Dear Dyslexic Winter Newsletter 2020 It's through our darkest moments we must focus to see the lightAristotle Onassis Welcome to our Winter Edition of the Dear Dyslexic Newsletter. I truly hope you are all doing ok during these extremely challenging and volatile times. I have to say there have been a few dark bad days, bad few weeks and a bad few months for our country, our communities, our businesses, families and friends. On a personal note, some days have been worse than others as during COVID it has been quite tough for the Foundation and I have also been wrapped in grief for the loss of a dear friend. Like many I had big hopes for 2020, even numbers, a new decade, work started to come in, the stars were aligning, it all looked so promising. But as we watched the fires ravish our country, so focused as a nation, we were blindsided and didn’t see what was happening internationally. In the months that have followed, like the rest of the world, we have watched the unimaginable happen our lives have been turned on their heads. This includes the work of the Foundation. With a heavy heart we put out a call for help and the call was heard. I am eternally grateful for both the financial and volunteer support we have received over the last two months. My small dream to help other people with dyslexia avoid the challenges I faced is now a community’s dream and together we are changing the world for young people and adults with dyslexia. We have so much more to do. As the financial year comes to an end please consider if you are able to continue your support for our work. Thank you. A message from the Chair of the Dear Dyslexic Foundation Donate now Our Podcasts are back, yay! The support for our podcasts was overwhelming and we have raised enough funds to continue these into early next year. Thank you to the following organisations and individuals who stepped up when we called. If you would like to sponsor one of our 2021 podcasts please get in touch. Together we are changing the world through storytelling. Untapped Group Employment and Equal Opportunity Network Scanning Pens Carmel Riley Consulting Author LJ Kidd Author Lois Letchford DDF community member Episode 34 Surviving higher education during COVID with Andre Eddy from Untap It’s been such challenging few months especially for those with dyslexia and other neurodivergence such as autism. Today’s interview is all about how we can better support our neurodiverse community during this pandemic and I am so pleased to be speaking with Andrew Eddy today. Andrew is the co-founder of Untapped, a social enterprise focused on developing a neurodiverse employment ecosystem to increase opportunities for autistic individuals. The Vice Chancellor of Tasmanian University, Professor Rufus Black, has sponsored this podcast. Rufus was one of our 2018-podcast interviewees. To find our more about his story head to dear dyslexic.com and listen to his podcast in Episode 15. Listen Now What’s happening in July There has never been a more important time to feel connected with your peers. Join us for: QuestionDys with Ashton Bishop in a live Q & A DysTalk - Join us on the last Thursday of every moneht for a chat with fellow dyslexics to talk about all things dyslexia and life in general. Bring along your favourite drink for this virtual catch up. There has never been a more important time to learn at the DHub. Dyslexic? Doing a Doctorate? No way! Supervision the PhD journey of the student that happens to be dyslexic with Dr Judith Hudson Dyslexia and neurodiverse conditions in the workplace with Workplace Consultant Janette Beetham You can now access our June online workshops including: Decision making in a crisis How the Reading Pen helps dyslexic students From August we will be running a new series Understanding Wellbeing and Thriving. The series will be kicked off with Dr Daniela De Fazio Psychologist and Clinical Neuropsychologist the Co-Founder of Launch Psychology. This series will be run through Facebook Live on the first Thursday evening of the month with the first one on the 6th of August talking about mental health and wellbeing. These are free event. Please feel free to donate if you enjoyed what you learnt tonight. All donations over $2 are tax-deductible. Your support is greatly appreciated in helping us continue the work we are doing. These are free events. Please feel free to donate if you enjoyed what you learnt tonight. All donations over $2 are tax-deductible. Your support is greatly appreciated in helping us continue the work we are doing. Donate now Faces of Dyslexia 2020 National Awareness Campaign FACES OF DYSLEXIA SELF-PORTRAIT COMPETITION 2020 Opens on the 1st of July! Are you our 2020 Face of Dyslexia? The Dear Dyslexic Foundation is excited to announce it will be running a national self-portrait competition to find the Faces of Dyslexia from around Australia. COVID-19 restrictions have halted fundraising, including the annual gala, which raises operational funds for the foundation. This year DDF will hold a national competition to find the top 12 self-portraits by people with dyslexia, dyscalculia (an inability to use numbers) and dysgraphia (an inability to write) and these top portraits will form the DDF 2021 calendar. Entries will be open for submission between 1 July and 31 August and must be original works by the entrant. Further detail of the Campaign and the competition. Upcoming events 2020 Vision for Dyslexia VIRTUAL International Dyslexia Conference 29/30th July 2020 I am excited to announce I will be a presenting at the 2020 Vision for Dyslexia International Dyslexia Conference on my journey as a dyslexic social entrepreneur. The International Dyslexia Conference will bring together knowledge and understanding of dyslexia experts from the 4 corners of the globe. The experts will share their unique insights to help conference attendees develop a clear plan for the future of dyslexia in their communities. Would you like to learn more? In partnership with the conference, we are giving away free tickets to the virtual conference. If you would like a ticket please email [email protected] Register now DDF is excited to announce it has joined forces with the Equal Employment Opportunity Network (EEON) as a media partner to bring you the 3rd Enabling Inclusion and Diversity Summit (Learn, Think, Do) live from Storey Hall, RMIT on 15 September. EEON were our 2019 Workplace Inclusion Leadership Award recipients at the Dear Dyslexic Foundation 2019 Gala. The 2020 Enabling Inclusion and Diversity Summit will bring together people and organisations from across Australia who truly value diversity and inclusion. You will also hear about people’s lived experience of diversity and those who have inspired change. Register now