Everyone has capacity to lead #IDPWD24

November 25, 2024

What comes to mind when you hear the word leader? Perhaps you picture a politician, a CEO or a school principal. Perhaps you imagine a person in a high-flying corporate job who flies interstate weekly.

It is not uncommon to think of leadership as something grand and monumental, and a quality reserved for people in positions of authority. The reality is that leadership comes in many forms and often, the smallest actions can have the biggest impact.

This year, the theme for International Day of People with Disability (celebrated on 3 December) is amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future.

For the team at Clarke Road – CatholicCare’s disability satellite site in Waitara, building the leadership skills of clients is key to their programming and activity planning.

“Everyone can be a leader,” says Activity Leader, Carla. “Once we discover a client’s interests and passions, we give them opportunities to exercise leadership in this area.”

It didn’t take long for the team to discover Mark’s fascination for all things sport. Today, Mark is the go-to for all sporting related questions and initiatives at Clarke Road. “We encourage him to take initiative in this area, and he will regularly share sporting news and announce upcoming sporting matches worth watching,” says Carla.

There is another client, Jonathon who is passionate about gardening. His family owns a nursery, and he has knowledge of what to plant during different seasons. “When we learned of Jonathon’s expertise in gardening, we began encouraging him to take on leadership responsibilities during our visits to the community garden,” Carla explains.

The team at Clarke Road have launched a newspaper that gives clients an opportunity to learn new skills and develop their leadership experience. “Five of our clients have been tasked with this project,” Carla explains. “They share news about activities, take photos and share recipes. They have learnt many new technology skills through this project, such as typing and inserting photos, and they have grown in confidence. The product is the newsletter, but the process is most important.”

The newsletter has shone a spotlight on Mary, our resident cooking guru who will regularly share her recipes. “When we draw on someone’s talents and give them opportunities to influence their peers, it is very empowering,” Carla says. “We are always asking ourselves, what is this client’s strengths and what do they know? Then we take it from there.”

Clarke Road’s recycling initiative is another project that has empowered clients to exercise leadership, and has helped them discover the value of money, recycling and care for the environment. Clients take responsibility for collating bottles and going through the ‘Return and Earn’ process. They are then tasked with discerning how the money can best be used. The money will often go towards activities, food and birthday presents for clients. “For a long time, it was very hard to motivate Nick,” explains Activity Leader Natasha. “The recycling initiative is something that really motivated him, because he enjoyed working out how to best use the money for everyone’s benefit. Nick loves sharing and he also knows how much everyone at Clarke Road loves chewing gum, so every week when the money comes through, he will buy chewing gum and distribute it to everyone. Food and sharing are his passions, and this is his way of exercising leadership.”

More than 4 million Australians — roughly 18 per cent of the population — are living with a disability. This year, as we celebrate International Day for People with Disability may we amplify the strengths and leadership capacities of some of Australia’s smartest, most creative and, at times, most under-recognised people.