On the 18th of June 2020 we will celebrate the Neurodiversity Pride Day in the Netherlands.”Vier je eigen feestje” is this years theme, and means; to celebrate yourself, to celebrate the ones like you & to celebrate in your own way.
Neurodiversity Pride Day is the nations 3rd celebration of the value of people with different types of minds. Its organized every year on June 18th to support acceptance, inclusion and appreciation in society of people who are most unlike most others. And also to have a day to celebrate your own brain, and how your uniqueness benefits the world. We all have something awesome to contribute, and on this day we invite all to show or feel what they are proud of!
Among the activities on the day, there will be the traditional annual Neurodiversiteitsrede. There will be interviews with neurodivergents. There will be talks about a neurodiverse future in post-corona times with experts. There will be Workshops for teachers, kids and parents. And there will be meetups with workshops om embracing differences.
The program of the day:
Tentative timeline (due to changes)
- Neurodiverse Future Talks, with Lana & Saskia: starting at 12.00
- Embracing your differences workshops: , starting via Zoom at 13:00
- Interviews with Neurodivergents: published online starting at 14:00
- Neurodiversiteitsrede: published online starting at 15:00
- Workshops for Teachers, starting via Zoom at 16:00
- Workshop for Parents, starting via Zoom at 17:00
- Workshop for Kids, starting via Zoom at 18:00
- Local activities: throughout the day
- Using the Pride frame for profiles: all day.
Neurodiversity Pride Day was initiated by the Neurodiversity Foundation, and was inspired by the Autism Pride days in the US & UK. In the Netherlands its supported by the NVA, Impuls/Woortblind and Spirit, and are welcoming other organizations that want to contribute by organizing an activity on the day as well. Also a growing number of individuals and companies have a wish to celebrate this day, and yes: we are all welcome!
If you want to organize something to celebrate this day, add the information in the form on this page. This will put your activity on the Neurodiversity Pride Map
What we can’t do, yet: Due to Corona Virus, we had to delay some fun activities to a future edition, to make sure we can support ‘flattening the curve’, this includes:
- The wall of Inclusion: A new endeavour and ambition for 2021 is to create the ‘Pride Wall of Inclusion‘, and invite 16 mayors & alderman of every province in the Nederlands to add their message, in videoform, of acceptance, appreciation and inclusion for all, regardless of which neurotype you are born with. An egg hatched from the heartfelt message of inclusion, made by Amstelveens alderman Marijn in the opening of last years main event. Their messages of inclusion and pride, speaking on behalf of their municipalities will be added to a 16-tiled metascreen, playing each of the messages, one after another. This ‘wall’ will be livestreamed on Neurodiversity Pride Day, and projected on building that are partnering with the pride day organizations.
- The Neurodance event does not fit the regulations of the government of social distancing. Therefore we will seek for an alternative date or edition.
For more information about the Neurodiversity Pride Day 2019, visit this page or see its activities in the main menu.
About the 2018 Neurodiversity Pride Day:
NEURODIVERSITY PRIDE DAY – Celebrating Neurodivergent Uniqueness
In this world, there are no mistakes, only variations. We are all here for a reason, and there is quaint beauty beyond the mold of the majority. So it is with great pride that, on June 18th in 2018 in the city of Rotterdam, for the very first time in our nation, we will celebrate neurodivergent uniqueness, together with neurodiverse families in the Netherlands. In the event, there will be speeches and drinks, and we salute, those who accepted, appreciated or supported us being who truly we are. Those who helped us break the molds and the masks. Those who helped us accept ourselves. Those who support us, ‘in being flappy’.
Its a day of ‘neurominority pride’, to stand strong and mark the uniqueness that we are. Pride for being exactly who we are, in a world that may not understand us. A world that feels different from us, but that is still our own home, and the home of those we love. It is day to choose love, to choose connection, choose (self)acceptance. To shine brighter, regardless of the difficulties we faced.
And for some, its a day for coming out, to unmask, to discontinue the hiding, and reveal yourself unto others. Its a day to appreciate neurodivergents like, or unlike you, for who they really are. Its also a day of gratitude, where we honour those who helped us get us where we are now.
The event is in grattitude for those who supported us, and in preparation of a global Neurodiversity Pride event, for which we overtly invite ASAN, ANI & AE to join us & AF4 in 2019.
Speeches by Tjerk Feitsma, Lana Jelenjev, Omotola Bolarin and Eleonora Spagnuolo. If you want to be a speaker or presenter, send the foundation a message via the contactform. Access is free for all.
Support us? One way is to use this
facebook banner or this profile picture to boost the acceptance of this day in our collective calendar.
For this foundation, for this very first event, we, as a team, honour the Cor Wit Fonds with their generous gift of 200.000 to finance our researchprojects on autistic communication. Also we honour specific persons who have helped us on our path towards inclusion or understanding. Those that learned us something new. Those that showed us something we needed to see, by being something awesome themselves, wrapping a specific life lesson to remember and integrate in our daily choices, indirectly helping us to find our voice as a collective, as its growing, in numbers, in strength, and in decibels;
Marie-Jose van den Boogaard (KPN) Michael Amiable (MCF), Rob Basjes (Abena), Peter Seuntjens (PHS Fund), Daan Beukers (Authentict), Peter Brouwer (Autitalent), John Scholtz (consulting), Gigi Wang (ACE), Sjoerd van der Maaden (Specialisterren), Rens Stavorinus (KPN),
Online Department (010), Michiel Willems (H1), Jelle Dijkmans (TU), Aleksandr & Fons & Dennis (Gents), bestuur SHC & partners (SHC), Ruben Habraken (Ece) het voltallige bestuur van Cor Wit Fonds (CWF), Samsung, and the Neurodivergent Narwhals (and all at the Ed Wiley Autism Library).