Creating Ripples of Neurodiversity, at MozFest 2021
Diversity has always been an important aspect in how we co-exist and collaborate together. In order to help those around us accommodate with their surroundings, we need to bring these stories forward and take this forward as a community. While diversity for race, gender, religion, etc has been recognized, I found an outlet for the neurodiverse to step forward and be a part of a community. I found it as a part of the very lovely Mozilla Festival 2019, and I knew I just belonged. Which is why I ask you to consider if you do too?
The Mozilla Festival is known to be a town for misfits who bring out the colors in the world, and what better to identify yourself as a neurodivergent(neurotypical and neurodiverse) individual. Their motto states Arrive with an idea, Leave with a Community, and that’s exactly what I did! This year, we invite you to come and share, collaborate, and connect with those all over the world in this virtual space.
Now, do we all fall somewhere in the Neurodiverse Spectrum? Yes! We do!
We believe that people are diverse based on their neurological state in different scenarios that could pertain to, decision-making, controlling emotions, focus, etc. Basically, whatever makes us unique! Using a neurodiverse lens, we aim to present and showcase things not yet seen and not yet heard about to work as a content engine linking specialisms, thoughts and ideas — which comes from people like you.
What can you do?
Your experiences with technology, and life being a neurodivergent is very valuable to us! If you have any ideas, talk about them. Look into your life? Share your experiences! We have done this before, and people have come up with different ideas and amazing talks which people have enjoyed, like Materializing Mental Health, State of ND in the contemporary tech world, and talks like What does the internet smell, taste and feel like?. More talks like these have brought joy to the audience at MozFest previously, and while we don’t expect the same or even similar talks like these, we would love that the talk should bring you out! Since we aim to provide everyone, particularly ND individuals a safe space to be themselves in order to have their voices heard and demonstrate their talents.
We want you to express yourself through this space. It’s a superpower that we use everyday, and we create more and talk more, to create ripples. We have created the space in a way that enables you to learn more, do more and share your ideas and stories about how you function in a world created as an idea and not for people.
I’ll give you a clue, here. These are our previous talks for your reference so that you can know more about the ideas that have been a part of the Space and these should give you a great idea of what you could talk about. If you’re still stuck — scroll on! 🔽
Need any help?
I understand that it’s difficult to think of yourself as a speaker and that’s completely okay! If you have an idea but are not sure about it, come talk to us at neurodiversity@mozillafestival.org. If you don’t know if speaking is for you, hit us up at neurodiversity@mozillafestival.org. If you’re worried about being judged and don’t want to speak to a group, hit me up at pranshu@mozillafestival.org. If you’re curious and want to know more about us, mail us at neurodiversity@mozillafestival.org.
Just remember, the last date of submissions is 1st December, 09:00AM CET. We are more than willing to help you craft your proposal and are waiting for your submissions! Submit your ideas at the Call for Proposals!
Not something that excites you?
You can explore the other space descriptions at Mozfest and submit your ideas for one or multiple spaces that excite you through the call for proposals. If you’re new to MozFest or facilitating sessions you can check out MozFest 101.
The call closes on the 1st December, 09:00AM CET so feel free to reach out to us and we can help you with your idea and the submission.
