Welcome to the Canberra Disability Review (CDR), a platform to highlight and give voice to what matters most to people with disability in the ACT.

The Summer Edition of the Canberra Disability Review offers a range of articles looking back at 2022 and towards 2023. We are delighted to have Larissa Macfarlane's poignant "Practicing Stillness amidst the COVID confusion" as the cover art. It signals the ongoing impact that COVID, and the end of proactive health policies to stop the spread, are having on the lives of people with disability. We take a look at the COVID vigil that was held on the lawns in front of parliament, and online, to mark the deaths of 16,000 Australians since the pandemic arrived on our shores.

We are excited to present the range of hopes about 2023 that leaders in the disability community shared with us. AFI Head of Policy, Craig Wallace, considers the responsibility that accompanies the ACT’s newly gained legislative rights particularly in the matter of euthanasia legislation. Akiko shares her experience of the huge difference text can make in making literature accessible and we have a few book reviews to finish off the year.

The Spring 2022 Edition of the Canberra Disability Review is focused on the experience of parents with disability. We talk to Eliza Hull, editor of the fantastic book “We’ve Got This,” about ableism, disability pride, and more. Local Canberran, Cate Barclay shares her experience of the challenges of engaging with health services. Our own Akiko takes a journey into the sometimes far from inclusive world of online resources for parents and Dr Fiona Tito Wheatland sheds light on problems with child protective services and looks at better ways to protect children. It’s a bumper edition of the Canberra Disability Review. Please spread the word and let us know if you have an idea for contribution

The Winter 2022 Edition of the Canberra Disability Review has a focus on inclusion in emergency and disaster planning and management. It’s a timely focus given our recent experiences of fires, floods and the ongoing pandemic. In this edition we will explore the impact of the ill-informed “back to normal” narrative related to Covid-19, look into the work of creating a more inclusive approach to disaster planning and management, investigate the impact of banning straws on some people with disability, and hear experiences from the community. We hope you enjoy the issue. 

The Canberra Disability Review is a quarterly online magazine. Its aim is to provide an arena where the insights and wisdom of peoples’ lived experience can be shared, where injustice and disabling social structures and attitudes can be highlighted and challenged, where achievements can be celebrated, and where change-making conversations might begin. 

For a PDF version please press the download link above​. 

Comments or feedback contact us cdr@advocacyforinclusion.org