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About TEAM

Text "Value Rights Power" linked by arrows forming a cycle

TEAM (The Empowering Advocacy Method) is a revised follow-up to the To Stand Beside: Advocacy for Inclusion Manual (TSB), which Kevin Stone self-published back in 1997.

 

At the time, TSB represented the sum of his experience as an independent advocate, a trainer of workers in the disability sector, an organiser of parents advocating for the inclusion of their children in regular schools, and as the principal of a Special Developmental School which had successfully integrated all its students with intellectual disability into local mainstream schools during the early 1980’s.

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In addition to his various day jobs - as an SDS Principal, a Project Manager, a TAFE Developmental Disabilities Certificate Coordinator, a Consultant with the Yungaburra Foundation, the founding and long-serving CEO of VALID, and as a Board Member and current chair of Inclusion Australia - Kevin has been delivering advocacy and self-advocacy training workshops continuously since 1986. 

With the implementation of the NDIS and the changing landscape in the lives of people with disability in Australia Kevin's celebrated advocacy approach also entered a new chapter. Actively addressing the realities and nuances of the scheme the redevelopment of the TEAM manual has proven a welcome support for NDIS participants, their family members, self-advocates, support workers and managers.

 

NDIS Providers and Social Enterprises that are truly committed to the development of proud and confident clients and employees will also benefit.

 

The practical knowledge of intersectionality, systemic disadvantage and compounding marginalisation, shared in the TEAM workshops have proven transferable by those outside the scheme and disability sector. Health, Women's Health and Not-Fo-Profit Organisations have already gained valued insight from the TEAM materials evoking deeper thinking around inclusion in their work and the shared pursuit for disability justice and respect and dignity for all.    

Adding style and creativity with exclusive illustrations by acclaimed Geelong-based artist Jaclyn Poole, TEAM also promises some exciting collaborations ahead; TEAM is much more than the sum of one man's experience. It is more than a workshop, more than a manual, more than training - it is a collective movement to empower people with disability and fortify that empowerment with a community that celebrates, encourages and actively advocates for the lives of people with disability and their futures.  

Comic of TEAM role playing card. Text at top reads: "Assess the Situation"
Comic of TEAM role playing card. Text at top reads: "plan, do and review"
Comic of TEAM role playing card. Text at top reads: "Choose your role"

TEAM is for all people with disability.

This includes, but is not limited to;  

  • People with intellectual, learning, neurological, psychiatric and cognitive disabilities

  • Physical and sensory disability or difference

  • It also includes those living with chronic illness and health conditions such as Long Covid 

  • TEAM Workshops and Resources can be available in a variety of formats (including Easy Read and Auto-Captions). If you have any access needs please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate. 

  • Find our TEAM Website Accessibility Statement here.

Comic of a wheelchair user. She has glasses, long hair with a headband. She is eating at a table.

TEAM is Intersectional.

In championing the rights and empowerment of people with disability it is vital to also acknowledge the intersecting factors that contribute to each individual, their lives, their community and their future.

We recognise that through systemic structures that contribute to the marginalisation and the devaluation of specific groups, an individual's participation in the TEAM workshops may be impacted in complex and compounding ways. To try and address these barriers we have committed to affordable options for people with low income, an inclusive approach that is safe and supportive for all and a broad invitation for feedback, collaboration and allyship. 

As trainers and facilitators, we also acknowledge our privilege and power.  As we continually endeavour to bring true justice and inclusion for all people with a disability.

Comic of TEAM's " 3-D Test", in the style of a vision test poster.

TEAM Celebrates Inclusion

TEAM is a safe and respectful environment for everyone.

We commit to actively supporting participation from traditionally marginalised groups.

If you have any concerns or would like more information on how we can better provide a culturally safe space please get in touch. 

Comic of two holding hands. It is angled so one hand is pulling the other upwards,

Our Vision

We are committed to the *UNCRPD's vision of a world in which people with a disability enjoy:

1.    Respect for inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one’s own choices, and independence of persons.

2.    Non-discrimination.

3.    Full and effective participation and inclusion in society.

4.    Respect for difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as part of human diversity and humanity.

5.    Equality of opportunity.

6.    Accessibility.

7.    Equality between men and women.

8.    Respect for the evolving capacities of children with disabilities and respect for the right of children with disabilities to preserve their identities.

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*The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an international human rights treaty of the United Nations intended to protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities. 

Our Values

We are guided by the human rights principles and values that have underpinned the disability rights movement over the past fifty years, including:

 

  • Life, liberty and security of person

  • Freedom from tyranny and oppression

  • Social Acceptance

  • Positive Social Image

  • Competence 

  • Fidelity/Independence/Selflessness/Integrity

  • Equal rights/Equal access

  • Economic and social security

  • Community support/Political recognition

  • Social responsibility

  • Choice/Control/Satisfaction

  • Equality/Diversity/Community

  • Self-Determination/Individual Freedom

  • Presumption of Capacity

  • Security/Empowerment/Love  

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