A Message from the I Can Network: I Can Camps!
Dear friends,
We’re on a mission. We want to change the game on how the Autism Spectrum is viewed within Australia. We want to drive a rethink of Autism, away from ‘I Can’t’ to ‘I Can’.
We’re starting that game change at our upcoming I Can Camp (Friday 25 – Sunday 27 April in Gembrook, Victoria).
We want this weekend to be a life-changing experience for any 18-30-year-old on the Autism Spectrum. It’s more than a camp to us, it’s a moment. And we want to share it with you.
Together at the I Can Camp young adults will:
- Have fun, make new friends and hang out with other young adults who ‘get’ you
- Challenge yourself and share your Autistic talents and quirks
- Contribute your ideas for the growth of the I Can Network
- Wow us at the ‘Dress to Obsess’ dance-off
- Be trained as an I Can mentor so you can make a difference to other young people
- Cook up a storm in I Can Master Chef
- Engage with great storytellers including Chris Varney, Tim Chan, Jim Anderson, Lyndel Kennedy and Julia Wake
See the I Can Camp 25 – 27 April promotional leaflet here for more details.
What is this all about? Well, our story is simple. We began in September 2013 when three university students said they were sick of Australia missing out on the gifts of the Autism Spectrum. That we’re missing out is plain to see: only 34% of Australians with Autism are employed.
Since then we’ve used our ‘I Can’ attitudes to ignite a movement. A movement that isn’t about ‘high-functioning’ or ‘low-functioning’ but a movement that’s about all of us! Now we give talks every week. Now we’re over 500 people who believe that Autism means ‘I Can’, not ‘I Can’t’. Now we want to take the ‘I Can’ belief and unleash it in every school, university and TAFE. That’s what we’re starting at the I Can Camp.
Thank you and keep believing in us!
The I Can Team
PS: Keep an eye out for our upcoming Grapevine coming out on World Autism Awareness Day, Wednesday 2 April