"Raising awareness" is a phrase that, to many people, has lost its meaning. In autism circles we're now talking about acceptance as opposed to awareness - but what does that actually mean and how do we get it right?

In this event to round off Autism Acceptance Month, Chris will speak from his perspective as an autistic advocate by profession, sharing his insights for use during the other eleven months of the year, including:

• What awareness and acceptance truly mean,
• What meaningful awareness looks like,
• How to actually raise awareness that lasts,
• Tips for personal advocacy, in whatever depth works for you,
• Celebrating the time we all changed our profile pictures and it cured all disease (just kidding).

The event will take place on Sunday 28th April at 7pm GMT (2pm EST, 11am PST, 4am Monday AEST), and tickets will cost £12. However, there is a 50% discount available to all Patreon supporters at the £5 per month level or higher. If you're already an Autistic Not Weird Patreon supporter, please contact Chris before buying your ticket so he can tell you the discount code.

(For those who buy a ticket but are unable to attend, a recording of the session will be sent to you after the event.)

Who is the talk suitable for?

With the Autistic Not Weird community being so wide and diverse, and with Chris being committed to being as inclusive as possible, this talk is aimed to be suitable for just about everyone with links to autism (including young people), but particularly those who want to play a role - however small - in improving the world for autistic people.

Who is Chris Bonnello?

Chris is an autistic advocate by profession, delivering speaking engagements worldwide (as far away from Britain as India and Sydney Opera House), offering teacher training and 1-1 consultations. He is the writer behind the website "Autistic Not Weird", its associated Facebook community, and its various other online platforms. Formerly a mathematics teacher in an autism-specific special school (and a primary school teacher in a previous life), he is also an award-winning writer and a prolific novelist.

He is the author of the Underdogs novels - a dystopia series with neurodivergent heroes, endorsed by Michael Grant, Steve Silberman and Patience Agbabi among others, and positively reviewed by The Guardian - as well as Alfie Smith the Speedcuber (children's fiction) and What Do You Love Most About Life?, a delightfully uplifting non-fiction autism anthology.

More information on Chris Bonnello can be found here.