NDIS participants come together to celebrate International Day of People with Disability

National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants from across Australia have come together virtually to celebrate diversity in a unique music video for this year’s International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD) on Thursday, 3 December.

IDPwD is a United Nations Day celebrated around the world every year on 3 December. The day aims to raise awareness and challenge common perceptions and stereotypes about disability. The 2020 theme is ‘Seeing the ability in disability’.

In the video children as young as two years of age, who live with a wide range of disabilities sway, spin, and skip, to a catchy feel-good dance track in the video, produced by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

Aviana, aged four years, appears in the video. Aviana has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA1), a usually fatal neuromuscular disorder, which causes weakness and muscle deterioration. Aviana needs multiple intensive therapies and uses a wheelchair, but is ‘fiercely independent’, and now attends day care and ballet lessons. 

She is joined by Karina, age five years, who lives with a rare condition called Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum and is missing the part of her brain connecting the left and right hemispheres. ACC affects Karina’s social and communication skills, strength, balance and coordination, but with NDIS funded therapies and support, she is getting stronger and making friends. Karina loves ballet and trampolining.

Willow, aged two years, is another participant. Willow was born 10 weeks prematurely, weighing only 565 grams. She had several life-threatening surgeries and was revived multiple times. As a result of her early birth, Willow has hearing impairment and global developmental delay. Thanks to multiple NDIS supports she is a bubbly, happy toddler and reaching milestones and is expected to walk soon.

The video, NDIA CEO Martin Hoffman said, is about celebrating people of all abilities and helping to promote a more inclusive Australia.

“It’s about raising awareness and celebrating the millions of Australians with disability, including NDIS participants, not only today, but every day.”

NDIS participants from around the country filmed themselves moving, clapping, and dancing to Flight Facilities’ upbeat track, Better than Ever, featuring American singer-songwriter and producer Aloe Blacc.

The films have been edited together to match the theme of the video — inclusiveness.

“It’s an absolute pleasure for us to be involved in something so positive. Videos like these are the best part about being in the music industry, when we see how people can adopt our music to make it entirely their own,” Hugo and Jimmy of Flight Facilities said.

IDPwD is a United Nations Day celebrated around the world every year on 3 December. The day aims to raise awareness and challenge common perceptions and stereotypes about disability. This year’s theme is ‘Seeing the ability in disability’.

In the seven years since the NDIS scheme began in Australia, more than 412,000 people have been supported, including more than 193,000 who are receiving support for the first time. More information about the NDIS is available here.