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Neurodiversity Youth Corner 31st January
A dedicated online space for young adults to present and discuss neurodiversity.
When: 31st January 2026
Time: 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (GST, UAE time)
Where: Online, accessible platform
Get a Community Pass for 35 AED/ USD 9
It includes:
Conference Recordings, ND Youth Corner live
Use the code NYC35 at Checkout
Our Speakers
Youth Corner Agenda- 31st Januaury
Phase One
9:00-9:15 AM GST (UAE Time)
Opening
Anna Kaminski
CEO of Neurokinds
9:15-9:55 AM GST (UAE Time)
Keynote Speaker
Dali Sanghera
Accenture Managing Director
Leading with strategic vision and a passion for sustainability, my previous role as COO for Accenture Middle East and now my new role as V&A / PMI lead encapsulates over three decades of experience in operational excellence and consulting. I deliver tangible process improvements and strategic transformations whilst building an inclusive culture in the work place.
9:55-10:20 AM GST (UAE Time)
Xitlaly Quintero-Guzman
Building Connection and Belonging for Neurodivergent Communities: Insights from CAYR Connections’ Chicago Neurodiverse Social Club (CNSC)
This presentation explores the work of CAYR Connections’ Chicago Neurodiverse Social Club (CNSC) in creating safe, inclusive, and supportive spaces for neurodivergent adults. It highlights how community-based programs can foster connection, belonging, and empowerment among individuals who are often historically marginalized or isolated due to neurodivergence. The session draws on lived experience, programmatic insights, and practical strategies for supporting neurodivergent individuals in social, professional, and community contexts.
9:55-10:20 AM GST (UAE Time)
Studying Abroad as a Neurodivergent: Independence, Community, and Belonging
What is it like to study abroad as a multiply disabled, neurodivergent university student? Often, such students are cautioned against studying abroad due to difficulties that may arise from a different living arrangement, a new environment, perhaps a new language as the mother-tongue, and variations in academic accommodation systems. Drawing on my experiences as a Disabled student with Dyspraxia at institutions in Canada, the UK, and Italy, I provide an alternative, more optimistic perspective. I describe the challenges I encountered and how I overcame them.
10:45-11:10 AM GST (UAE Time)
Zul
The Neurodiverse Struggles with Intersectionality
Description : In a world where Neurodiversity is being reclaimed and rediscovered as a unique part of society, there are still many of us that are still facing challenges due to systematic barriers that prevent a large part of the neurodivergent experience from being fully relizing in the contexts where our community is often left behind in. Zul, Community Coordinator of DIEM a student led disability and social minority based NGO who's work frequently enganges with disabled and neurodivergent persons with intersectional identities shares what it means for neurodivergence to affect lived experiences and overlapping identities (such as race, gender, class, disability, culture) to shape experiences of neurodivergent individuals.
11:10-11:35 AM GST (UAE Time)
Ramaswamy Narayanaswamy
A Complete Photograph of Life In The Spectrum
My presentation covers a diverse range of aspects pertaining to ASD, which many like-minded individuals will find deeply relatable. I intend to cross the smallest steps from the dreary routines including basic tasks such as getting ready for school or college to the massive oceans which cover jobs and relationships between other individuals. Within the scope of this would include the issue of sensory needs, which is a recurring part of life with ASD, as well as organizability, orderliness and professionalism. These issues will be tackled individually using pertinent real life examples and specified solutions to issues which neurotypical individuals find less difficult. Professionalism will be the most arguably complex topic that will be discussed as it will cross a multitude of areas in social, educational, vocational and family circles. Communication will be explored from educational and social standpoints as well as being an essential tool in building connections in the workplace. Another important aspect is ASD and the classroom, since styles of learning subjects differ greatly from the neurotypical mindset.
11:35-12:00 PM GST (UAE Time)
Everyday Inclusion: Youth Responsibility in Neurodiverse Communities
This session explores how everyday behaviour, language, and social norms shape inclusion for neurodivergent individuals, with a particular focus on the role young people play in creating welcoming or exclusionary spaces. The presentation is grounded in a youth perspective and informed by lived experience as a sibling to someone with Down syndrome, which adds an authentic lens to how subtle forms of exclusion are noticed and understood in daily life.
Phase Two
12:20-12:45 PM
Neurodiversity in Personal Relationships: Friendship, Love, and Understanding
This presentation explores how neurodiversity shapes personal relationships, specifically focusing on friendships and romantic partners. Far less attention is given to how neurodivergent individuals experience unconditional or conditional love, emotional closeness, conflict, and mutual understanding within everyday relationships. This presentation aims to bridge that gap by incorporating psychological theories alongside personal, firsthand insights.
12:45-1:10 PM
Sensitivity In Neurodiversity: A Hidden Strength
An exploration of neurosensitivity: how it's experienced, how it quietly shapes daily life, and why its greatest strengths are often hidden in plain sight.
1:10-1:35 PM
Joshita Jade Nixon
Dyslexia Doesn’t Just “Go Away”
This presentation will aim to help parents and teachers develop a clear, accurate, and compassionate understanding of dyslexia and its impact on children. It begins by explaining what dyslexia is and how it affects a child’s learning, particularly in reading, writing, and spelling, while emphasising that it is a neurological difference rather than a disease or a sign of low intelligence. A major focus of the presentation is addressing the common misconception that dyslexia can be “cured.” Instead, it highlights that dyslexia is a lifelong condition, and while children can improve their skills through effective strategies and support, the condition itself does not disappear. The presentation also explores how parents may misunderstand improvement, sometimes assuming that better grades or reading ability mean dyslexia is no longer present, which can lead to reduced support and unrealistic expectations.
1:35-2:00 PM
Jhian Bautista Samson
Self Diagnosis - Is it more than just the internet?
The presentation covers several aspects of self diagnosis: definitions, the risks of self-diagnosis, causes of self-diagnosis, the implications behind these causes to mental health/clinical psychology/psychiatry as an industry, and what possible solutions can be offered to mitigate or help reduce ill-informed self diagnosis. The causes of self diagnosis include: identity formation within adolescents, information across social media and search engines, and most importantly, societal factors which will be the primary focus of this presentation. These societal factors (especially in adolescents) will be addressed in the form of: families with mental health stigmatism (especially within asian cultures), discriminatory mental health laws, and possible fear of judgment during the diagnosis.
2:00-2:40 PM
Panel: Amina Shaikh , Noor Ul Ain Memon, Khawla Barley and Charlotte Pyke
Panel: Navigating the Neurodiversity Ecosystem: lived experiences and shared perspectives
This panel will explore the roles, relationships, and perspectives within families and communities that include neurodivergent individuals. It will highlight how siblings, parents, and neurodivergent people influence one another and are interconnected within the wider ecosystem, and how understanding these dynamics can foster inclusion, empathy, and stronger community connections, while exploring how shared understanding and responsibility can help create more supportive and inclusive environments.
2:40-3:05 PM
Iris Fernandes
Finding safety when you're Neurodiverse and growing up between cultures
Finding Safety When You’re Neurodiverse and Growing Up Between Cultures examines safety as a fundamental human need, and how it can look different for neurodiverse individuals. Drawing on lived experience, this talk explores how neurodiverse youth can build a sense of safety and belonging in an increasingly intercultural world through self-awareness, boundaries, and supportive connections.