Neurodiversity Celebration Week talk 2026

Please note this event will occur at 20:00 AEDT and 09:00 GMT.

Advancing neurodiversity-affirming research, training, and practice: Experiences from OTARC and La Trobe University

Our researchers and educators are shaping the future of higher education by embedding neurodiversity-affirming principles into research, training, and practice. Join us for a series of dynamic short talks and discover how we’re driving achievable and meaningful change to improve experiences for neurodivergent students and staff.

Speakers will include:

Dr Simon Bury – Neurodiversity-affirming training for postgraduate psychologists

Dr Patrick Dwyer – Sensory experiences of university environments

Dr Melissa Gilbert – Including neurodiversity-affirming approaches in an undergraduate subject

Lyndel Kennedy - Improving supervision for neurodivergent graduate researchers

Dr Bec Muir – University-wide neurodiversity and disability awareness initiatives for staff and students

Researchers and educators at La Trobe University share a passion to improve neurodiversity-affirming practices across teaching, learning, graduate-research supervision, and workplaces. We are working together to create organisational change at La Trobe University and beyond, as we train future clinicians, researchers, and educators.

This event will showcase the practical, doable ways our projects and initiatives are changing and improving the experiences of neurodiverse and neurodivergent students and staff in the higher education sector.

The Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre (OTARC) was established in 2008 and is Australia’s first research centre dedicated to autism research. Our centre aims to be an example of best-practice neuro-inclusivity as we work towards our goal of enriching the lives of Autistic people and the Autism community through high-quality scientific research, innovation, and translation. The majority of the team at OTARC - and presenters for this NCW event - are neurodivergent.

La Trobe University is a global leader in health education and innovation and is in the top 1% of universities worldwide. At La Trobe, we believe in making an impact through practical and real-world learning across our seven campuses in Melbourne, regional Victoria and Sydney, Australia.