In February 2026, I attended Australia’s Disability Strategy National Forum in Adelaide. Beyond the incredible keynotes and panel discussions, I was inspired by the power of the disability community from across Australia being gathered together in a single space. Some of the best experiences I have had in my life have been in spaces created by and for people with disability, and the ADS National Forum was one of those beautiful life experiences that will sit with me for the rest of my life in just the same way.
The importance of disabled spaces
I dream of a world where all mainstream spaces and events are accessible, accommodating, and are places where people with disability don’t need to worry about how they will be perceived, if they’ll be judged, and if their access needs will be met without stigma or fuss. I’ve been in a few spaces like this, but in the vast majority of situations, participating in mainstream life is stressful. It’s full of unknowns and worries. And for me, it’s often been filled with discrimination.
Disabled spaces create a sense of belonging. At the ADS National Forum, the first thing I noticed before I walked in the door were Hidden Disability Sunflower lanyards and pins being worn by staff helping attendees make their way inside. The registration tables were adorned with Hidden Disability Sunflower pins that you could wear too. It’s small things like these that can make people feel safe, like they don’t need to mask, like they can ask for what they need, and like they belong.
Creating spaces to grow confidence and community
One of my favourite things about entering disabled spaces is that they’re often the only places I don’t feel like I’m weird or like my access needs are too much. For example, I have attended both mainstream leadership programs and leadership programs specifically for people with disability. In the mainstream leadership programs, I have felt on edge, worried, and sometimes I have lacked the confidence to advocate for my needs fully. In leadership programs for people with disability, differences have been normalised and celebrated and accommodated for, even before I have had to ask.
Being in a space surrounded by people who have similar lived experience and have faced the same attitudinal and physical barriers in life creates a joyous dynamic. Talking to people in these spaces feels like getting to talk to new colleagues or friends who you’ve already been able to skip the first five or six months of interactions with, getting straight to the things that really matter.
The strength of the disability community
Attending the ADS National Forum and other events for and by people with disability instills wonder and hope in me. It re-energises me. In a world that is often filled with barriers, these spaces make me excited because I know and can see how many other people are thinking about disability in the same way I do. Sometimes the voice of the disabled community can feel so quiet, weak and powerless, trying to be louder than all the things we are up against. At the ADS National Forum, I could see how that wasn’t true. All across Australia, there are incredible people working on making our country a place where all people can participate fully in society, where all people with disability can be themselves.
I’m proud and excited to be a part of that.
Haley Zilberberg is a disability advocate and writer from Miami, Florida, currently living in rural Victoria. She has written about disability for People with Disability Australia, Independence Australia, and the FYA Newsroom.
Are you interested in finding disabled spaces where you feel like you belong? Join Belong, our free disability-led and radically accessible group, with both online and in-person opportunities for connection, where everyone is celebrated and welcome.
Want to write for the Belong Blog? Get in touch with Commissioning Editor Zoe Simmons at zoe@drc.org.au
