Blind Citizens Australia | Charitable organisation

Blind Citizens Australia

Phone: +61 1800 033 660

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24.01.2022 This week Emma sends our best thoughts to Adelaide and South Australia with the hope this new cluster can be contained quickly. We welcome Jaci Armstrong to the Policy and Advocacy team and BC News is now out and available online and via podcast. A reminder that if you would like to submit an article for the next edition to do so by December 11. We are hosting a member welcome forum on Thursday 19th November and the National Women’s Branch hosts their AGM this Saturday.

23.01.2022 BCA Member, Cath Mahoney, put together this package on ABC Australia about the ongoing fight for audio description, and the positive impacts being felt by so many thanks to the current availability on both ABC and SBS Australia. Cath also interviews some well known advocates including: Dr Lynn Davis, audio description campaigner Alison Myers, audio describer of film and television... Graeme Innes, former disability commissioner Fiona Woods, director of Blind Citizens Australia

15.01.2022 In this week's New Horizons episode we hear from Ken Brandt, a new member of Blind Citizens Australia, and Tim Haggis, BCA staff member and returning guest to the program, about an upcoming forum for new members of BCA. Members can find out about BCA's work, how they can become involved with events and programmes run by BCA, and find out about local branches and more. Please contact BCA if you would like to attend the forum, which will be on Thursday, 19th November 2020, 2:30pm and 7:30pm AEDT. You can register by calling us on 1800 033 660 or emailing [email protected]

15.01.2022 Nas reveals terrible train interaction and introduces us to a week of celebrating stories in the lead up to IDPwD.

12.01.2022 Today our Adelaide friends enter their second day of lockdown. We are thinking of you all. BCA staff will be calling all Adelaide members over the next few days to ensure everyone is okay and offer our support too. We'd also ask our members to reach out and make contact with your SA friends during this time. A reminder also that we have our world famous (well in BCA circles!) online trivia this Saturday night, so perhaps if you're feeling a bit isolated this might be a good w...ay to connect with some of us and have a bit of fun. Join us at 8pm AEDT (that's 7.30pm if you're in Adelaide) via these methods: If you are on a computer, laptop or tablet you can click on this link: https://zoom.us/j/291084578 If you are on a smart phone, you can tap on this number: +61370182005,,291084578# If you are on a landline, you can dial 02 8015 6011 and enter the code: 291 084 578 Stay safe Adelaide x

09.01.2022 @WWDA_AU also has an online art competition open to all women, girls, feminine identifying and non-binary people with disability in Australia. Entries close 23 July with a virtual exhibition to follow and cash prizes will be awarded. For more info: http://ow.ly/SSYO50DZG6V

09.01.2022 In this week’s video chat Emma provides a summary of our recent AGM which had over 60 attendees virtually and included a fantastic keynote from guest speaker Linda Agnew on her experiences as a blind woman in STEM. Both recordings of the AGM and Linda’s presentation will be available on our website soon. Emma also gave an overview of the recent work we have been doing in the employment sector, particularly the workshops held last week which included excellent panellists talki...ng about changing perceptions and reducing the barriers to enable people who are blind or vision impaired to participate in the workplace. These workshops were well attended by employers and HR specialists and the feedback has been very positive. This week we celebrate International Day of People with Disability - Australia and a reminder that we are hosting BCA Inform on Thursday evening at 7.30pm AEDT and we invite you all to attend and learn about the year that was and BCA’s future plans. There is also an excellent program on Life Matters on ABC Australia put together by BCA member Cath Mahoney on the impact and benefits of AD which we encourage you to watch (the links are available on our Facebook page and also on the ABC website). See more

08.01.2022 In this week’s video Emma reminds us of the AGM which is on this Saturday at 12pm AEDT and is held virtually. You can still register to attend (and hear from our wonderful guest speaker) by visiting our website or emailing [email protected]. Also, in honour of International Day of People with Disability - Australia we will be hosting a BCA Inform virtual session on Dec 3 where we will touch on the year that has been 2020. Again visit our website for more information and to register for that event. There’s also a number of branch events happening, so please check your member update or our website for more information and we encourage you to participate on a local level.

08.01.2022 Feros Care have just launched their online art competition. Prizes available and an accesible virtual exhibition will be held. Open to anyone with a disability, entries close 31 May. To learn more and submit your entry just visit their website. http://ow.ly/r0m150DZFXI

08.01.2022 Looking forward to it! Visit the BCA website for dial in details and good luck!

06.01.2022 Liz (with some help from Poppi the Guide Dog) chats about why audio description is so important to her and why it needs to be a permanent fixture on free to air TV. To learn more about all things audio description, including our next steps just head to http://www.tv4all.com.au/ or follow Tv4All on Facebook. #TV4All ABC Australia SBS Australia Guide Dogs Australia Vision Australia Vision 2020 Australia VisAbility

05.01.2022 Karan shares his insights into 'coming out' twice and the struggles involved in his career. To disclose or not? A question we all continue to debate....

04.01.2022 Emma Bennison, our CEO, participated today in a panel on the Future of Work at the Women & Leadership Australia Symposium exploring ways in which we can embrace 2020 transitions and maximise potential benefits for all. https://www.wla.edu.au/melbourne2020.html

04.01.2022 Graeme Innes and Vaughn Bennison kicked off BCA's 45th AGM with a summary of BCA's activities over the past year. You can learn more about BCA's work in the areas of Inform, Connect and Empower via our BCA Year in Review 2019/20 here: https://www.bca.org.au//BCA-Year-in-review-2019-20-Large-P John Simpson, as President, opened the AGM and Stephen Belbin provided an acknowledgement of country. ... Emma Bennison, CEO, provided a few key highlights of the year including the success of Audio Description and our response to COVID-19 with the introduction of Happy Hours, and deeper engagement with our members. Mick Baker summarised the annual financial statements and auditor's report. Emma then summarised the election report in terms of roles for directors and NPC spots. You can review these on our website via this link: https://www.bca.org.au/2020/09/28/2020agm/ Bill Jolley delivered an update from the Jeffrey Blyth Foundation providing some history around the creation of the fund as well as the current financials. John concluded the meeting with a resolution to reduce the member joining fee to $0 until further notice. At the conclusion of the formalities we were excited to introduce guest speaker Associate Professor Linda Agnew, Head of School of Science and Technology at the University of New England. Linda is a BCA Member and featured in one of BCA’s Eye to the Future videos who discussed her work life and how employers can change their perceptions about people who are blind or vision impaired. She shared some insights from her work life and discussing potential STEM student pathways. Image Description: Yellow Post It note with the words AGM on it

02.01.2022 Congratulations Christine on taking out the Microsoft artificial intelligence competition for senior high school students recently with your concept to make gaming more accessible: harnessing virtual reality headsets and sensory gloves to enable gamers with vision impairment to play online with their friends. She's hoping it becomes a product - and so do we!

02.01.2022 In this week's New Horizons we feature the editorial from the most recent edition of Blind Citizens News. This is BCA's quarterly magazine, edited by Jonathan Craig. Jonathan joins us to talk about his editorial and what can be found within this quarter's magazine. Thanks to Glenn Morrow for narrating the online audio edition of Blind Citizens News, from which this reading was extracted. Also a reminder about the upcoming AGM for BCA’s national women’s branch. You can access the latest BC News here: https://www.bca.org.au//09/blind-citizens-news-november-2/

02.01.2022 BC News is now live on our website and should be winging its way to your home! On Tuesday 17th Annette and Jonathon Craig (editor of BC News) will discuss Annette's article at our weekly Happy Hour. Join us to discuss living and growing up with a vision impairment.... How to join a Happy Hour: If you are on a computer, laptop or tablet you can click on this link: https://zoom.us/j/291084578 If you are on a smart phone, you can tap on this number: +61370182005,,291084578# If you are on a landline, you can dial 02 8015 6011 and enter the code: 291 084 578

02.01.2022 This week Emma talks through the development of our service charter. Why it is needed, who it is for and who can access services that BCA provides? We will also have a BCA Inform event on April 6 to discuss this new service charter and we welcome everyone to attend and share their feedback.