AXSChat Podcast

What does it mean to be diagnosed with ADHD at age 50? For Moonlake Lee, it wasn't just a personal revelation – it became the catalyst for creating Singapore's first charity dedicated to supporting people with ADHD.

When Moonlake's daughter received an ADHD diagnosis at 15, it sparked questions about her own lifelong patterns of hyperactivity, impulsivity, and overwhelm. Despite her success as an angel investor and tech executive, Moonlake often found herself taking on too much – half marathons, choir performances, international travel, and family obligations all competing for her attention. The diagnosis brought unexpected gifts: not just tools for managing her busy mind, but deeper self-understanding and improved relationships.

This transformative experience revealed a critical gap in Singapore's support systems. With 80% of children with special educational needs attending mainstream schools but minimal resources available, many were falling through the cracks. Most strikingly, Singapore had no clinical guidelines for adult ADHD, perpetuating the myth that it's "just a childhood condition."

Through Unlocking ADHD, Moonlake is changing this landscape. Her organization provides psychoeducation, practical strategies, and community support while advocating for systemic change. For the first time, Singapore is developing clinical guidelines for adult ADHD, with Moonlake serving on the task force. Her upcoming book "Differently Wired Minds" will showcase 60 Singaporeans with ADHD who are making meaningful contributions to society.

"Those who are neurodivergent are diamonds, but they're covered by shame and trauma," Moonlake explains. Her mission? Uncovering these diamonds by helping people identify their strengths, embrace their neurodiversity, and access the support they need to thrive.

Ready to explore how neurodivergent minds can transform our world? Listen now and discover how understanding and embracing difference creates pathways to innovation, connection, and fulfilment.

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Julia Undeutsch's path to becoming an accessibility specialist defies conventional career trajectories. From studying musicology and Japanese while working as a poker dealer to becoming a passionate advocate for digital inclusion, her story reveals how diverse experiences shape innovative approaches to accessibility.

When Julia first encountered coding, she noticed something peculiar on Stack Overflow: developers often presented two solutions—a standard approach and an "accessible" alternative. Her immediate reaction speaks volumes: "Why would I choose one or the other? You always choose accessibility." This clarity of purpose has defined her work ever since, recognizing that accessible code inherently represents better quality and cleaner development practices.

Julia's linguistic background provides a fascinating foundation for her accessibility work. Having studied Japanese and Austrian Sign Language, she draws direct parallels between human languages and programming languages. Both require similar cognitive processes and serve as gateways to understanding different cultures and perspectives—skills that translate perfectly to creating inclusive digital experiences that work for diverse users.

Beyond her day job at Atos, Julia has become a community builder extraordinaire. Through the Google Developer Expert Program and Women Techmakers, she's created platforms to spread accessibility awareness globally. Her talks in Japan revealed a hunger for accessibility knowledge in places where it hadn't yet become mainstream. Alongside her "partner in crime" Laura, she's building Vienna's accessibility community by combining web development expertise with UX research.

What makes Julia's perspective particularly valuable are the real-world lessons from her poker dealer days—experiences that unknowingly introduced her to accessibility challenges. Whether accommodating a player with prosthetic arms who couldn't reach cards at a specially designed table or navigating rules about "English only" when a deaf player needed sign language, these moments forced her to consider fundamental questions about inclusion that continue to inform her work today.

Ready to learn from Julia's unique journey and gain fresh perspectives on accessibility? Tune in to hear how diverse backgrounds and passionate advocacy are reshaping digital inclusion for everyone.

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Crystal Preston-Watson takes us on her fascinating journey from self-taught coder and journalism dropout to becoming a Senior Digital Accessibility Analyst at Salesforce's Office of Accessibility. With refreshing honesty, she shares how her own visual impairment and an unexpected quality assurance ticket requiring screen reader testing sparked her passion for digital accessibility.

What makes Crystal's work particularly groundbreaking is her exclusive focus on internal accessibility for Salesforce employees. While many companies prioritize customer-facing accessibility, Crystal champions a more holistic approach: "You can't really say you're accessible if your employees are having issues with accessibility trying to provide accessibility for your customers." Her role involves ensuring all internal digital tools, resources, and documentation are accessible to everyone, especially employees with disabilities.

Crystal offers a compelling vision for accessibility education that starts far earlier than most would consider. Rather than beginning at university or in professional settings, she advocates introducing accessibility concepts when children first encounter technology. By comparing accessibility features to video game "mods" when speaking to school children, she makes these concepts relatable and plants the seeds for a more inclusive technological future.

The conversation takes a fascinating turn when discussing artificial intelligence and accessibility. Crystal provides nuanced insights into how AI systems trained on existing internet data may perpetuate accessibility problems without expert oversight. She highlights how technical literacy gaps and science fiction expectations create challenges in critically evaluating AI's capabilities and limitations.

Whether you're an accessibility professional, educator, or technology enthusiast, this episode offers invaluable perspectives on creating truly inclusive digital experiences from the inside out. Subscribe now and join the conversation about building technology that works for everyone.

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What does it take to lead effectively in today's diverse business landscape? Gisele Marcus, Vice Dean at Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis, brings a refreshing perspective shaped by her extensive Fortune 500 experience at companies like Accenture and Johnson Controls.

The leadership skills needed today extend far beyond traditional business acumen. As Marcus explains, "Wherever I plant my feet, I want to be comfortable there and I want my colleagues to be comfortable there as well." This philosophy has guided her development of the "Leading Across Differences" course, which gives business students a competitive advantage as they enter workplaces that increasingly value inclusive leadership skills.

Drawing from research on belonging and performance, Marcus makes a compelling case that effective leadership requires understanding how to work with people from different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. "The common denominator is going to be people," she notes, explaining that when employees feel valued and included, "they will knock it out of the park for you as an organization."

The conversation takes an especially fascinating turn when discussing how younger generations are transforming workplace expectations. Unlike previous generations who primarily considered industry and income when choosing jobs, today's emerging workforce—particularly Millennials and Gen Z—demands environments where their unique contributions are recognized. They're "voting with their feet" against cultures that don't prioritize inclusion.

Perhaps most valuable is Marcus's insight into navigating the current political climate around DEI initiatives. She shares practical approaches for maintaining inclusive environments while being responsive to changing contexts. Her global perspective—teaching students from 29 different countries—reminds us that effective leadership must be culturally fluent, adapting approaches for different cultural contexts rather than applying one-size-fits-all solutions.

Connect with Gisele on LinkedIn or visit giselemarcus.com to learn more about her work on cultural fluency and inclusive leadership.

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Communication is everything, but what if you couldn't make a private phone call? Tomer Aharoni, CEO and co-founder of Nagish, joins AXSChat to reveal how his team is revolutionizing accessibility for deaf and hard of hearing individuals.

For millions with hearing loss, the simple act of making a phone call has historically required dependence on others—interpreters, captioners, or family members. Tomer shares how Nagish disrupts this paradigm with AI-powered technology that enables truly private conversations. The service provides real-time captioning for incoming and outgoing calls while allowing non-verbal users to type responses that are converted to speech.

What began as a Columbia University side project has transformed into an FCC-certified service used daily by tens of thousands. Tomer details their remarkable journey—from building the first prototype in Facebook Messenger to securing critical certification after years of regulatory navigation. Throughout this evolution, one principle remained constant: developing directly alongside the deaf community.

The conversation explores Nagish's expanding ecosystem beyond phone calls, including solutions for in-person conversations, workplace communication, and even their groundbreaking virtual reality meditation experience "Silent Flow." Tomer explains their thoughtful design approach, making technology accessible without stigma, particularly for older users who might resist acknowledging hearing loss.

Looking toward the future, Tomer discusses how they're balancing innovation with privacy, using AI to improve context and accuracy without storing sensitive conversation data. While currently available only in the US due to regulatory requirements, Nagish has ambitious plans for international expansion.

Ready to experience communication transformed? Download Nagish from nagish.com and join the revolution in accessible technology that's breaking down barriers one conversation at a time.

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When was the last time your history book mentioned Julius Caesar's seizures or Hannibal's missing eye? The erasure of disability from our historical narratives isn't accidental—it reveals our modern discomfort with integrating disability into stories of power and achievement.

Caroline Bristow, Director of the Cambridge School Classics Project, takes us on a fascinating journey through ancient Rome's complex relationship with disability. From gravestone inscriptions that proudly declare "Meropnus, aulis player with dwarfism" to special legal accommodations for disabled military veterans, we discover that ancient attitudes weren't as simplistic as we've been led to believe.

The conversation explores how the Cambridge Latin Course—used by 93% of UK schools teaching Latin and countless institutions worldwide—is being thoughtfully revised to include accurate representations of disability throughout history. This isn't about tokenistic inclusion, but about acknowledging the full spectrum of human experience that has always existed.

Particularly compelling is the discussion of classical art and monuments, where contrary to popular belief, diverse body types including elderly people, those with surgical scars, and various physical differences were indeed represented—though often filtered out by later scholars to support their idealized vision of classical perfection.

Whether you're interested in classical history, inclusive education, or the way our modern biases shape our understanding of the past, this conversation offers illuminating insights into how we can build a more accurate and representative historical narrative. Subscribe to hear more episodes that challenge our assumptions and expand our understanding of the human experience throughout history.

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What if fitness was designed to meet you exactly where you are, instead of demanding that you change to fit into someone else's idea of exercise? That's the revolutionary concept behind Second Skin Society, and founder Lee-Anne Reuber is making it a reality.

Drawing from her 22 years of experience in disability support and her background as a yoga teacher, Leanne recognized a critical gap in the wellness industry. When the pandemic forced her yoga studio online, members kept highlighting how much they appreciated having both standing and seated class options. This feedback sparked a revelation: rather than adding accessibility as an afterthought, what if an entire fitness platform was built with inclusion as its foundation?

Second Skin Society's mobile app features classes taught by a diverse instructor team where 75% have lived experience with disabilities. These instructors—who are blind, deaf, wheelchair users, autistic, have ADHD, alongside non-disabled teachers—collaborate to create content that addresses a spectrum of needs and preferences. The approach rejects the traditional fitness industry's focus on changing our bodies for aesthetic purposes, instead embracing movement as a way to appreciate and respect what our bodies can do. As Lee-Anne explains, "We do squats so we can pick up our kids. We do bicep curls so we can carry groceries more easily."

The platform offers varied class formats including full standing options, seated classes with lower body movement, and seated classes without lower body movement. Technical innovations like the ability to adjust instructor volume separately from music—inspired by Lee-Anne's own hearing challenges—demonstrate their commitment to thoughtful design. Beyond just accessible content, they're developing an accessible fitness certification process to empower more people with disabilities to become instructors, addressing decades of industry exclusion.

Whether you're dealing with disability, aging, or simply want a more inclusive approach to movement, Second Skin Society creates space for everyone to experience the joy of fitness on their own terms. Download their app from Apple or Google stores today and join a community that celebrates all bodies and abilities.

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Dimple Khagram, founder and CEO of Purple Beard Training, talks about creating the UK's first Accessibility Specialist Apprenticeship in an interview with Antonio Santos and Neil Milliken. What began as a passion project has expanded into a major educational programme, with seven graduates earning five distinctions and 40 additional apprentices still completing the course.

The journey wasn't straightforward. Dimple shares how her own experience with burnout inspired her to establish Purple Beard—a company whose quirky name deliberately challenges traditional educational norms. This recurring theme of professionals discovering accessibility after significant life changes emerges as a compelling undercurrent throughout the discussion.

Developing an effective accessibility curriculum proved especially difficult. Purple Beard spent nearly two years designing a programme that combines technical expertise with practical application across various areas: legislation, content design, testing, web development tools, and ethics. Their experience highlights why accessibility is a specialised profession requiring dedicated training rather than just an extension of software development.

What truly stands out are the motivations of accessibility apprentices. Regardless of their backgrounds, they all share a strong desire to create an equitable digital world, often driven by personal experiences with accessibility needs. This passion is vital as they face organisational resistance when advocating for accessibility in environments where it was not originally prioritised.

The discussion takes a thought-provoking turn when examining how accessibility relates to wider societal shifts. Are we becoming overly individualistic? How might we channel the time saved through AI and technology into community building and inclusive design? As Dimple observes, "How do we step back from the individualistic approach and say we want to make this better for everybody?"

Are you curious about how specialised accessibility training is transforming organisations and fostering digital experiences that are inclusive for all? This episode offers practical insights for both accessibility specialists and anyone eager to develop more inclusive digital environments.

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What happens when a curious quality assurance tester encounters an odd request about color contrast? For Iulia Brehuescu, it sparked a journey that would transform not only her career but also impact accessibility practices across a global pharmaceutical giant.

Iulia's story is both inspiring and cautionary. From her early days testing web platforms at a digital agency to her current role shaping global accessibility strategy at Sanofi, she shares the exhilaration of turning a passion project into meaningful work—and the personal cost when that passion outpaced self-care. "For no surprise to everyone, that came at my physical and mental health expense," she explains of her eventual burnout. Her subsequent recovery and career transition demonstrate how professionals can maintain their impact while establishing healthier boundaries.

At Sanofi, Iulia tackles accessibility challenges across physical environments, digital spaces, and organizational culture in 70 countries. She offers fascinating insights into the unique demands of manufacturing sites, where complex layouts require balancing safety with accessibility for approximately 20% of their workforce. The conversation explores how leadership commitment—with half of their executive committee holding inclusion-related roles—creates a culture where accessibility professionals can focus on implementation rather than justification. Yulia's practical approach to balancing strategic vision with day-to-day realities provides valuable lessons for organizations at any stage of their accessibility journey.

Ready to transform accessibility from a passion project to a strategic priority in your organization? Listen now and discover how to translate global accessibility frameworks into meaningful local impact while sustaining your own well-being along the way.

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What does digital accessibility look like in a mobile-first continent with 1.4 billion people speaking hundreds of languages across 50+ countries? Irene Mbari-Kirika, Executive Director and Founder of inABLE, takes us on an illuminating journey through Africa's rapidly evolving accessibility landscape.

The conversation begins with inABLE foundational work teaching digital skills to blind students in Kenya. This initial focus quickly expanded when Irene recognized that teaching assistive technology wasn't enough—the digital products themselves needed to become accessible. Six years ago, this realization sparked the creation of Inclusive Africa, now a thriving conference bringing together disability advocates, tech companies, and most importantly, young people with disabilities who understand technology and can drive innovation.

Kenya emerges as a surprising accessibility leader throughout our discussion. Recently, Kenya's president signed legislation mandating compliance with the country's accessibility standards (based on EN 301 549), making it the first African nation to take such a decisive step. Building on this momentum, inABLE is collaborating with standards bodies across Africa to develop a continent-wide accessibility standard—recognizing that fragmented country-by-country approaches would delay progress by decades.

What makes Africa's accessibility journey particularly fascinating are its unique challenges and opportunities. With the youngest population globally and high youth unemployment, the accessibility sector represents an untapped employment frontier. Currently lacking accessibility specialists, designers, and developers, Africa has the chance to build accessibility practices from the ground up rather than retrofitting existing systems. We explore how AI is already transforming accessibility in Africa, with innovations like avatar-based sign language solutions addressing the complex challenge of multiple sign language variations across different communities.

Join us for this eye-opening conversation about digital inclusion in Africa and discover why investing in young people with disabilities might be the key to unlocking accessible technology across the continent. How might this mobile-first, youth-driven approach to accessibility create solutions we haven't yet imagined?

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