The Lens: Living Diverse, welcomes Azhar Karim, Founder of DEEN: Disability Empowerment Equality Network. DEEN is a Canadian charity founded by Muslims with Disabilities that operates a number of programs and services for people with disabilities in Mississauga, Ottawa and Scarborough. Azhar discusses his Muslim faith, the importance of technology and language learning, and how it has evolved over the years for people with disabilities. Discover how one network can cultivate a vision for empowerment and equality.

The Lens: Living Diverse welcomes Stephanie Pilon, CNIB program lead and passionate advocate for social justice, as our special guest. We’ll discuss diversity inclusion, and disability justice. Plus, hear from Steph about her intersecting identities and lived experience as a person with sight loss who is part of the 2SLGBTQ community.

In Episode 21 of The Lens: Living Diverse, Ben and Vivi chat with Assistive Technology Trainer Alex Barnes. Alex shares his experience living as a bi-racial individual with multiple disabilities who immigrated from the United Kingdom to Canada. Hear Alex talk about the importance of incorporating diversity and inclusion into the ways we engage with technology, whether through speech synthesizers, developers, coding or the availability and affordability of assistive technology. Listen to Alex’s strategies for changing the landscape of the tech scene, making it more diverse and inclusive for all.

In the latest episode of the Lens: Living Diverse, Ben kicks it with the super talented Ramya Amuthan, co-host of AMI’s “The Kelly and Ramya Show.” Ramya talks about her intersecting identities as a Sri Lankan-born woman with sight loss and shares her journey working in media as a racialized woman. Ramya and Ben also have thoughtful discussions about appropriately pronouncing names that are ethnically diverse, the importance of representation and mentorship in the media, and the impact of community mobilization to bring about change. Ramya leans into the role of interviewee as Ben guides her through their conversation. We hope you enjoy the laughs, profound discussion, and vast knowledge of someone who undoubtedly has an influential voice within the sight loss community.

Content to Check Out:

AMI Audiobook Review: https://www.ami.ca/Audiobook-review

Kelly and Ramya: https://www.ami.ca/category/2456/recent_episodes

Ramya Instagram: @allramz

CNIB Lake Joe On The Go! – Accessibility at Lake Joe by CNIB / INCA

In the latest episode of The Lens: Living Diverse podcast, Ben sits down with Elaine Harrison, an advocate, volunteer, and member of the community. Elaine delves into the various facets of her identity, including her Korean ethnicity and her experiences as a mother. Listen to Elaine’s powerful journey, where she explores her passion for inclusive advocacy and embraces the concepts of self-discovery, self-determination, and claiming self-fulfillment.

Content to Check Out:

Born A Crime – book by Trevor Noah

Hosted by The German Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted (DBSV) and VIEWS International, the International Low-Vision Song Contest (ILSC) is a music contest for blind and visually impaired musicians. The contest provides a global platform for musicians to share their art and talent, to inspire and entertain. Organizations representing their respective countries submit a song to compete in the contest, and the winner is determined through online voting.

CNIB’s submission, a song called Common Ground, was composed and performed by Jade Ondrik, Music Specialist at CNIB Lake Joe, and Measha Brueggergosman-Lee, CNIB Brand Ambassador.

The lyrics to Common Ground are derived from a poem of the same name written by Chief R. Stacey LaForme, Chief of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation. The poem was used with permission from Chief R. Stacey LaForme.

In the latest edition of The Lens: Living Diverse, Ben sits down with community member, Martin Springer. During their discussion, Martin reflects on his sight loss journey, offers his perspective as a single black father and grandfather, and his lived experiences as a black man losing his vision. Martin also shares his tips and strategies for raising a family as a blind parent and the essential role love plays in sustaining a strong family.

In this episode of The Lens: Living Diverse, Neisha, Vivi and Keya continue their in-depth conversation about toxic femininity with a focus on the workplace. Listen to real conversations about appearance at work, internal and external perceptions, pressures of working in conjunction with colleagues of different identities and so much more. The trio share their personal experiences as racialized women living with a disability and challenging how they navigate in the workplace. Self-empowerment should not just be left at home but should be present at the workplace.

Content to Check Out

Survival of the prettiest: The Science Behind Beauty – book by Nancy Etcoff

Celebrate Black History Month with The Lens: Living Diverse. As Black individuals raised in Canada, Neisha, Vivi and Ben discuss their opinions of Black History Month, Black History curriculum, pivotal Black figures, powerful literature and modern-day celebrations to commemorate the month. You won’t want to miss this honest and thought-provoking discussion, where we examine our Black history, present and future.

Content to Check Out

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass – book by Frederick Douglass

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl – book by Harriet Jacobs

Beloved – book by Toni Morrison

Sugar: A Bitter-Sweet History – book by Elizabeth Abbott