Bryden Carlson-Giving
Occupational Therapist
Bryden Carlson-Giving is a neurodivergent, doctoral student at Boston University and a pediatric occupational therapy practitioner with experience in pediatric outpatient and inpatient rehabilitation settings. Bryden’s work includes encouraging a shift away from an impairment-based perspective and returning to strengths-based, occupation-centered practices. He seeks to promote neurodiversity-affirming practices, amplify the voices of the disabled community, and challenge ableism within healthcare and research. From helping individuals discover and embrace their sensory processing differences to collaborating with their family and education team to improve their ability to be neurodiversity-affirming, Bryden aims to maximize his client's quality of life and well-being to support authentic, neurodivergent development.
Connie Inukai
Connie Inukai is a serial Grandmapreneur, inventor, author, and a speaker. She became an award-winning inventor at the age of 68 with her Tip N Split calculating device. A few years later she created “Write Your Selfie” – 6 easy steps to write your life story in pictures and
captions and pass it on to the next generations in your family. Not everything is about money and #savings for the second-act life. Connie encourages the #BabyBoomer generation and those who think about retirement to #rethink and have an active and social life through entrepreneurship. Because… Passion has No Expiration Date!
Katherine McGinley
Katherine is currently an occupational therapy student who has a passion for disability justice. She is currently conducting qualitative research to assist practitioners in understanding how to utilize a neurodiversity-affirming approach when working with autistic individuals who exhibit self-harm and aggressive behaviors. In the past, she has worked with adults and children with developmental disabilities. Her main goals are to improve the quality of life for autistic and other disabled people.
Sheri Berke
Sheri is a successful and adventurous woman who shares her lifelong love of travel, her experiences, and lessons along the way. She is an author of a book called Everything I Learned About Life I Learned on Vacation. She also has a podcast called 360 Wisdom Speaks Podapalooza Special Edition. Over the last several decades, she was a business advisor and coach in large companies and small businesses. Sheri holds an MBA from the University of Southern California and also a former CPA.