bize neler soyleyebilirsin?
Tolun:  Simdi tum samimiyetimle ve ictenligimle ifade ediyorum ki Avustralya toplumu disability konusunda ve yaslilara destek konusunda ki bu benim kastettigim tabi aile destegi degil, profesyonel destek ve toplum olarak destek konusunda kendisi ile barisik olan ender  toplumlardan birisi yani bizim gelismis toplumlar diye dusundugumuz bircok toplumda bu hala onemli bir konu olurken, Avustralya toplumu icinde bu konuda cok mesafeler katedilmis, neticede hayatin bir parcasi, yani yaslilikta hayatin bir parcasi, disability de yasamin bir parcasi o halde yasamin diger kalan kisimlari ile nasil ilgileniyorsak bunlari da oyle kabul ediyoruz ve ilgileniyoruz bakis acisi cok buyuk bir avantaj.
Tolun: Evet, ayni zamanda Avustralya toplumu cok kulturlu ve dilli bir toplum. Buyuk Avustralya toplumunu olusturan daha kucuk parcalar, yani kulturel ve dil acisindan farkli gecmislerden gelenlerin buyuk Avustralya toplumundaki bu cok onemli degisimin bir parcasi olmasi biraz gecikme ile geliyor. Bunun sebeblerinden birisi farkli kulturlerin disability ve ruhsal saglik konularina farkli yaklasimlarinin olmasi ve genellikle bu yaklasimin korumaci, problemleri kendi imkanlari ile, icinde cozulmesi yonlerine ilerlenmesi seklinde ortaya cikiyor.
 
Tolga: Hepimiz toplumuzu daha kapsayici hale getirmede rol oynayabiliriz. Baslangic olarak, engelli insanlar hakkinda nasil konustugumuzu veya onlarla nasil etkilesime girdiginizi bir dusunun. Onlara karsi bir acima tutumuna sahip olma egilimindeyseniz, bunun degistirmenin zamani gelmistir. Speak My Language programinda yer alan dizilerin bize gosterdigi gibi, engelli insanlar da hepimiz gibi; Onlarin da hayatta farkli farkli hedefleri ve hayalleri var, onlar da topluma katkida bulunuyorlar ve sunacaklari gercekten cok sey var. Unutmayalim ki, Engelli insanlar hakkinda saygili bir sekilde konusur ve engellerinin otesinde sahip olduklari sahsiyete odaklanirsaniz, iste o zaman toplumu zaten daha kapsayici hale getiriyorsunuz demektir.
Umariz programimizda dinlediginiz bircok hikaye sizi engeliniz ile nasil daha iyi yasayacaginizi dusunmeye tesvik etmistir. Programimizi begendiyseniz, hikaye anlaticilarimizdan daha fazla bilgi edinmek icin web sitemizi ziyaret edebilirsiniz.
 

About the guest speaker
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Often, the barriers that hold people with disabilities back are not their disabilities – it is the attitudes and infrastructure of society.

In our final on-air episode, we will talk about the importance of inclusion. Inclusion means that everyone can participate in society and enjoy everything it has to offer without facing barriers or discrimination.

Zeliha Iscel is a Turkish Australian migrant who has a visual impairment. Zeliha is now one of the leading disability advocates in WA and a successful business person who owns her own consultancy company. Her lived experience shows that blindness is not a barrier to living well.

Mr Feyyaz Tolun Savut is a Turkish Australian who migrated to Australia 11 years ago. He is now a freelance disability practitioner supporting people with Dementia, Intellectual Disability, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Autism. He frequently works with culturally and linguistically diverse individuals in his professional life and mostly with young people who have disabilities to support them to live life well.
 

Transcript 

Tolga: During our on-air Speak My Language program, we have heard the stories of many people with disabilities about the ways they live well. Whether it be sport, the arts or pursuing their professional goals, our guests have shown us that they are active and valued members of society.

Often, the barriers that hold people with disabilities back are not their disabilities – it is the attitudes and  infrastructure of society.

In our final on-air episode, we will talk about the importance of inclusion. Inclusion means that everyone can participate in society and enjoy everything it has to offer without facing barriers or discrimination. 

For those of us without disabilities, it is important to still consider inclusion because inclusion effects all of us. We are all ageing and as we age, we are prone to develop disabilities. We could have an accident or develop a condition later in life. So, it is in everyone’s interests to think about making society more inclusive, right now.

Our first guest today is Zeliha Iscel, a Turkish Australian migrant who has a visual impairment, who is a leading disability advocate in Western Australia. Zeliha, as a government consultant and disability advocate, could you share some information about accessible organisations that welcome culturally diverse people with disabilities?

Zeliha: We defend–we call it Advocacy–we defend, but we have Systemic defence, for example, if an event affects a few people, we try to lobby or warn others about it. For instance, right now, long before I took over, Perth Blind Association (Blind Citizens WA) lobbied at train stations to make an announcement, to announce the arrival of the train, when the train arrives at the station, and now they announce which station the train will arrive at, on all Perth trains before the train arrives at the station–this is in Sydney. It would even happen a long time ago. So, our association for the blind is very strong here.

Tolga: We will now hear from Mr Feyyaz Tolun Savut, a freelance disability practitioner supporting people with Dementia, Intellectual Disability, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and Autism. 

Tolun, you have made it your mission to support people with disabilities to access safe and inclusive mainstream spaces and activities. Can you tell us a bit about this? 

Tolun: Let me give an example about this, we can draw a scene like a disabled person can leave his house and walk on the sidewalk without encountering any obstacles, come to the bus stop, get on the bus, and then get off the bus and consume the popcorn and coke while watching the movie he intends to see comfortably in the movie theatre. Even being able to get on the bus, which is the thing, is the result of at least 20-30 years of intense effort. Now, governments have great financial and know-how support at the federal or local level for the changes that need to be made in all community centres and public places. With these, everyone is responsible for making the areas that disabled people want to participate in suitable for their use.

Tolga: There is an issue within society where stigma and misinformation can put barriers on people with disabilities. What can you tell us about this? 

Quote 3 - Clip from https://speakmylanguage.com.au/podcasts/play/P396/E 

Tolun: Now I can sincerely and genuinely say that the Australian society is one of the few societies that is at peace with itself in terms of disability and support for the elderly, which is not what I mean by family support, but with professional support and support as a community, that is still important in many of what we consider to be developed societies. While it is an issue, a lot of distance has been covered within the Australian society, after all, it is a part of life, that is, old age is a part of life, and disability is a part of life, so we accept and deal with the rest of life the same way we take care of the rest of life, and this is a great point of view to have.

Yes, at the same time Australian society is a multicultural and multilingual society. It comes with some delay that the smaller parts of the larger Australian society, namely those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, are part of this crucial shift in greater Australian society. One of the reasons for this is that different cultures have different approaches to disability and mental health issues, and this approach generally appears to be protective and tends towards solving problems within their own means.

Tolga: All of us can play a part in making society more inclusive. For start, think about how you talk about or interact with people who have disabilities? If you tend to have an attitude of pity towards them, it’s time to change this. As this series has shown us, people with disabilities are just like everyone else. They have goals and dreams, they contribute to society and they have a lot to offer. If you speak with respect about people who have disabilities and look beyond their condition to the person that they are, you are already making society more inclusive. 

We hope the many stories you have heard in our program have encouraged you to think about how to live well with a disability. If you enjoyed this program, be sure to visit our website to hear more from our storytellers. 

About the guest speaker
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Mesleki hedeflerimizi gerceklestirmek (Realising Professional Goals )

Engelli bir çok insan icin, kisisel ve mesleki hedeflerini gerceklestirmek, yasamlarina mutluluk kattigi kadar onlara bir bagismsizlik da kazandirir. 
Evren, matematik alanında olağanüstü bir yeteneğe sahip bir Türk Avustralyalı göçmendir. Bu bölümde, ailesinin geçimini sağlamak ve bağımsız bir şekilde hayatına yön vermek için, adeta ayaklı bir hesap makinesi gibi bilinen matematik yeteneğini de kullanarak yaptigi kariyeri ve yasadiklarinin hikayesini anlatiyor.
 

Transcript

Tolga: Engelli bircok insan icin, kisisel ve mesleki hedeflerini gerceklestirmek, yasamlarina mutluluk kattigi kadar onlara bir bagismsizlik da kazandirir. 

Gelin ilk once, su an sosyal hizmeter alaninda calisan ve gittigi heryerde hayranlik uyandiran disleksili bir bayan, Turkan’dan bahsedelim.

Turkan bize disleksi ile buyuyup nasil egitimine devam ettigini ve sonrasi bir is bulabildigini anlatabilir misin?

Turkan: Disleksinin ne oldugunu anlamadim ama kisa surede bunun sadece kodlama ile ilgili bir sorun olmadigini, beynimim sadece cevremdeki dunyayi nasil anlamlandirdigini, uzaysal akil yurutmemi hatta bazen motonoron hareketlerimi bile etkiledigini anladim. Arkadaslarim bana cok destek olduar, durum anladilar ve ozellikle gorsel ogrenme yoluyla farkli sekilleri gormem icin  beni motive ettiler, yardimci oldular. Bu deneyimler sayesinde sanatta basarili oldum. 

 Universiteyi bitirdikten sonra saglik sektorunde calisiyordum bir sure ama belediyeye de bakiyordum, nasil topluma yardici olabilirim diye belediyeye basvurdum, zamanimi enerjimi oraya vermek bana gercekten bir onur Verdi cunku insanlara degisik alanlarda hizmet edebiliyor bilgi verebiliyordum, onlara support yapabiliyordum.

Tolga: Yani senin isin, baskalarinin da topluma daha fazla dahil olmasina ve onlarin entegrasyonuna yardimci olmakta, degil mi? 

Turkan: Simdi bir senedir Welcoming Cities’de coordinator olarak calisiyorum, degisik NSW belediyelerine destek oluyorum, onlarla beraber calisip, nasil baktiklari yerlere inclusion ve diversity principle’lari yerlestirmeyi ogretiyorum ve onlara yardimci oluyorum.  

NSW Belediyelere destek vermek benim icin cok gurur verici, degisik belediyelerde Access Inclusion Officer’lar oluyor, onlarla calisip topluma daha cok yardmci olabilmek mutluluk veriyor. Cunku kendim de disleksi ile yasadigim icin, hangi hislerde olundugunu, neler gerektigini, kimlerle konusmak gerektigini, onlara toplumda nasil yer verebilecegimiz gibi yonlerden kendii experience’lerimden insight vermek gercekten cok mutluluk veriyor bana.

Tolga: Turkanin disleksi ile yasanmis tecrubelerinin isyerinde bir kazanim olarak gormek gercekten harika, cunku bu ona baskalarina da kapsayici bir ortam yaratmak icin en dogru tutum ve beceriler kazandirmakta. 

Hepimiz gibi engelli insanlarin da kariyer hedeferi vardir ki bu mevcut isgucune cok fazla deger sunabilir. 

Bir sonraki hikaye anlaticimiz, sayilarla ilgili olaganustu yetenege sahip Avustralyali bir Turk gocmen olan Evren. Evrenin isitme kaybina sahip olmasi onun bir is bulabilmesinin onunde hicbir engel teskil etmemis. 

Evren bize biraz bu macerandan bahsedebilir misin? Is bulma yolunda hangi kaynaklari kullandin?

Evren: Avustralyaya geldigimizden beri aile hekimimiz olan doktor hanimin fikrini sordum, kendisi benim isitme cihazimi devletletten almama yardimci olan doktordu, yillardir taniyordum. Oturdugumuz bolgedeki konseye gitmemi soyledi. Gercektende konseyde cok yardimci oldular. Hatta ilk isimi bile konsey sayesinde buldum. 

Tolga: Tam zamanli calismaya baslamadan once TAFE’de ogrenim gordun. Bize biraz bundan bahseder misin?

Evren: Gunduzleri calisirken aksamlari da TAFE’de muhasebe alaninda sertifika programina basladim. Bu alanda calisacaksam kesinlikle egitim almaliydim. Uzerine iki sertifika daha bitirdim, hatta baska sirketlere isler bile yapiyordum. 

Tolga: Aslinda Evrenin hikayesi o kadar da siradisi degil. TAFE’in ogrenim goren engelli insanlar icin kapsayici ortamlar sundugunu biliyor muydunuz? Kayit oldugunuzda, ogrenme ortaminizi durumunuz daha uygun hale getirmek icin size destek sunabilirler. Hatta isterseniz bunu gizli bir sekilde de yapabilirler. 

Hatta ogreniminizi bitirdikten sonra is bulmaniza yardimci olacak destekler de sunarlar. Mesleki hedeflerinizi gerceklestirmek icin yardim almak isterseniz, Disabilty Employment Australia ihtiyaclariniza cevap verebilecek en ust seviye organdir. 

Bu yapilanmanin uyeleri, engelli olmayan kisiler gibi reel ucretlerle calisacak, engelli calisanlar bulma konsusunda uzmanlasmistir. 

Daha fazla bilgi icin disabilityemployment.org.au. sitesini ziyaret edebilirsiniz.

Elbette ki bu konuda asil sorumluluk isyerlerine dusmekte. Yani hepimizin bildigi gibi daha kapsayici bir isgucu olusturmak isverenlerin elinde. Unutmayalim ki, Evreninki gibi hikayeleri daha fazla duymanin onemi, isverenlere engelli insanlarin da bir isyeri icin uretken bir kazanc olabilecegini gostermekte.

Herkesin guvenli ve uygun bir is ortaminda calismasindan emin olmak icin isyerlerinin engelli calisanlari icin makul bir ortam saglamasi gerektigini bilmelisiniz. 

Daha fazla bilgi icin, www.fairwork.gov.au internet sitesini ziyaret edip ‘Employees with disability’ sayfasini tiklayabilirsiniz. 

You can also find more resources with IncludeAbility, an initiative of the Australian Human Rights Commission that supports people with disability looking for work and employers who want to create meaningful employment opportunities for employees with disability. Visit https://includeability.gov.au/ 

Ayrica, bir ‘Australian Human Rights Commission’ girisimi olan, is arayan engelli kisileri ve engelli calisanlar icin gercek anlamda istihdam firsatlari yaratmak isteyen isverenleri destekleyen, ‘IncludeAbilty’ ile daha fazla kaynaga da ulasabilirsiniz. Lutfen includeability.gov.au sitesini ziyaret edin.

About the guest speaker
(

For many people with disabilities, unlocking personal and professional goals provides satisfaction in life, and grants independence. 

Evren is a Turkish Australian migrant who has an exceptional talent for numbers. In this episode, she shares her life story and her journey to finding fulfilling work that uses her skills as a 'human calculator' to provide for herself and her family, and give her greater independence.
 

Transcript

Tolga: For many people with disabilities, unlocking personal and professional goals provides satisfaction in life, and grants independence. 

Let's first hear from a dyslexic woman, Turkan, who works in the field of social work and gains admiration everywhere she goes.

Turkan, tell us how you pursued education and found employment after growing up with dyslexia? 

Turkan: I didn't understand what dyslexia was, but I soon realised that it wasn't just a problem with coding, it was just how my brain made sense of the world around me, it affected my spatial reasoning and sometimes even my motor neurons. My friends supported me a lot, they understood the situation and they motivated and helped me to see different shapes, especially through visual learning. Thanks to these experiences, I became successful in art.

After graduating from university, I was working in the health sector, but I was also looking after the municipality council. I applied to the municipality council to see how I can help society. It gave me a real sense of honour to give my time and energy there because I could serve people in different fields, give information and support them.

Tolga: So your job helps others to be more included and integrated into society, right? 

Turkan: I've been working as a coordinator at Welcoming Cities for a year now, supporting different NSW municipalities, working with them, teaching and helping them implement inclusion and diversity principles in the places they look after.

It makes me very proud to support NSW local government areas, there are Access Inclusion Officers in different municipalities, it gives me pleasure to work with them and help the community more. Because I am living with dyslexia myself, it gives me great pleasure to give insights from my own experiences, such as what feelings you have, what you need to talk about, who we need to talk to, and how we can give them a place in society.

Tolga: It’s really great to see that Turkan’s lived experiences of having dyslexia is an asset in the workplace because it has given her the right skills and attitude to create an inclusive environment for others. 

People with disabilities have career aspirations like everyone else and can offer a lot of value to the workforce.

Our next storyteller is Evren, a Turkish Australian migrant who has an exceptional talent for numbers. While Evren has hearing loss, this did not prove to be a barrier to her finding work.

Evren, can you tell us a bit about your journey? What resources did you use on your pathway to finding employment? 

Evren: I asked the opinion of the female doctor, who has been our family doctor since we came to Australia. She was the doctor who helped me get my hearing aid from the government. I had known her for years. She told me to go to the local council where we live. The council was indeed very helpful. I even found my first name thanks to the council.

Tolga: You went on to study at TAFE before getting full time work. Can you tell us about that? 

Evren: While working during the day, I started the certificate program in the field of accounting at TAFE in the evenings. If I was going to work in this field, I should definitely get an education. I completed two more certificates on it, I was even doing jobs for other companies.

Tolga: Actually, Evren’s story is not that unusual. Did you know that TAFE offers inclusive accommodations for people with disabilities who are studying? When you enrol, they can offer you support to make your learning environment more suitable for your condition. They can even do this confidentially if you like.

There are also supports to help you find work after you finish your studies. If you are seeking help to realise your professional goals, Disability Employment Australia is the peak body that can represent your needs.

Their members specialise in finding people with disability employment, for real wages alongside people who do not have disability.

You can learn more at disabilityemployment.org.au. 

Of course, the real responsibility rests with workplaces. It is up to employers to be more inclusive. The reason why it is important to hear stories like Evre’s  is that it shows employers that people with disabilities can be productive assets to a workplace.

You should know that workplaces must make reasonable accommodations for their employees with disabilities, to make sure everyone has a safe and suitable workplace.

To learn more about this, visit www.fairwork.gov.au and click on the webpage called Employees with disability. 

You can also find more resources with IncludeAbility, an initiative of the Australian Human Rights Commission that supports people with disability looking for work and employers who want to create meaningful employment opportunities for employees with disability. Visit includeability.gov.au

About the guest speaker
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Aktif Olun! (Get Active!)

 İyi yaşamaktan bahsettiğimizde, engelli olsun ya da olmasın- bir şey vardır ki herkes için geçerlidir ki bu aktif olmak! Bugünkü Speak My Language (Disability), bölümünde, özellikle zihinsel ve fiziksel sağlığı iyi korumak için aktif olmanin ne kadar değerli olduğu hakkında konuşacağız.

Kazadan önce amatör bir boksör ve Aussie Rules oyuncusu olan Nazim, rehabilitasyon sırasında bile spordan vaz gecmedi, tekerlekli sandalye ragbisinde yer buldu ve sekiz yıl sonra Sydney 2000 Oyunları'nda Paralimpik ilk maçına çıktı.  

 

Transcript

Tolga: İyi yaşamaktan bahsettiğimizde, engelli olsun ya da olmasın- bir şey vardır ki herkes için geçerlidir ki bu aktif olmak!

Bugünkü Speak My Language (Disability), bölümünde, özellikle zihinsel ve fiziksel sağlığı iyi korumak için aktif olmanin ne kadar değerli olduğu hakkında konuşacağız.

Haydi once uyarlanabilir sporlar hakkinda konusmakla baslayalim. 

Uyarlanabilir spor, özellikle engelli kişiler için uyarlanmış veya oluşturulmuş bir spordur. Bu sporlar eğlence amaçlı olduğu kadar rekabetçi de olabilir. 

Ne güzel ki, Avustralya bizlere birçok uyarlanabilir spor türü sunabilmektedir. Elektrikli Tekerlekli Sandalye Hokeyinden Tekerlekli Sandalye Tenisine ve Okçuluğa kadar her mevcut. Hatta Kör kriketi ve Kör Golfu bile var!

Aslında Uyarlanabilir sporlar, temel aldıkları sporlara benzemekle beraber oyuncuların engellerini karşılamak için farklı şekilde oynanmakta. Örneğin, kör futbolunda, sporcular oyuncular arasında eşitlik olduğundan emin olmak için göz bağı veya maske takarlar – bunun nedeni de bazı kör insanların farklı görme seviyelerine sahip olmalarıdır. 

Bugünkü ilk konuğumuz, uyarlanabilir sporlar hakkında her şeyi bilen biri, tekerlekli sandalye ragbisinde ülkemize altın madalya getiren paralimpik atlet Nazım Erdem.

Naz, omurilik yaralanması geçirdikten sonra rehabilitasyon sırasında tekerlekli sandalye ragbisine başlamış, ama bu spor onun için sadece bir rehabilitasyon yolu olarak kalmamış- ve hatta sonrası çok daha fazlası olmuş.

Naz, bize tekerlekli sandalye ragbisi ile yasadığın bu yolculuktan biraz bahseder misin?

Nazim: Sekiz ay sonra, kazadan sonra Canberra’ya gittik, yarim saat yol arabayla. Bir basketbol salonunda dort ayri takim vardi. Tekerlekli sandalyelerle bir oyun oynuyorlardi. Baktim hepsi wheelcharde olmalarina ragmen carpisiyorlar, hareketliler, Bayaga sevindim. Hani mutsuz degillerdi, bayaga guluyorlar, konusuyorlardi.Cok iyi birseydi benim icin. Ben onlari oyle gorunce biraz da Avustralya Futboluna benzettim, hani timespot olarak, fiziksel bir oyun olarak. Hic carpismadan korkmuyorlardi. Wheelchair de olmalarina ragmen herkes tam tersi carpisip yere dusuyor sonra guluyor egleniyorlar sonra yardimcilar yere dusenleri kaldiriyorlar sonra yine devam ediyorlardi. Cok hosuma gitti. O aksam bayaga sevindim. Tekrar geri donduk belki iki uc gun arkadaslarla beraber hep ondan bahsettik, hani cok iyi bir spor diye. Sadece spor icin degil ama kendine kuvvet vermek icin, hem de exercise yapmak icin, hersey icin iyi bir şeydi.

Tolga: Olimpiyatlarda gerçek anlamda gayet rekabetçi bir şekilde tekerlekli sandalye ragbisi oynamaya devam ettin. Bu nasıl bir şeydi? Anlatabilir misin?

Nazim: Sidney bizim icin iyi gitti yani finale ciktik. Amerikayla altin madayla icin oynamaya basladik. Bir puanla kaybettik ve gumus Madalya aldik Sidneyde. Sidney benim icin ilk oyundu ondan sonra dort ayri paralimpik oyunlara katildim. 2004’te Atinaya gittim. Atina bizim icin hic iyi gitmedi, orada besinci geldik. Yani diyecek birsey yok. Ondan sonra 2008’de Pekine gittik. Orada tekrar Amerika ile finale kaldik. Yine ikinci geldik ve gumus Madalya kazandik. Pekinden sonra 2012’de Londra oyunlari vardi. Yine Amerikayla finale kaldik ama bu sefer biz yendik ve ilk altin madalyayi kazandik. Bir de cok kolay yendik. Londradan sonra Rio oyunlari vardi, 2016 senesinde ve o sene yine finale kaldik bu sefer Kanada ile ve yine altin Madalya kazandik.

Tolga: Belki hepimiz Paralimpik olmayacağız, ama inanın hepimiz spordan gerçek anlamda faydalanabiliriz. Vücudunuzu sınırlarına göre yapacağınız uygulanabilir yoga gibi bir şey bile aktif kalmak için harika bir yol olabilir.

Herkes gibi, engelli insanlar da spor aktivitelerinden birçok şey kazanabilir.

Para-sporlara katılmakla ilgileniyorsanız, www.sports.org.au adresini ziyaret edebilirsiniz. 

Kör veya görme engelliyseniz, www.blindsportsaustralia.com.au adresinden kendiniz icin uygun bir spor secebilirsiniz.

About the guest speaker
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When we talk about living well, one thing applies to everyone - whether they have a disability or not - and that’s staying active. In today’s episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will talk about the value of keeping active, especially to maintain good mental and physical health.

 

An amateur boxer and Aussie Rules player before his accident, Nazim found a new sporting outlet in wheelchair rugby after being introduced to it during rehab, making his Paralympic debut eight years later at the Sydney 2000 Games.
 

Transcript 

Tolga: When we talk about living well, one thing applies to everyone - whether they have a disability or not - and that’s staying active.

In today’s episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will talk about the value of keeping active, especially to maintain good mental and physical health.

Let’s start by talking about adaptive sports first.

Adaptive sports is a sport that has been adapted or created for persons with a disability. These sports can be recreational or competitive.

Australia offers many kinds of adaptive sports. There is everything from Electric Wheelchair Hockey to Wheelchair Tennis to archery. There is even Blind cricket and Blind Golf!

Adaptive sports are similar to the sport they are based on, but are played differently to cater to the players’ disabilities. For example, in blind football, the athletes wear blindfolds or a mask to make sure there is equality among the players–this is because some blind people may have different levels of vision. 

Our first guest today is Nazım Erdem, a paralympic athlete who knows everything there is to know about adaptive sports, who brought a gold medal home to our country in wheelchair rugby.

Naz started wheelchair rugby during rehab after suffering a spinal cord injury, but the sport hasn't just been a rehab route for him- it's become much more after that.

Naz, tell us a bit about your journey with wheelchair rugby.

Nazim: Eight months later, after the accident, we went to Canberra, half an hour by car. There were four separate teams in a basketball court. They were playing a game with wheelchairs. I saw that even though they were all in wheelchairs, they collided, they were moving—they were very happy. You know, they were not unhappy, they were laughing and talking a lot. 

It was a very good thing for me. When I saw them like that, I compared them to Australian Football, as a physical game. They were not afraid of any collision. Even though they were in wheelchairs, everyone was actually colliding and falling to the ground, then laughing, having fun, then the helpers were picking up those who fell on the ground, then they continued again. I really liked it. I was pretty happy that night. We came back again, maybe for two or three days, we talked about it with friends, you know, because it's a very good sport. It was good for everything, not just for sports, but to give strength to oneself, as well as to exercise.

Tolga: You actually went on to play wheelchair rugby competitively in the olympics. What was it like? 

Nazim: Sydney went well for us, so we reached the final. We started playing with America for the gold medal. We lost by one point and got the Silver Medal in Sydney. Sydney was the first game for me, after that I participated in four separate Paralympic games. I went to Athens in 2004. Athens did not go well for us, we came fifth there–so there’s not much to say. After that, we went to Beijing in 2008. There we made it to the final with America again. We came second again and won the Silver Medal. After Beijing, there was the London Games in 2012. We made it to the final with America again, but this time we beat them and won the first gold medal. And we beat them very easily! After London, there were Rio games, in 2016 and that year we reached the finals again, this time with Canada and we won the gold medal again.

Tolga: Not all of us will become paralympians, but believe me, we can all benefit from sport. Even something like adaptive yoga, where you stretch your body based on its limits, can be a wonderful way to stay active. 

Like everyone else, people with disabilities can get a lot out of sport activities. 

If you are interested in getting involved in para-sports, visit www.sports.org.au

If you are blind or visually impaired, you can find sports for you at www.blindsportsaustralia.com.au

About the guest speaker
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Yaratici yonelimler refah seviyemizi artirir (Creative Outlets Create Wellbeing)

Engelli ve engelsiz birçok insan için, her birimizin içinde sahip olduğu yaratıcı ruhu keşfetmek, refahımızı iyileştirmenin güçlü bir yoludur. Tıpkı hepimizin eşit olarak yaratıldığı gibi, yine hepimiz yaratıcı olma yeteneğine sahibiz. Bugün, daha kapsayıcı bir toplum yaratmak için yaratıcı ruhlarında ustalaşmış insanlar hakkında farklı hikayeler duyacağız. 
Filiz, engeline sahip olduktan sonra da iyi yaşamaya kararlıydı. O zamandan beri, engelli bir kadın, bir göçmen ve bir anne olarak yaşadığı deneyimler, çok fazla paylaşım ve öğrenmenin yapıldığı bir platform olan Women of World Stage WOWS Inc.'i (WOWS) kurması için ona ilham verdi.

About the guest speaker
(

For many people with and without disabilities, discovering the creative spirit within each of us is a powerful way to improve our wellbeing. Just as we were all created equally, we all have the ability to be creative. Today we will hear different stories about people who have mastered their creative spirit to create a more inclusive society. 

 

Filiz was determined to continue living well after she acquired her disability. Since then, her experiences as a woman with a disability, a migrant and a mother inspired her to form Women of World Stage WOWS Inc. (WOWS), a platform where much sharing and learning is done. 

About the guest speaker
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Mantener la independencia (Maintaining Independence )

La fisioterapia es una herramienta valiosa para las personas con discapacidad, pero también una  herramienta que puedes adaptar a ti y a tus propias necesidades. Al hacer que funcione para  usted, puede mejorar su bienestar en cuerpo y mente.

El Dr. William Cuellar, un fisioterapeuta con sede en Tasmania, es el primero en unirse a nosotros  en esta conversación. Actualmente, es profesor en la División de Medicina, Facultad de Medicina, Facultad de Salud y Medicina de la Universidad de Tasmania.

Lucrecia Sergi es una mujer argentina que vive en Adelaide. Es una fisioterapeuta con una valiosa experiencia y mucho trabajo. Lucrecia puede ayudar a personas brindándoles una evaluación, asesoramiento y terapia funcionales y holísticos en la comodidad de su hogar o en un lugar de trabajo, pero el mejor lugar para sus terapias es al aire libre.
 

Transcript 

Marielba: Durante nuestro programa, hemos hablado sobre el valor de mantenerse activo para mantener la  salud física y mental. 

Hoy veremos las cosas desde una perspectiva diferente, la de un fisioterapeuta, y descubriremos  por qué el ejercicio también puede ser terapéutico para las personas que viven con  discapacidades. 

El Dr. William Cuellar, un fisioterapeuta con sede en Tasmania, es el primero en unirse a nosotros  en esta conversación. Dr. Cuéllar, ¿podría explicar el valor de la fisioterapia para las personas con  discapacidad? 

Dr Cruellar: Yo creo que es fundamental que las personas que viven con discapacidad se involucren  en actividades donde haya interacción social donde puedan hablar, dar opiniones, discutir  ideas, reírse o simplemente compartir un café con distintas personas todo eso es parte de  vivir la vida. Yo también creo que es importante que personas con discapacidad puedan  tener la oportunidad de desarrollar sus planes de cumplir las metas que ellos se propongan  pues a través de esto estas personas puedan sentir que la vida tiene más sentido entonces  yo creo que es bien importante la interacción social y  la interacción social por supuesto está  ligada a la movilidad, al acceso y a la independencia.
Marielba: Está claro entonces que la fisioterapia nos hace más fuertes, más independientes y nos da un  mayor control. 
Dr. Cruellar, ¿podría también compartir con nosotros qué tipo de lugares están disponibles en el  público para que las personas con discapacidad utilicen para hacer ejercicios de fisioterapia? 

Dr Cruellar: Acerca de gimnasio hay varios gimnasios que tienen acceso para personas con  discapacidades pero también hay algunos que ofrecen servicios específicos para estas  personas que son clases que se dan por trabajadores de la salud tales como  fisioterapeutas o fisiólogos. Específicamente aquí en Hobart hay dos lugares que se llaman  Oceana Aquatic and Fitness ellos ofrecen servicios de gimnasio con ejercicios guiados por  fisioterapeutas o fisiólogos. Y ellos también ofrecen otros servicios tales como Terapia  ocupacional, terapias del Lenguage y servicios dietéticos. Entonces todos estos servicios  pueden ser accesibles para personas con discapacidad. También hay un gimnasio  comunitario el YMCA también ofrece clases específicas o que las personas con  discapacidades pueden acceder a esos y esas clases también son dadas por  fisioterapeutas. Su propio fisioterapeuta lo puede usted repetir allá pero yo creo que lo  mejor es contactar a estos dos lugares y hacer una cita para que ellos le hagan un examen  para que lo vean y lo determinen que es lo que usted realmente necesita antes de empezar  las clases pero estos lugares si existen y hay gimnasios que permiten que las personas  con discapacidades vayan hacer su propio programa de ejercicio o ellos mismo le dan su  programa de ejercicio.  
Marielba: Obviamente, hay muchas opciones entre las que una persona puede elegir para hacer fisioterapia. 
Ahora se nos une Lucrecia Sergi, que reside en Adelaida y tiene una perspectiva diferente sobre  la fisioterapia. Ella cree que las actividades al aire libre son algunas de las mejores maneras de  rehabilitar y mejorar nuestras habilidades físicas, ¡y también nuestro estado de ánimo!

Lucrecia, ¿cuáles son los beneficios de hacer actividades de fisioterapia al aire libre? 
Lucrecia: Muchísimos, desde el punto de vista de salud de presión arterial, desde el punto de vista  emocional reduce la ansiedad, aumenta la capacidad cognitiva, aumenta la creatividad,  aumenta la socialización, nos conecta con la naturaleza, es volver a las bases. Y todo el  mundo que asiste a la naturaleza,bueno  la mayoría de la gente, está más feliz. Es como que  allí uno se olvida de los problemas y se focaliza más en lo básico de la vida, en conectarse  con el mundo. En la naturaleza somos parte de todo un sistema y no somos solos  nosotros. Lo que estoy aprendiendo y utilizando es esta conexión con la naturaleza que ayuda a la  gente a sentirse más acompañado. Yo también lo digo desde un punto de vista personal me  puedo pasar un fin de semana entero haciendo jardinería y jamás me siento sola .Es porque  estoy acompañada de las plantas de las abejas, de las hormigas. Puede sonar loco pero es  así.
Marielba: Excelente. Y nos podría decir, ¿en qué se diferencia su concepto de fisioterapia de los demás? 

Lucrecia: Sí siempre trato de facilitar el aire libre, a veces se puede y hay veces que no. Desde estar  sentados en un banco portátil y hacer la terapia en un mini jardín y es increíble cómo la  gente cambia o cómo cambian esa posición de pensar No puedo hacer esto ni hacer lo otro  de repente estamos haciendo exactamente lo mismo pero afuera y empiezan a fijarse mira  cómo creció la planta y esto es parte de contribuir en que se conecten con la naturaleza. Hay  mira cómo creció esa planta o que lindo ese pajarito, que lindo el ruido es increíble cómo la  gente cambia desde estar adentro y estar afuera.

Marielba: Asombroso. Bueno, hoy hemos escuchado de dos fisioterapeutas sobre las muy diversas formas de actividades y ejercicios que se pueden hacer para mejorar la independencia.
La fisioterapia es una herramienta valiosa para las personas con discapacidad, pero también una  herramienta que puedes adaptar a ti y a tus propias necesidades. Al hacer que funcione para  usted, puede mejorar su bienestar en cuerpo y mente.

About the guest speaker
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Physiotherapy is a valuable tool for people with disabilities, but also a tool that you can tailor to you and your own needs. By making it work for you, you can improve your wellbeing in body and mind.

Dr William Cuellar, a physiotherapist based in Tasmania, is the first to join us in this conversation. Currently, he is a lecturer in the Division of Medicine, School of Medicine, College of Health and Medicine of the Tasmanian University. 

Lucrecia Sergi is an Argentine woman who lives in Adelaide. She is a physical therapist with valuable experience under her belt. Lucrecia can help people by providing holistic and functional assessment, counselling and therapy in the comfort of their home or in a workplace, but the best place for her therapies is outdoors. 
 

Transcript

Marielba: During our program, we’ve talked about the value of staying active, to maintain physical and mental health. 

Today, we will look at things from a different perspective, that of a physiotherapist, and find out why exercise can also be therapeutic for people living with disabilities.

Dr William Cuellar, a physiotherapist based in Tasmania, is the first to join us in this conversation. Dr Cuellar, could you explain the value of physiotherapy for people with disabilities? 

Dr Cruellar: I think it is essential that people living with disabilities get involved in activities where there is social interaction where they can talk, give opinions, discuss ideas, laugh or simply share a coffee with different people, all of which is part of living life. I also believe that it is important that people with disabilities can have the opportunity to develop their plans to meet the goals that they set for themselves, because through this these people can feel that life has more meaning, so I believe that social interaction is very important. Social interaction is linked to mobility, access and independence.

Marielba: It is clear then that physiotherapy makes us stronger, more independent and gives us greater control. 

Dr Cruellar, could you also share with us what kind of places are available in the public for people with disabilities to use in order to do physiotherapy exercises?

Dr Cruellar: There are several gyms that have access for people with disabilities, but there are also some that offer specific services for these people, which are classes given by health workers such as physiotherapists or physiologists. Specifically here in Hobart there are two places called Oceana Aquatic and Fitness, they offer gym services with exercises guided by physiotherapists or physiologists. And they also offer other services such as Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy and Dietary Services. So all these services can be accessible to people with disabilities. There is also a community gym, the YMCA also offers specific classes or that people with disabilities can access those and those classes are also given by physical therapists. Your own physiotherapist can recommend it there but I think it's best to check these two places and make an appointment for them to do an exam so they can see it and determine what you really need before starting classes. But these places do exist and there are gyms that allow people with disabilities to go do their own exercise program or they give them their own exercise program. 

Marielba: Obviously, there are many options a person can choose from to do physiotherapy.

We are now joined by Lucrecia Sergi, who is based in Adelaide, and has a different perspective on physiotherapy. She believes activities in the outdoors are some of the best ways to rehabilitate and improve our physical skills, and our mood as well!

Lucrecia, what are the benefits of doing physiotherapy activities outdoors? 

Lucrecia: A lot, from the health point of view of blood pressure, from the emotional point of view it reduces anxiety, increases cognitive capacity, increases creativity, increases socialisation, connects us with nature, it's going back to basics. And everyone who spends time in nature, well, most people are happier. It's like, there one forgets about problems and focuses more on the basics of life, on connecting with the world. In nature, we are part of a whole system and we are not alone. What I am learning is this connection with nature that helps people feel more connected. I also say it from a personal point of view, I can spend a whole weekend gardening and I never feel alone, it's because I am accompanied by the plants, the bees, the ants. It may sound crazy but that's how it is.

Marielba: Excellent. And could you tell us, how does your concept of physiotherapy differ from others? 

Lucrecia: While I always try to facilitate activities in the outdoors, sometimes it is possible and sometimes it is not. From sitting on a portable bench and doing therapy in a mini garden, it's incredible how people change or how they change that position of thinking from ‘I can't do this or do that’, suddenly we're doing exactly the same thing but outside and they start to notice ‘Look how the plant fell’ and this is part of helping them connect with nature. ‘Look how I create that plant’ or ‘how cute that little bird is’, ‘how cute the noise is’--incredible how people change from being inside and being outside.

Marielba: Amazing. Well, we have heard from two physiotherapists today about the very diverse forms of activities and exercise that can be done to enhance independence. 

Physiotherapy is a valuable tool for people with disabilities, but also a tool that you can tailor to you and your own needs. By making it work for you, you can improve your wellbeing in body and mind.

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¡A bailar! (Let’s Dance!)

Sin duda, en el corazón mismo de la cultura latinoamericana está nuestra música, baile y ritmo.  ¡Es por lo que somos conocidos en todo el mundo! 
Hoy, en este episodio de Speak My Language (Disability), discutiremos cómo el baile puede  transformar nuestro bienestar y ayudarnos a vivir una vida más saludable. 

Como persona con discapacidad, Jorge conoce el valor de conectarse con los demás a través de  la música y la cultura. Un año y medio después de lanzar su negocio, ahora ofrece 7 clases  permanentes a la semana. 

Después de quedar  parapléjica debido a un accidente peatonal, Rocca extrañaba bailar y la conexión que le brindaba  con su cultura. Esto cambió después de ver a Para DanceSport en acción. 

Transcript

Marielba: Sin duda, en el corazón mismo de la cultura latinoamericana está nuestra música, baile y ritmo.  ¡Es por lo que somos conocidos en todo el mundo!   

Hoy, en este episodio de Speak My Language (Disability), discutiremos cómo el baile puede  transformar nuestro bienestar y ayudarnos a vivir una vida más saludable. 

Primero, hablemos con Vicky Ferrada, una música y trabajadora social que cree en el poder de la  música para mejorar la vida de las personas. 

Vicky ha visto de primera mano cómo las personas con discapacidad han usado la música para  ganar confianza y construir relaciones. 

¿Tu consideras que la música y el baile pueden beneficiar a las personas que viven con  discapacidad?  

Vicky: Mira, yo he visto, Yo he presenciado a mi madre que tuvo Alzheimer y demencia que no se  acordaba de nombres ni se acordaba de lo que paso ayer pero si se acordaba de cantar y tocar. Asique la oportunidad que yo tenía de tocar mi guitarra aunque a veces ni me reconocía pero  se acordaba de las canciones de Violeta Parra, ella cantaba canciones de su niñez entonces  eso a mi me dio la idea de que las personas su comunión con la música nunca termina  aunque su mente no esté allí porque ella se esta borrando la música nunca se borra, las  poesías no se borran. Lo he visto, lo he observado y me llena de mucha emoción ver  que las personas continúan a pesar de su discapacidad continúan haciendo algo tan  hermoso como tocar música. Sorry me puse un poquito emocional.  

Si, mira es una terapia excelente porque cuando uno está escuchando música y moviéndose  al ritmo de la música aunque la persona esté solamente de pie o simplemente sentada en  una silla puede participar con los movimientos de su cuerpo, no tiene que realmente  pararse o darse vuelta con salsa. La música se expresa y se toma de diferentes maneras  entonces de acuerdo a las capacidades de las personas es como reaccionan a la música y  a veces yo veo gente que llega en silla de ruedas a un café por ejemplo o a un restaurant y  a pesar de estar con una silla de rueda alguien los toma y les da vuelta en la silla y  participan con la música y de verdad se sienten como si estás flotando y eso es lo que me  dicen. Yo me sentí como si estába flotando cuando estaba escuchando la música entonces  no es necesario de tener las dos piernas tan buenas como para bailar que sería lo ideal  pero para la gente que no lo tiene ese privilegio que en realidad es un privilegio tener  nuestras dos piernitas buenas y los bracitos y todo el cuerpo. La gente igual recibe la  música de una manera tan integral que necesitan seguir escuchando más música y a veces  es el momento en que ellos se dan cuenta que ellos tienen que volver a escuchar música en  sus casas en el vehículo donde sea que estén porque la música es muy terapéutica.  

Marielba: Para el venezolano-australiano Jorge Luis Nava, convertirse en instructor de Zumba cambió su  vida para mejor. Un año y medio después de lanzar su negocio, ahora ofrece 7 clases  permanentes a la semana. 

En qué aspectos de la vida la música te ha beneficiado?  

Jorge: Si han habido por supuesto beneficios comunitarios y beneficios sociales pero han habido  unos beneficios emocionales y unos beneficios físicos. Y si, totalmente,i la Zumba combinada con unos  pequeños cambios en hábitos alimenticios es lo que ha hecho la combinación perfecta para  una pérdida de peso. En su totalidad, muy buenos y es algo que definitivamente se lo recomiendo a  todos nuestros oyentes y a la comunidad que hacer ejercicio y estar comprometido a un  ejercicio te va a beneficiar físicamente y vas a ver los resultados muy notoriamente y muy  rápido.

En la parte emocional lo que esto ha ayudado en que durante el día tengo algo en mi cabeza en  que pensar que cuando termine esto ya se que estoy listo para bailar, sabes como listo  para lo mío. Entonces mentalmente y emocionalmente todo el día tengo algo, tengo una meta. A  las 6 de la tarde o a las 7 de la noche voy a ver a mi comunidad, voy a ver a mi gente, voy a  bailar, voy a sudar, voy hacer ejercicio, me voy a sentir más feliz, eso es lo que me ha ayudado  mucho emocionalmente.
  
Marielba: Como persona con discapacidad, Jorge conoce el valor de conectarse con los demás a través de  la música y la cultura. La belleza de la danza latinoamericana es que hace ambas cosas:  construye una familia, crea una conexión con tu propio cuerpo y te hace sentir involucrado en tu  cultura. 

Este fue también el caso de nuestra siguiente invitada, Rocca Salcedo. Después de quedar  parapléjica debido a un accidente peatonal, Rocca extrañaba bailar y la conexión que le brindaba  con su cultura. Esto cambió después de ver a "Para DanceSport" en acción. 

Rocca, ¿podrías compartir cómo fue empezar a bailar con tu silla de ruedas?  

Rocca: Bueno ha sido una trayectoria muy interesante yo soy Colombiana y en Colombia la salsa  es parte de la cultura de nuestra sangre yo recuerdo que yo crecí viendo a mis tías bailando  en la cocina mientras cocinaban, mi abuela también. Siempre había música en mi casa yo cuando estaba en el colegio yo hacía parte del grupo de danza del colegio.  

Desafortunadamente en el 2001 tuve un accidente y debido al accidente quede en silla de  ruedas y siempre tuve esa frustración de no poder expresarme a través de la danza con la  silla de rueda me parecía algo que no se veía artístico o como que era raro yo la verdad no  sabía ni siquiera como manejar la silla de rueda y fue una cosa que deje a un lado de pronto  inconscientemente dije pues suprimo esta..como este  hobbie que tenia y pues mi vida era diferente asi  que pues lo deje a un lado. Resulta que de casualidad en el 2018 Melbourne fue el anfitrión  del campeonato mundial de danza y de pura casualidad fui a ver el campeonato se hacía en  el Melbourne Park más exactamente en el Roll Melbourne arena para mi sorpresa una de las  categorías era baile en silla de ruedas. Yo no lo podía creer, ya la verdad es que nunca había visto lo que llaman acá Ballroom Dance o danza de baile de diferentes estilo  personas de silla de rueda. Para privilegio mío venía el campeón mundial de danza en silla  de rueda que es un filipino y fue la cosa más espectacular y más artística que yo nunca  hubiese imaginado que se pudiera hacer. Después de esto yo pues me abrí un mundo de  posibilidades de empezar a preguntar y yo llame a la asociación de danza de Victoria y  pregunte si ellos tenían sitios donde daban danzas para personas con sillas de rueda o lo que  se llama para baile. Pues ellos no tenían ni idea no me supieron explicar y ellos ni siquiera  habían escuchado la palabra silla y baile o para baile y allí fue donde se me ocurrió la idea  voy a crear el primer grupo de danza en silla de ruedas acá en Victoria.  

Marielba: Entonces, Jorge y Rocca están de acuerdo en que la belleza de la danza y la música es la forma  en que crea conexiones sociales y eleva el espíritu. 

Rocca: Bueno Primero que todo Dance N Roll nació como hobby no con la idea de hacer parte de  competencias y la otra gran prioridad del grupo es crear una comunidad y conexiones.  Entonces nosotros muchas veces a parte de bailar salimos a comer todo el grupo, somos  amigos y creo que esto es muy importante dentro de la comunidad de personas  discapacitadas el socializar. El conocer otras personas que están en las mismas  circunstancias y que se crea esa camaradería en donde las personas se sientan libres de  preguntar cualquier cosa de su discapacidad . 

Marielba: Si bien Dance N Roll tiene su sede en Melbourne, Rocca ha conectado en línea a personas con el  grupo de toda Australia. ¡Sus amistades ahora se extienden por todos los estados y territorios! 
Puedes escuchar que tanto Rocca como Jorge viven bien, disfrutan de la vida y continúan  bailando de la manera que les funciona. Si te gusta bailar, hay muchas opciones. 
Puede comenzar visitando www.sports.org.au/para-dancesport para aprender más sobre para dance. 
Una cosa es segura: ¡tener una discapacidad no debería impedirte subir a la pista de baile!

About the guest speaker
(

Without a doubt, at the very heart of Latin American culture is our music, dance and rhythm. It’s what we’re known for around the world! Today, on this episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will discuss how dancing can transform our wellbeing and help us live healthier lives.

As a person with a disability, Jorge knows the value of connecting to others through music and culture. One year and a half after launching his business, he now offers 7 permanent classes a week. 

After becoming paraplegic due to a pedestrian accident, Rocca missed dancing and the connection it gave her to her culture. This changed after she saw Para DanceSport in action.
 

Transcript 

Marielba: Without a doubt, at the very heart of Latin American culture is our music, dance and rhythm. It’s what we’re known for around the world!

Today, on this episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will discuss how dancing can transform our wellbeing and help us live healthier lives.

First, let us talk with Vicky Ferrada, a musician and social worker who believes in the power of music to improve people’s lives. 

Vicky has seen firsthand how people with disabilities have used music to gain confidence and build relationships.

Do you consider that music and dance can benefit people living with disabilities?

Vicky: Look, I've seen, I've witnessed my mother who had Alzheimer's and dementia, who didn't remember names or what happened yesterday, but she did remember singing and playing. So I took the opportunity to play my guitar, although sometimes she didn't even recognise me, she remembered the songs of Violeta Parra, she sang songs from her childhood so that gave me the idea that people commune with music. It never ends even if her mind is not there because music is never erased, poetry is not erased. I have seen it, I have observed it and it fills me with great emotion to see that people continue, despite their disabilities, to continue doing something as beautiful as playing music. Sorry I got a little emotional.

Yes, look, it's an excellent therapy because when one is listening to music and moving to the rhythm of the music, even if the person is only standing or simply sitting in a chair, they can participate with their body movements, they don't really have to stop or turn around. With sauce. Music is expressed and taken in different ways, so according to people's abilities, it is how they react to music and sometimes I see people who arrive in a wheelchair to a cafe, for example, or to a restaurant, and despite being with a wheelchair someone takes them and turns them around in the chair and they participate with the music and they really feel like you're floating and that's what they tell me. I felt as if you were floating when I was listening to the music, so it is not necessary to have both legs so good to dance, which would be ideal, but for people who do not have that privilege, it is actually a privilege to have our two legs. good and the little arms and the whole body. People still receive music in such an integral way that they need to continue listening to more music and sometimes it is the moment when they realise that they have to go back to listening to music at home in the vehicle wherever they are because music is very therapeutic.

Marielba: For Venezuelan-Australian Jorge Luis Nava, becoming a Zumba instructor changed his life for the better. One year and a half after launching his business, he now offers 7 permanent classes a week. 

In what aspects of life has music benefited you?

Jorge: Yes, of course there have been community benefits and social benefits, but there have been emotional benefits and physical benefits. Yes, Zumba combined with a few small changes in eating habits is what has made the perfect combination for weight loss. Overall, it’s very good and I definitely recommend it to all of our listeners and the community that exercising and being committed to exercise is going to benefit you physically and you are going to see results very noticeably and very quickly.

On the emotional side, this has helped because during the day I have something in my head to think about. When this is over I know I'm ready to dance. So mentally and physically all day I have something, I have a goal. At 6 in the afternoon or at 7 at night I'm going to see my community, I'm going to see my people, I'm going to dance, I'm going to sweat, I'm going to exercise, I'm going to feel happier, that's what helped me a lot. emotionally.

Marielba: As a person with a disability, Jorge knows the value of connecting to others through music and culture. The beauty of Latin American dance is that it does both–it builds a family, it builds a connection to your own body and it makes you feel involved in your culture.

This was also the case for our next guest, Rocca Salcedo. After becoming paraplegic due to a pedestrian accident, Rocca missed dancing and the connection it gave her to her culture. This changed after she saw Para DanceSport in action.

Rocca, could you share what it was like to start dancing with your wheelchair?

Rocca: Well, it has been a very interesting trajectory. I am Colombian and in Colombia salsa is part of the culture of our blood. I remember that I grew up watching my aunts dance in the kitchen while they cooked, my grandmother too. There was always music in my house and when I was at school I was part of the school dance group.

Unfortunately in 2001 I had an accident and due to the accident I was left in a wheelchair and I always had that frustration of not being able to express myself through dance with a wheelchair. Truthfully, I didn't even know how to use a wheelchair and it was something that I suddenly put aside. I unconsciously said, well, I suppressed that hobby that I had and well, my life was different, so I put it aside. It turns out that by chance in 2018 Melbourne was the host of the world dance championship and by pure chance I went to see the championship held in Melbourne Park more exactly in the Roll Melbourne arena to my surprise one of the categories was wheelchair dance wheels. I couldn't believe it, and the truth is that I had never seen what they call Ballroom Dance here or dance of different styles for people in wheelchairs. For my privilege, the world wheelchair dance champion who is a Filipino came and it was the most spectacular and artistic thing that I would never have imagined could be done. After this, I opened up a world of possibilities to start asking questions and I called the dance association of Victoria and asked if they had places where they gave dance for people with wheelchairs or what is called for dance. Well, they had no idea, they didn't know how to explain it to me, and they hadn't even heard the word chair and dance or for dance, and that's where the idea came to me: I'm going to create the first wheelchair dance group here in Victoria.

Marielba: So, Jorge and Rocca agree that the beauty of dance and music is the way it creates social connections and uplifts your spirits.

Rocca: Well First of all Dance N Roll was born as a hobby not with the idea of being part of competitions and the other great priority of the group is to create a community and connections. So many times, apart from dancing, the whole group goes out to eat, we are friends and I think that socialising is very important within the community of disabled people. Meeting other people who are in the same circumstances and creating that camaraderie where people feel free to ask anything about their disability. 

Marielba: While Dance N Roll is based in Melbourne, Rocca has connected people with the group from all around Australia online. Their friendships now span across every state and territory! 

You can hear that both Rocca and Jorge are living well, enjoying life and continuing to dance in ways that work for them. If you enjoy dancing, there are many options out there.

You can start by visiting www.sports.org.au/para-dancesport to learn more about para-dance.

One thing is for certain: having a disability shouldn’t stop you from getting on the dance floor!

About the guest speaker
)

Yoga y Meditation (Yoga and Meditation)

Los beneficios del yoga y la meditación ahora son bien conocidos en el mundo occidental, pero  hoy escuchará cuántas personas con discapacidades recurren al yoga para disfrutar de sus  efectos terapéuticos y vivir bien. 

Oswaldo Grillet vivió una vida increíblemente activa y acelerada hasta  que desarrolló una condición que le hizo perder la visión. Después de lo ocurrido, Oswaldo se vio  obligado a reducir la velocidad, pero esto cambió su vida para bien. 

A menudo, el yoga puede ser una herramienta para la rehabilitación después de que alguien  adquiera una discapacidad debido a una enfermedad, un accidente o la edad. 
Este fue sin duda el caso de Ana María Román, quien desarrolló una discapacidad y problemas de  salud crónicos después de que le diagnosticaran el síndrome de Guillain-Barré. 

Esperamos que las historias de Oswaldo y Ana María puedan inspirarte a investigar el yoga  también y ver cómo puede mejorar tu vida también.
 

Transcript 

Marielba: Los beneficios del yoga y la meditación ahora son bien conocidos en el mundo occidental, pero  hoy escuchará cuántas personas con discapacidades recurren al yoga para disfrutar de sus  efectos terapéuticos y vivir bien. 

Nuestro primer invitado, Oswaldo Grillet, vivió una vida increíblemente activa y acelerada hasta  que desarrolló una condición que le hizo perder la visión. Después de lo ocurrido, Oswaldo se vio  obligado a reducir la velocidad, pero esto cambió su vida para bien. 

Oswaldo, eres profesor de yoga de profesión. ¿Qué podemos aprender al practicar Yoga? 

Oswaldo: A través de la ciencia del yoga del conocimiento y del estudio serio. No estoy hablando de  algo superficial, estoy hablando de algo que toma años de estudio se logra tener un  entendimiento de la vida de lo que se trata la vida y con esas herramientas que son tan  poderosas el ser humano se empodera justamente para poder percibir la vida como es y no  como uno cree que tiene que ser entonces el ser humano que logra esos estados de  conciencia se considera que es un ser humano que es libre. Y una persona libre es una  persona que está completamente satisfecha pero no está basado en un resultado. Su  percepción de la satisfacción no está basada en cuando yo termine esto o cuando yo  compre aquello, no está basado en nada que va a ocurrir en un futuro esta basado en este  momento actual que yo estoy yo decido que yo estoy bien, que yo me siento bien. 

Marielba: ¿Y cómo la meditación nos ayuda a sentirnos más tranquilos? 

Oswaldo: Estamos acostumbrados a tener una mente agitada pero el problema no está en la mente  agitada el problema está en que nosotros estamos identificando erróneamente con esa  mente agitada entonces justamente una de las cosas que te enseña la meditación es que  no se trata de hacer un gran esfuerzo para tratar de controlar los pensamientos o para  tratar de dejar de pensar. Lo que tu debes enfocarte es dejar de prestarle atención a los  pensamientos, ósea es como que tu estas en una habitación y tu quieres silencio pero hay  ruido afuera, esos ruidos son tus pensamientos pero tu estas en la habitación adentro y  quieres silencio pero hay ruido afuera entonces lo que está pasando es que te estás  enfocando en el ruido de afuera y no te estás concentrando en la habitación donde estás.  Esto es lo que uno hace cuando medita no hay que hacer ningún esfuerzo lo que hay que  dejar de controlar y empezar a observar. Automáticamente tus expectativas se van a  cambiar por apreciación y cuando eso sucede es cuando tu estas cambiando la bioquímica  de tu cuerpo y te empiezas a sentir mejor naturalmente. 
Un pensamiento genera un químico específico en tu cuerpo y la manera en la que tu te  sientes, tu celular te escuchan te sienten. Los seres humanos tenemos el poder de  sentirnos bien sea lo que sea que esté pasando externamente tu puedes lograr que lo que tu no puedes controlar no te perturbe y yo se que la vida no es fácil para muchas personas  hay cosas muy fuertes que toman  y toman años para curar pero si se puede.

Marielba: A menudo, el yoga puede ser una herramienta para la rehabilitación después de que alguien  adquiera una discapacidad debido a una enfermedad, un accidente o la edad. 

Este fue sin duda el caso de Ana María Román, quien desarrolló una discapacidad y problemas de  salud crónicos después de que le diagnosticaran el síndrome de Guillain-Barré. 

Ahora, Ana María utiliza el yoga y el paddle surf para conectarse con su cuerpo y su bienestar. 

Nos podrías explicar cómo las personas que viven con discapacidades se pueden beneficiar de la  práctica del Yoga?  

Ana María: Si, empece hacer yoga porque era una actividad como más gentil, más amable para mi  cuerpo y cuando empecé hacer Yoga yo nunca había practicado Yoga, me gustaba más  actividades más emocionantes como los deportes extremos, pero Yoga me di cuenta que  me ayudaba muchísimo no nada más a la parte física pero también una parte muy interna,  lo podría describir como una actividad más espiritual, como tener conciencia y conectar mi  cuerpo con mi mente y con mis emociones como a tener más balance en esas áreas no  nada más enfocarme en la parte física sino también como a tener conciencia de los  movimientos de las posturas de mi cuerpo y de lo que mi cuerpo podía hacer. Fue como  algo muy mágico descubrir Yoga y poder hacerla. 

Y bueno, la hago casi todos los días  porque es algo que se puede hacer desde casa desde el COVID-19. Bueno también me  diagnosticaron Postraumatic desorder y cuando estoy muy agitada y con mucha ansiedad  y con las emociones un poco inestables o que no duermo bien me sirve mucho como para  empezar mi dia hacer Yoga un yoga como muy relajada, me ayuda mucho como estabilizar  mi cuerpo y mis emociones y poder rendir en el dia. Pues yo creo la yoga es algo muy común  y la puedes conseguir en todos lados y de fácil acceso. Para mi el Yoga es una experiencia  la verdad muy apasionante e interesante también en el sentido de darme cuenta lo que mi  cuerpo puede hacer y cómo puede evolucionar y también cómo manejar mis emociones y  hasta donde entender mis limitaciones y mis alcances. Ha sido algo muy lindo para mí practicar la yoga.

Marielba: Puedes empezar a practicar yoga en cualquier lugar. Hay muchos estudios que ofrecen yoga, o  puedes buscar un instructor privado. 
Incluso hay clases de yoga gratis en línea, en plataformas como YouTube. Si buscas videos de  'Yoga Adaptado' encontrarás sesiones en línea que muestran ejercicios que se pueden hacer para  aquellos que están en sillas de ruedas. 

Muchas meditaciones guiadas en español también están disponibles en línea y en YouTube.  Para las personas que han adquirido una discapacidad, el yoga y la meditación a menudo pueden  ser herramientas increíbles para adaptarse a un nuevo cuerpo y una nueva forma de vida. 

Sin embargo, todos pueden beneficiarse de estos simples hábitos para fortalecer su cuerpo y  mente. Esto incluye a las personas que nacieron con discapacidades, las personas que tienen  condiciones que progresarán a lo largo de su vida y, por supuesto, las personas sin  discapacidades también. La belleza del yoga y la meditación es que todo el mundo puede hacerlo  y acceder a él, a menudo de forma gratuita. 

Esperamos que las historias de Oswaldo y Ana María puedan inspirarte a investigar el yoga  también y ver cómo puede mejorar tu vida también.

About the guest speaker
(

The benefits of yoga and meditation are now well known in the Western world, but today you will hear how many people with disabilities are turning towards yoga to enjoy its therapeutic effects, and to live well.

Oswaldo Grillet lived an incredibly active and fast paced life until he developed a condition that caused him to lose his vision. After this happened, Oswaldo was forced to slow down, but this changed his life for the better. 

Often, yoga can be a tool for rehabilitation after someone acquires a disability due to illness, accident or age. This was certainly the case for Ana Maria Roman, who developed a disability and chronic health issues after being diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. 

We hope the stories of Oswaldo and Ana Maria can inspire you to investigate yoga also, and see how it can improve your life too.
 

Transcript 

Marielba: The benefits of yoga and meditation are now well known in the Western world, but today you will hear how many people with disabilities are turning towards yoga to enjoy its therapeutic effects, and to live well.

Our first guest, Oswaldo Grillet, lived an incredibly active and fast paced life until he developed a condition that caused him to lose his vision. After this happened, Oswaldo was forced to slow down, but this changed his life for the better. 

Oswaldo, you are a yoga teacher by profession. How did your condition change the way you practised yoga and the perspective you bring to yoga?

Oswaldo: Through the science and knowledge of yoga, and serious study. I'm not talking about something superficial, I'm talking about something that takes years of study to gain an understanding of life, what life is all about, and with those tools that are so powerful, the human being is empowered precisely to be able to perceive life as it is and not as one thinks it should be, then the human being who achieves these states of consciousness is considered to be a human being who is free. And a free person is a person who is completely satisfied but it is not based on a result. His perception of satisfaction is not based on when I finish this or when I buy that, it is not based on anything that is going to happen in the future, it is based on this current moment that I am, I decide that I am fine, that I feel good.

Marielba: And how does meditation also factor into this? 

Oswaldo: We are used to having an agitated mind, but the problem is not in the agitated mind, the problem is that we are mistakenly identifying with that agitated mind, so precisely one of the things that meditation teaches you is that it is not about making a great effort to try to control thoughts or to try to stop thinking. What you should focus on is to stop paying attention to thoughts, that is, it is like you are in a room and you want silence but there is noise outside, those noises are your thoughts but you are in the room inside and you want silence but there is noise outside so what is happening is that you are focusing on the noise outside and you are not concentrating on the room where you are. This is what you do when you meditate, you don't have to make any effort, you have to stop controlling and start observing. Automatically your expectations are going to change due to your sense of appreciation and when that happens, that is when you are changing the biochemistry of your body and you start to feel better naturally.

A thought generates a specific chemical in your body and the way you feel your cell phone hear you feel you. Human beings have the power to feel good, whatever is happening externally, you can ensure that what you cannot control does not disturb you and I know that life is not easy for many people, there are very heavy things that take time and they take years to heal but if you can…

Marielba: Often, yoga can be a tool for rehabilitation after someone acquires a disability due to illness, accident or age. 

This was certainly the case for Ana Maria Roman, who developed a disability and chronic health issues after being diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. 

Now, Ana Maria uses yoga and paddle-boarding to connect herself with her body and her wellbeing.

Could you explain to us how people living with disabilities can benefit from the practice of Yoga?

Ana Maria: Yes, I started doing yoga because it was kind of a gentler activity, kinder to my body and when I started doing Yoga…I had never practised Yoga, I liked more exciting activities like extreme sports, but Yoga I realised that it helped a lot, not just the physical part but also a very internal part of me, I could describe it as a more spiritual activity, like being aware and connecting my body with my mind and my emotions, like having more balance in those areas, not just more focus on the physical aspect but also how to be aware of the movements of my body's postures and what my body could do. It was like something very magical to discover Yoga and be able to do it. 

And well, I do it almost every day because it is something that can be done from home since COVID-19. Well, I was also diagnosed with Post-traumatic disorder and when I am very agitated and feeling somewhat unstable emotions or when I don't sleep well it helps me a lot to start my day doing Yoga, a very relaxed yoga, it helps me a lot like stabilising my body and my emotions and be able to give into the day. I think Yoga is something very common and you can get it everywhere as it’s easily accessible. For me, Yoga is a very exciting and interesting experience, also in the sense of realising what my body can do and how it can evolve and also how to manage my emotions and how far to understand my limitations and my scope. It has been something very nice for me to practise yoga.

Marielba: You can start practising yoga anywhere. There are many studios that offer yoga, or you can look for a private instructor. 

There are even yoga classes for free online, on platforms like YouTube. If you search for videos of ‘Adaptive Yoga’ you will find online sessions that show exercises that can be done for those who are in wheelchairs.

Many guided meditations are also available online. You can search for Spanish guided meditations on YouTube as well. 

For people who have acquired a disability, yoga and meditation can often be incredible tools to adjust to a new body and a new way of living.

However, everyone can benefit from these simple habits to strengthen your body and mind. This includes people born with disabilities, people who have conditions that will progress over their lifetime and, of course, those without disabilities too. The beauty of yoga and meditation is that everyone can do it, and access it, often for free.

We hope the stories of Oswaldo and Ana Maria can inspire you to investigate yoga also, and see how it can improve your life too.

 

About the guest speaker
)

Mantenerse activo con una discapacidad (Keeping Active with a Disability)

No todo el mundo puede ser atleta paralímpico, pero todos podemos beneficiarnos de practicar  un deporte o realizar una actividad física. En el episodio de hoy de Speak My Language (Disability), hablaremos sobre el valor de  mantenerse activo, especialmente para mantener una buena salud mental y física.

Santiago Martinez es un talentoso propietario de una empresa de publicidad que ayuda a otros a conectarse y ser positivos, trabajando y defendiendo a las personas con discapacidad. El  deporte y el coaching  de vida le permitieron mejorar su bienestar y salud mental.

Sahily Carrero tiene 29 años, llegó a Australia con una maleta de sueños hace tres años como estudiante internacional para aprender inglés. le interesan los deportes, especialmente el fútbol soccer. Tuvo un accidente y los médicos le amputaron su brazo derecho y le quitaron un poco de piel de las piernas, lo que le produjo algunos problemas de salud. Tras el accidente, descubrió que el fútbol y el deporte le dan la oportunidad de recuperarse.
 

Transcript 

Marielba: No todo el mundo puede ser atleta paralímpico, pero todos podemos beneficiarnos de practicar  un deporte o realizar una actividad física. 

En el episodio de hoy de Speak My Language (Disability), hablaremos sobre el valor de  mantenerse activo, especialmente para mantener una buena salud mental y física. 
Empecemos hablando del deporte adaptado. 

El deporte adaptado es un deporte que ha sido creado para personas con  discapacidad. Estos deportes pueden ser recreativos o competitivos. 

Australia ofrece muchos tipos de deportes adaptados. Se puede encontrar, desde hockey en silla  de ruedas eléctrica hasta tenis en silla de ruedas y arco y flecha. ¡Incluso hay cricket y golf para  ciegos! 

Los deportes adaptados son similares al deporte en el que se basan, pero se juegan de manera  diferente para ajustarse a las discapacidades de los jugadores. Por ejemplo, en el fútbol para  ciegos, los atletas usan vendas en los ojos o una máscara para asegurarse de que haya igualdad  entre los jugadores, esto se debe a que algunas personas ciegas pueden tener diferentes niveles  de visión. 

Hablemos con nuestro primer invitado, el increíblemente motivado Santiago Martínez, que se ha  dedicado al deporte después de convertirse en usuario de silla de ruedas. Santiago, cuéntanos  un poco sobre los deportes adaptados y el papel que ha jugado el deporte en tu vida. 

Santiago: Bueno aquí en Australia debido a mi discapacidad no era muchísimas las opciones que  existían disponibles para practicar deportes, así que hace un par de unos años por cosas  de la vida conocí al presidente de una asociación de deportes en sillas de ruedas que  practican futbol en power wheelchair y practican hockey en power wheelchair de la misma  manera. 

Entonces ellos me invitaron hace un par de años  a pertenecer a este club y  fue al principio un poco diferente y yo decía bueno… Esta vaina cómo funciona? ¿Cómo es  jugar un deporte en una silla de ruedas? Nunca me lo imagine hasta un día que fui hacer la  prueba y me monte en una silla y empecé a practicar hockey y la verdad es que salió de  todo los pensamientos que tenía acerca de que era participar en un deporte en una silla de  rueda, ósea era super divertido, era de mucha velocidad, me encanto y era un tema  bastante competitivo. Entonces esa percepción que yo tenía antes de conocer los deportes  en silla de ruedas cambió totalmente en el momento que me senté por primera vez en una  silla. 

Y bueno esa fue como mi primera experiencia aquí en Australia. Además de eso hago  un poco de natación pero eso es un tema más de rehabilitación pero sí principalmente hago  Jockey en power wheelchair y represento  al equipo pues de aquí de Western Australia.  

Yo creo que los deportes y otro tipo de actividades que están fuera del hogar pues lo que  ayudan es poner el foco en otro tipo de cosas entonces digamos que primero  entretenimiento porque definitivamente cuando practicas un deporte te entretienes y pasas  un momento totalmente agradables, cambias de ambiente, creas nuevas relaciones con  nuevas personas, y generas digamos otro significado en tu participación en la vida que a la  larga es lo que las personas estamos buscando. No simplemente quedar nos en la casa  aburridos sin hacer nada, sino darle un significado más allá que nos permita disfrutar de la vida en un 100% y que nos permita participar como cada una de esas oportunidades.  
Yo creo también que es muy importante el tema de normalizar sabes es cómo poder  normalizar que una persona con discapacidad también puede tener intención, ganas,  actitud y aptitud para un deporte independientemente que sea en una silla de rueda o no.  Simplemente el tema es que las personas con discapacidad vemos ok tenemos una  discapacidad pues entonces ya no hay nada mas para mi y resulta que ella afuera hay  cientos de oportunidades de participación de gran valor que pueden hacer de nuestras vidas algo que realmente valga la pena y todo empieza por normalizar nuestra condición  como personas con discapacidad porque eso no nos hace ni más ni menos simplemente  que nos lleva a vivir una experiencia diferente en la vida.

Marielba: Muchos podrían pensar que Santiago al usar una silla de ruedas le impediría participar en deportes,  pero esto es todo lo contrario: los deportes adaptados significan que su silla de ruedas es un aparato  importante para que practique ese deporte. Practicando cualquier deporte adaptado le permite  moverse, ser activo y ser sociable. 

Algunos grupos deportivos también incluyen a personas con discapacidades, lo que significa que  una persona que vive con discapacidades puede unirse a un grupo para jugar con otras personas  que no tienen discapacidades. Este fue el caso de Sahily Carrero. 

Después de que un accidente le causara una amputación, Sahily se basó en el fútbol no solo  como un pasatiempo sino como una forma de recuperación.  

¿Cómo podrían las personas que viven con discapacidad beneficiarse de practicar algún deporte y  cómo adaptarse para poder practicarlo?  

Sahily: Es un tema muy gigantesco porque yo pienso que todas las personas que tenemos  discapacidades cuando nos involucramos con un deporte hace que nuestra mentalidad  cambie un poco porque muchas veces la sociedad tiene como algunos tabúes por decirlo  así de que las personas con discapacidades tienen dificultades de hacer lo que  normalmente las personas hacen o los deportistas pero lo que no se debe es que nosotros como personas con discapacidades solamente lo hacemos de una manera diferente y tenemos  muchas capacidades de hacerlo. Entonces considero que el deporte es algo que favorece a  todo el mundo y nos ayuda como a llenarnos de energía.  

Y ha sido un proceso de adaptación con mi cuerpo también porque después de mi  accidente los movimientos el correr como todo ha cambiado entonces ha sido un proceso  de rehabilitación, de terapias y todo lo demás pero creo que nuestros cuerpos son muy  inteligentes y se adquiere como que tu cambias tu cuerpo según las circunstancias que  estés atravesando. Entonces aunque es un proceso largo y de muchos cambios creo que a  medida que pasa el tiempo se va a acostumbrando porque nuestro cuerpo es muy  inteligente entonces hace que con práctica con diferente disciplina tu vayas adquiriendo no  igual pero  de si una diferente manera de capacidades que antes no tenías. Entonces creo que  el cuerpo por sí solo se va a adaptando de todo el cambio.

Marielba: Sahily siempre amó el deporte, pero se volvió crucial para ella cuando aprendió a adaptarse a su  nuevo impedimento. 

Si está interesado en involucrarse en deportes alternativos, visite www.sports.org.au. 

Si es ciego o tiene problemas de la vista, puede encontrar deportes para usted en  www.blindsportsaustralia.com.au

About the guest speaker
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Not everyone can be a paralympian, but all of us can benefit from playing a sport or doing a physical activity. In today’s episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will talk about the value of keeping active, especially to maintain good mental and physical health.

Santiago Martinez is a talented business owner of an advertising company, helping others connect and be positive, working and advocating for people with a disability. Sports and life coaching allowed him to improve his well-being and mental health.

Sahily Carrero is 29 years old, she arrived in Australia with a suitcase full of dreams three years ago as an international student to learn English. She is interested in sports, especially soccer. She had an accident and the doctors amputated her right arm and removed some skin from her legs, which caused some health problems. After the accident, she discovered that football and sports gave her the opportunity to recover. 

Transcript

Marielba: Not everyone can be a paralympian, but all of us can benefit from playing a sport or doing a physical activity. 

In today’s episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will talk about the value of keeping active, especially to maintain good mental and physical health.
Let’s begin by talking about adaptive sports.

Adaptive sports is a sport that has been adapted or created for persons with a disability. These sports can be recreational or competitive.

Australia offers many kinds of adaptive sports. There is everything from Electric Wheelchair Hockey to Wheelchair Tennis to archery. There is even Blind cricket and Blind Golf!

Adaptive sports are similar to the sport they are based on, but are played differently to accommodate the players’ disabilities. For example, in blind football, the athletes wear blindfolds or a mask to make sure there is equality among the players–this is because some blind people may have different levels of vision. 

Let’s speak with our first guest, the incredibly motivated Santiago Martinez, who has pursued sport after becoming a wheelchair-user. Santiago, tell us a little about adaptive sports and the role sport has played in your life.
Santiago: Well, here in Australia, due to my disability, there weren't many options available to practise sports, so a couple of years ago, by chance, I met the president of a wheelchair sports association that practises power wheelchair soccer and power wheelchair hockey in the same way.
So they invited me a couple of years ago to belong to this club and at first it was a little different and I said well, how does this thing work? What is it like to play a sport in a wheelchair? I never imagined it until one day I went to take the trial and I got in a chair and started playing hockey and the truth is that, all the thoughts I had about what it was like to participate in a sport in a wheelchair, were gone. It was super fun, it was very fast, I loved it and it was quite a competitive atmosphere. So that perception that I had before learning about wheelchair sports changed completely the moment I got into a chair for the first time. 

And well that was like my first experience here in Australia. In addition to that I do a little swimming but that is more of a rehabilitation issue but I mainly do power wheelchair hockey and I represent the team here from Western Australia.
I believe that sports and other types of activities that are outside the home help us focus on other types of things. So let's say, it’s entertainment first, because definitely when you play a sport you entertain yourself and have a totally pleasant time, you change your environment, you create new relationships with new people, and let's say, it gives us another meaning in our participation in life that in the long run is what people are looking for. Not simply staying at home bored doing nothing, but giving it a meaning beyond that allows us to enjoy life 100% and allows us to participate in each of those opportunities. 
I also believe that the issue of normalising is very important, you know, it is how to normalise that a person with a disability can also have intention, desire, attitude and aptitude for a sport regardless of whether they are in a wheelchair or not. The issue is simply that people with disabilities see that we have a disability, well then there is nothing else for me and it turns out that there are hundreds of opportunities for participation of great value outside that can make our lives something that is really worthwhile and it all starts with normalising our condition as people with disabilities because that does not make us more or less, it simply leads us to live a different experience in life.

Marielba: Many might think Santiago’s wheelchair would hold him back from being involved in sports, but it’s the opposite – adaptive sports means his wheelchair is an important apparatus for him to play sport. It allows him to move, be active and get involved. 

Some sporting groups are also inclusive of people with disabilities, meaning you can join a group to play with others who do not have disabilities. This was the case for Sahily Carrero. 

After an accident caused her to become an amputee, Sahily relied on soccer not only as a hobby but as a way of recovering.

How could people living with disabilities benefit from practising a sport and how do they adapt to be able to practise it?

Sahily: It is a very gigantic subject because I think that all people who have disabilities when we get involved in a sport, it makes our mentality change a bit. Because society often has many taboos, so to speak, that people with disabilities have difficulties doing what people or athletes normally do but what should not be done is that people with disabilities just do it in a different way and we have many capacities to do it. 

So I consider that sport is something that favours everyone and helps us become filled with energy.

And it has been a process of adaptation with my body also because after my accident, the movements like running–how everything has changed! So it has been a process of rehabilitation and therapies and everything else, but I think that our bodies are very intelligent and it is acquired like that. You adapt your body according to the circumstances you are going through. So, although it is a long process and many changes, I think that as time goes by you will get used to it because our bodies are very intelligent, so by practising with a different discipline you will acquire not the same but a different set of capabilities than before. So I think that the body by itself is adapting from all the change

Marielba: Sahily always loved sport, but it became crucial for her as she learned to adjust to her new impairment. 

If you are interested in getting involved in para-sports, visit www.sports.org.au. 

If you are blind or visually impaired, you can find sports for you at www.blindsportsaustralia.com.au.

About the guest speaker
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Descubra más de los museos accesibles (Discover More at Accessible Museums)

Uno de los ingredientes más importantes para vivir bien es la curiosidad. La curiosidad  mantiene nuestra mente activa y mantiene nuestro espíritu vivo.  
Como adultos, no hay mejor campo de juego para la curiosidad que un museo,  especialmente cuando los museos ofrecen actividades gratuitas, accesibles y divertidas  que involucran a personas de todas las edades. 
Hoy escucharás a tres personas diferentes con diferentes discapacidades, donde  hablaremos sobre su experiencia de visitar museos ubicados alrededor de Australia. 
 

Transcript

Marielba: Bienvenido de nuevo a otro episodio de Speak My Language Disability, donde hablamos  sobre vivir bien con una discapacidad. 

Uno de los ingredientes más importantes para vivir bien es la curiosidad. La curiosidad  mantiene nuestra mente activa y mantiene nuestro espíritu vivo.  

Como adultos, no hay mejor campo de juego para la curiosidad que un museo,  especialmente cuando los museos ofrecen actividades gratuitas, accesibles y divertidas  que involucran a personas de todas las edades. 

Hoy, escucharás a tres personas diferentes con diferentes discapacidades, donde  hablaremos sobre su experiencia de visitar museos ubicados alrededor de Australia. 

Piero visitó el Museo de Queensland para su sesión After Dark. Esta sesión es solo para  adultos, donde el museo ofrece mucho a los visitantes, incluidos aquellos que pueden  tener necesidades sensoriales especiales. 

Piero pasó su tiempo en la sección SparkLab del museo. Cuéntanos, Piero, ¿por qué la  experiencia del museo fue especialmente interesante para alguien que es  neurodivergente? 

Cita 1 - Recortado de ID 953 (su respuesta sobre las partes interactivas de la exhibición) https://speakmylanguage.com.au/podcasts/play/P953 
From 5:55 to 6:59 + 10:50 to 11:32 

Piero: En general todas las exposiciones de Spark Lab eran interactivas. Es decir que  toda la información presentada en los diferentes puestos venían con una actividad  en la cual el visitante podia interactuar o realizar algo para aprender un poco más  de las tareas asignadas. 

Yo creo que la mayoría de las actividades podrían ser buenas para personas con discapacidades de autismo ya que te involucran a ti mismo a interactuar con esa  actividad cosa que no pierdas mucho la concentración y el interés y adicionalmente  son bastantes movimientos repetitivos lo cual te mantienen interactuando y  conectado con la actividad.  

A mi personalmente me gusto varias de las actividades que tenias que presionar  botones en partícula la que tenias que presionar un botón gigante para generar una  nube con el humo. Y había otra en la cual tu podías ajustar unos botones y usar unas palanca para mover unos carritos de juguetes para poder probar si eras  aerodinámicos con una corriente que iba en contra de ellos.
 
Esto me pareció muy interesante para mí por el tema debido a mi discapacidad de  autismo es bastante interactivo el tema de subir bajar y bajar presionar botones.  Entonces eran movimientos repetitivos pero sin embargo eran bastante  interesantes y me mantenían enganchados a la actividad.  

Marielba: Se cree que aproximadamente una de cada 70 personas está en el espectro del autismo,  y en ese grupo, el 96 por ciento de las personas tienen dificultades de procesamiento  sensorial. Esto podría incluir sensibilidad a los olores, el ruido o la luz. 

En la mayoría de los estados y territorios, encontrará museos y galerías de arte que se  adaptan a las necesidades sensoriales de las personas. Por ejemplo, en Nueva Gales del  Sur, el Museo Australiano ofrece mañanas sensoriales y de autismo, cuando el museo es  más tranquilo para las personas con dificultades sensoriales. Muchos museos de Australia  también ofrecen esto. 

Además, como es el caso del Museo de Melbourne, algunos lugares tienen mapas de  espacios sensoriales altos y bajos para asegurarse de que los visitantes puedan evitar las  partes del museo que pueden no funcionar para ellos. 

Nuestra siguiente invitada, Rocca, visitó el Museo de Melbourne ella usando su silla de  ruedas y le resultó fácil moverse por el museo con su familia. Rocca Cuéntanos sobre tu  visita. 

Rocca: Bueno yo recomendaría mucho visitar el museo de Melbourne, primero porque si  nosotros vivimos en esta ciudad o estamos en Victoria, es un lugar que te ofrece  mucho o para aprender la historia de Melbourne y de Victoria.  

En el segundo nivel hay toda una sección sobre la historia de Melbourne de como  empezaron los tranvías también en términos general de Australia está el escudo de  Australia bellísimo en el segundo piso y te explican porque está el canguro, porque  está el emu, porque está el escudo y que significa.

Una parte que le encantan a los niños es ver a Phar Lap el caballo célebre campeón  que está disecado y pues que uno no se imagina lo grande que es este animal tan  hermoso y que trajo tanta fortuna si se puede decir en muchos aspectos a las  carreras de caballos de Australia específicamente de Victoria que hacen parte de las  historia icónica de esta ciudad.

Ahora si queremos descubrir lo que es la historia y la cultura tan maravillosa de los  aborígenes australianos pues hay toda una session en el primer piso que se llama The First People y es una sección increíble donde uno escucha las historias del  tiempo de los sueños y de las creencias de los aborígenes recordando que es la  civilización más antigua de Australia.

Por esto y muchos más motivos el museo de Melbourne te ofrece un lugar para  aprender para descubrir la historia y es un excelente sitio para hacer una visita con  un plan familiar tiene atracciones para adultos para niños y es accesible para  personas que tienen discapacidades y fuera de eso está en una parte muy linda de  la ciudad que es Carlton. Uno puede ir al museo, descubrir el museo y después salir  a explorar los cafés que se encuentran ubicados en Carlton.

Marielba:Nuestro último invitado vive en Australia Occidental, el Sr. Santiago Martínez. 

Santiago también usa una silla de ruedas y recientemente visitó el WA Museum Boola  Bardip, ubicado en el Centro Cultural de Perth. Santiago, comenta que la arquitectura y el  diseño del museo eran tan asombrosos como las exhibiciones en el interior. Escuchemos  qué piensa Santiago del diseño universal.  

Santiago: Correcto, el museo es espectacular, la arquitectura del museo es increíble.  Digamos que pudieron preservar gran parte del museo antiguo es decir se preserva  incluso la fachada de una parte importante del museo y encima esta esta mole  completamente moderna que es espectacular y todo está diseñado precisamente  para que la accesibilidad y la movilidad sea perfecta entonces tiene todo el tema  de accesibilidad completo rampas, ascensores, elevadores, baños accesibles,  puertas inmensa, los corredores son sumamente amplios y está completamente  diseñado para que cualquier persona independientemente de la discapacidad que  tenga o la condición física que tenga pueda ingresar y sentirse cómodo en el  museo.

Marielba: Escuchando a nuestros invitados podemos apreciar lo importante que es que nuestros  espacios públicos estén construidos para incluir a todos. 

Los museos de los que has oído hablar hoy son solo algunos ejemplos de lo que cada  estado y territorio de Australia tiene para ofrecer. 

Quizás no has visitado un museo desde que eras un niño y es hora de redescubrir la  maravilla de estos lugares interesantes y emocionantes. 

La mejor parte es que son inclusivos. Por favor No tengamos miedo de preguntar en el  museo cuáles recursos pueden ofrecerle a las personas que viven con discapacidades. Al  fin y al cabo, todos tenemos el derecho de disfrutar de estos espacios.
 

About the guest speaker
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One of the most important ingredients to living well is curiosity. Curiosity keeps our mind active and keeps our spirits playful. As adults, there is no better playground for curiosity than a museum–especially when museums offer free, accessible and fun activities that engage us at every age. 
Today, you will hear from three different people with different disabilities, discussing their experience of visiting museums from all around Australia. 

 

Transcript 

Marielba: Welcome back to another episode of Speak My Language Disability, where we talk about living well with a disability.

One of the most important ingredients to living well is curiosity. Curiosity keeps our mind active and keeps our spirits playful. 

As adults, there is no better playground for curiosity than a museum–especially when museums offer free, accessible and fun activities that engage us at every age. 

Today, you will hear from three different people with different disabilities, discussing their experience of visiting museums from all around Australia. 

Piero visited Queensland Museum for their After Dark session. This adult-only session in the museum offers a lot to visitors, including those who may have special sensory needs.

Piero spent his time in the SparkLab section of the museum. Tell us Piero, why was the museum experience especially interesting for someone who is neurodivergent? 

Piero: In general, all the Spark Lab exhibits were interactive. That is to say that all the information presented in the different posts came with an activity in which the visitor could interact or do something to learn a little more about the assigned tasks. 

I believe that most of the activities could be good for people with Autism since they involve yourself interacting with that activity, so you don’t lose much concentration or interest, and additionally there are quite a few repetitive movements which keep you interacting and connected with the activity.

I personally liked several of the activities where you had to press buttons, in particular the one where you had to press a giant button to generate a cloud of smoke. And there was another one where you could adjust some buttons and use some levers to move some toy cars to test if they were aerodynamic with a current that went against them.

This seemed very interesting to me because of my Autism, the theme of raising and lowering levers is quite interactive. So they were repetitive movements but nevertheless they were quite interesting and kept me hooked on the activity.

Marielba: About one in 70 people are thought to be on the Autism spectrum, and in that group,  96 per cent of people have sensory processing difficulties. This might include sensitivity to smells, noise or light.

In most states and territories, you will find museums and art galleries that accommodate people’s sensory needs. For instance, in New South Wales, the Australian Museum offers Autism and sensory-friendly mornings, when the museum is quieter for people with sensory difficulties. Many museums across Australia offer this as well. 

Also, as is the case at Melbourne Museum, some places have maps of high and low sensory spaces to make sure visitors can avoid the parts of the museum that may not work for them. 

Our next storyteller, Rocca, actually visited Melbourne Museum herself. Rocca uses a wheelchair and found it easy to navigate around the museum with her family. Tell us about your visit, Rocca.

Rocca: Well, I would highly recommend visiting the Melbourne museum, first because if we live in this city or  we are in Victoria, it is a place that offers you a lot or to learn the history of Melbourne and Victoria.

On the second level there is a whole session on the history of Melbourne on how the trams began. Also in general terms of Australia, there is the beautiful shield of Australia on the second floor and they explain why the kangaroo is  there, why the emu is  there, and what the shield means. 

A part that children love is to see Phar Lap, the famous champion horse that is stuffed and well, one cannot imagine how big this beautiful animal is and that it brought so much fortune, if it can be said in many aspects, to the horse races in Australia, specifically from Victoria, that are part of the iconic history of this city.

Now if we want to discover the wonderful history and culture of the Australian Aboriginals, there is a whole section on the first floor called The First People and it is an incredible section where one listens to the stories of the Dreaming and the beliefs of the Aboriginals, remembering that it is the oldest civilization in Australia.

For this and many more reasons, the Melbourne Museum offers you a place to learn to discover history and it is an excellent place to visit with a family, it has attractions for adults, for children and it  is accessible for people with disabilities. And outside, it’s in a very nice part of the city that is Carlton. One can go to the museum, discover the museum and then go out and explore the cafes that are located in Carlton.

Marielba: Our last guest is from Western Australia, Mr Santiago Martinez.

Santiago also uses a wheelchair, and recently visited the WA Museum Boola Bardip, located in Peth’s Cultural Centre. Santiago, you’ve said the museum’s architecture and design was just as amazing as the exhibitions inside. Is that right? 

Santiago: Correct, the museum is spectacular, the architecture of the museum is incredible. Let's say that they were able to preserve a large part of the old museum, that is, even the façade of an important part of the museum is preserved, and on top of that is this completely modern mass that is spectacular and everything is designed precisely so that accessibility and mobility are perfect, so it has all the complete accessibility system—ramps, elevators, lifts, accessible bathrooms, huge doors, the corridors are extremely wide and it is completely designed so that anyone regardless of their disability or physical condition can enter and feel comfortable in the museum.

Marielba: You can see how important it is that our public spaces are built to include everyone. 

The museums you have heard about today are only a few examples of what every state and territory in Australia has to offer. 

Perhaps you haven’t visited a museum since you were a child, and it’s time to rediscover the wonder of these interesting and exciting places. 

The best part is, they are inclusive. Don’t be afraid to ask the museum how they can accommodate you. After all, these spaces should be enjoyed by everyone.

About the guest speaker
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El aire libre es para todos (The Outdoors is for Everyone)

Hoy descubrirás cómo una persona en silla de ruedas puede nadar en la playa o cómo una  persona con discapacidad visual puede disfrutar de un jardín botánico. Tanto Rocca como Oswaldo son espíritus aventureros amantes del aire libre. Sus experiencias  nos muestran que hay muchos lugares principales que incluyen a todos y que todos pueden  disfrutar.

 

Transcript

Marielba: ¿Qué pasaría si te dijera que es el entorno que rodea a una persona lo que la inhabilita, no su  condición? ¿Qué pensarías? 

En este primer episodio de Speak My Language (Disability), hablaremos sobre el acceso y la  inclusión, especialmente en espacios al aire libre. 

Te invito a que cierres los ojos y te imagines esto:Estás en un hermoso jardín rodeado de árboles,  caminando al lado de un amigo que usa silla de ruedas. Si hay piedras en el camino, y es muy  angosto, tu amigo no puede viajar contigo por el jardín. Pero imagina que hay un camino ancho de  madera. Tú y tu amigo pueden disfrutar juntos del jardín. No tiene problema en viajar a tu lado. 

Entonces, ¿qué impide que tu amigo disfrute del jardín? No es su silla de ruedas. Es la forma en  que se diseñó el jardín. 

Hoy descubrirás cómo una persona en silla de ruedas puede nadar en la playa o cómo una  persona con discapacidad visual puede disfrutar de un jardín botánico. 

Primero, hablaremos con Rocca Salcedo, una mujer parapléjica a la que le encanta viajar y  disfrutar de los placeres de la vida desde su silla de ruedas. 

Rocca habló con nosotros anteriormente sobre su visita a Williamstown Beach en Melbourne, una  de las muchas playas de Australia que son accesibles para personas que usan sillas de ruedas o  ayudas para la movilidad. Escuchemos por qué Rocca quería visitar esta playa. 

Rocca: Bueno primero que todo a mi me encanta la playa yo vengo de la capital de Colombia, de  Bogotá un sitio más bien frío muy lejos de la playa y para mi ha sido una maravilla llegar a  Melbourne con estas playas tan hermosas. Y una de las primeras playas que yo visité  cuando llegué acá hace 22 años fue Williamstown. Es una de mis favoritas porque es un  lugar que le ofrece a los visitantes muchas cosas. Primero te ofrece una vista espectacular  de la ciudad de Melbourne. Segundo tiene una cantidad de restaurantes, tiene una cantidad  de tiendas, también tiene muchos mercados los fines de semanas artesanales. Y por  supuesto tiene varias secciones en las playas diferentes áreas o zonas donde uno puede  acceder a la playa. 

En mi caso que yo uso silla de rueda yo considero que Williamstown es un sitio muy  accesible no solamente la playa, la explanada pero también hay muchos restaurantes y  lugares que son planos y de fácil acceso.

Tomando en cuenta lo que menciona Rocca, considero que todos podemos estar de acuerdo en  que Australia cuenta con algunas de las playas más hermosas del mundo. Los oyentes deben  saber que muchas de estas playas, como Williamstown Beach en Melbourne, son accesibles para  personas en sillas de ruedas. Rocca, ¿Explicanos por qué consideras que esta playa es accesible? 

Rocca: Si, hay una parte de la playa en Williamstown que es una sección cerca al club de  salvavidas y esta sección tiene baños para discapacitados, también tiene para cambiarse  si uno necesita ponerse la ropa de baño, también tiene duchas. Es una área bien accesible.  Además allí donde está el club de salvavidas ellos ofrecen ayuda, no todo el año,  solamente desde Diciembre a Marzo donde uno puede alquilar con tiempo y es gratis una  silla que es especial para ingresar al agua para aquellas personas que son discapacitadas.  Entonces en esta sección el acceso es muy bueno.  

Marielba: Sí, muchas playas tienen esterillas, así como sillas de ruedas construidas para el agua que  puedes alquilar gratis, así como baños y vestuarios accesibles. 
La playa realmente es para todos. Y todos podemos encontrar una playa accesible cerca de cada  estado y territorio de Australia, visitando https://accessiblebeaches.com/ 

Al escuchar a Rocca podemos afirmar que la naturaleza puede calmar el alma y debe ser libre para  que todos podamos acceder y disfrutar. A continuación escucharemos a Oswaldo Grillet, quien  nos transportará a otro hermoso entorno, esta vez en tierra, mientras describe su visita a los Jardines Botánicos de Adelaida. 

Oswaldo: Bueno hay muchos espacios al aire libre donde se pueden ver diferentes tipos de  animales, se pueden ver diferentes tipo de plantas, de flora y bueno ves otras personas.  Hay mucha gente que se casa y se va para allá a hacer sesiones de fotografía pero  principalmente eso es como un pequeño espacio hay como varios departamentos con  diferentes opciones a nivel del ecosistema como conexión con la naturaleza.  Es muy importante el grounding, es importante regresar a la esencia del ser por eso es  importante ir a la montaña, a la playa o a este sitio que está en medio de la ciudad. Y Wao tu  sientes la diferencia, tu sientes la vibración, tú sientes como la vida te abraza y te sientes  mejor.

Marielba: Después de perder su visión, Oswaldo ahora busca oportunidades de espacios inclusivos que las  personas sin y con discapacidad puedan disfrutar. Cuéntanos, Oswaldo, ¿qué puedes decir de los  jardines. ¿los sentiste verdaderamente inclusivos? 

Oswaldo: Bueno tu sabes que mi trabajo como trabajador social yo tengo un grupo de jóvenes con  espectro donde les enseño actividades recreacionales y actividades educativas y por  supuesto el Jardín Botánico es una extraordinaria opción ya que ofrece una gran variedad  de ambientes de conexión con la naturaleza con animales es un lugar muy bellos con una  energía muy agradable donde se puede aprender muchísimo acerca de la biodiversidad,  flora acerca de distintos tipos de animales de verdad de verdad es un lugar maravilloso para  visitar.

Yo he ido varias veces.
En este último paseo donde lleve al grupo con el cual trabajo  caminamos pero no lo recorrimos todo. Porque claro, Hacemos paradas, leíamos las  explicaciones que hay en los diferentes tipos, hablábamos y discutíamos nuestras  impresiones, a veces nos sentábamos un rato simplemente a contemplar el cielo, las  estrellas o lo que estuviera disponible en el medio ambiente, en esta oportunidad no lo  caminamos todo pero es muy grato estar allí y pasear.

 

Marielba: Ustedes sabían que pueden encontrar jardines botánicos en todos los estados y territorios de  Australia? Pues sí y muchos tienen información sobre a qué se puede acceder de manera segura. 
Son lugares hermosos, generalmente gratuitos, dónde puedes descubrir la naturaleza y mejorar tu  bienestar. 

Las personas con discapacidades también pueden disfrutar de terrenos más desafiantes, con  muchos senderos con caminatas disponibles para aquellos de nosotros que necesitamos ayuda  para la movilidad o que usamos sillas de ruedas. 

Por ejemplo, en Adelaide, el River Torrens Linear Trail, cerca de West Beach de Adelaide, es  adecuado para peatones, ciclistas, sillas de ruedas y personas con problemas de movilidad. O en  Nueva Gales del Sur, las Montañas Azules tienen muchos senderos naturales accesibles, como el  mirador Leura Cascades. Con un poco de investigación, puedes encontrar hermosos lugares para  visitar. 

Tanto Rocca como Oswaldo son espíritus aventureros amantes del aire libre. Sus experiencias  nos muestran que hay muchos lugares principales que incluyen a todos y que todos pueden  disfrutar.

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Today, you will find out how a person in a wheelchair can swim at the beach or how a vision impaired person can enjoy a botanical garden. 
Both Rocca and Oswaldo are adventurous spirits who love the outdoors. Their experiences show us that there are many mainstream places that are inclusive of everyone, and that can be enjoyed by all.

 

Transcript

Marielba: What if I told you that it is the environment around a person that disables them, not their condition? What would you think? 

On this first episode of Speak My Language (Disability), we will talk about access and inclusion, especially in outdoor settings.

I want you to close your eyes and picture this. You are in a beautiful garden surrounded by trees, walking beside a friend who uses a wheelchair. If there is gravel and stones on the path, and it is very narrow, your friend cannot travel with you through the garden. But imagine there is a wide wooden path. You and your friend can enjoy the garden together. He has no problem travelling beside you.

So, what stops your friend from enjoying the garden? It’s not his wheelchair. It is the way the garden was designed.

Today, you will find out how a person in a wheelchair can swim at the beach or how a vision impaired person can enjoy a botanical garden. 

First, we will speak with Rocca Salcedo, a paraplegic woman who loves to travel and enjoy the pleasures of life from her wheelchair.

Rocca spoke with us earlier about her visit to Williamstown Beach in Melbourne, one of Australia’s many beaches that are accessible to people who use wheelchairs or mobility aids. Let’s hear why Rocca wanted to visit this beach. 

Rocca: Well, first of all, I love the beach. I come from the capital of Colombia, from Bogota, a rather cold place far from the beach, and for me it has been wonderful to arrive in Melbourne with these beautiful beaches. And one of the first beaches that I visited when I arrived here 22 years ago was Williamstown. It is one of my favourites because it is a place that offers visitors many things. First, it offers you a spectacular view of the city of Melbourne. Secondly, it has a number of restaurants, it has a number of stores, it also has many markets and artisans on the weekends. And of course it has several sections on the beaches, different areas or zones where one can access the beach. 

In my case, since I use a wheelchair, I consider Williamstown a very accessible place. Not only the beach, the esplanade, but there are also many restaurants and places that are flat and easily accessible.

Marielba: Based on what Rocca mentions, I think we can all agree that Australia has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Listeners should know that many of these beaches, like Williamstown Beach in Melbourne, are accessible to people in wheelchairs. Rocca, Shall we explain why you consider this beach accessible?

Rocca: Yes, there is a part of the beach in Williamstown that is a section near the lifeguard club and this section has toilets for the disabled, it also has a place to change if one needs to put on swimming costumes, it also has showers. It is a very accessible area. In addition, where the lifeguard club is, they offer help, not all year round, only from December to March where one can rent a chair in advance and it is free. It’s a chair that is specially made to enter the water for those people who are disabled. So in this section the access is very good.

Marielba: Yes, many beaches have matting, as well as wheelchairs built for the water that you can rent for free, and also accessible bathrooms and changing rooms.
The beach really is for everyone. And we can all find an accessible beach in every state and territory in Australia by visiting https://accessiblebeaches.com/ 

As we heard from Rocca, nature can soothe the soul, and should be free for everyone to access and enjoy. We will next hear from Oswaldo Grillet, who will transport us to another beautiful environment-–this time on land-–as he describes his visit to the Adelaide Botanical Gardens.

Oswaldo: Well, there are many outdoor spaces where you can see different types of animals, you can see different types of plants, flora and, well, you see other people. There are many people who get married and go there to do photography sessions but mainly that takes place in only a small area, there are several sections with different options at the ecosystem level to connect with nature. Grounding is very important, it is important to return to the essence of being, that is why it is important to go to the mountains, to the beach or to this place that is in the middle of the city. And wow, you feel the difference, you feel the vibration, you feel how life embraces you and you feel better!
 

Marielba: After losing his vision, Oswaldo now seeks out opportunities for inclusive spaces that people with and without disabilities can enjoy. Tell us Oswaldo, what about the gardens felt truly inclusive? 

Oswaldo: Well, you know that through my work as a social worker, I have a group of young people on the Autism spectrum who I design recreational and educational activities for. Of course, the Botanical Garden is an extraordinary option since it offers a great variety of environments to connect with nature and with animals in a very beautiful place with a very pleasant energy where you can learn a lot about biodiversity, flora, about different types of animals, truly a wonderful place to visit.

I have gone several times. On this last walk, where I took the group I work with, we walked but we didn't cover everything. Because of course, we make stops, we read the explanations that explain the different types of plants, we talked and discussed our impressions, sometimes we just sat down for a while to contemplate the sky, the stars or whatever was available in the environment, this time we didn't get to walk everywhere, but it is very pleasant to be there and to walk.

Marielba: You can find botanical gardens in all states and territories around Australia, and many have information about what can be safely accessed on the grounds. 

They are beautiful places, usually free to visit, where you can discover nature and enhance your wellbeing.

People with disabilities can also enjoy more challenging terrain, with many bushwalking trails available for those of us who use mobility aids or wheelchairs. 

For instance, in Adelaide, the River Torrens Linear Trail, near Adelaide’s West Beach, is suitable for walkers, cyclists, wheelchairs and those with mobility issues. Or in New South Wales, the Blue Mountains have many accessible nature trails, like the Leura Cascades lookout. With a bit of research, you can find beautiful places to visit. 

Both Rocca and Oswaldo are adventurous spirits who love the outdoors. Their experiences show us that there are many mainstream places that are inclusive of everyone, and that can be enjoyed by all.

About the guest speaker
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