CCS Disability Action launches the Books Beyond Barriers podcast to share disability insights and resources
As Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest pan-disability support and advocacy organisation, CCS Disability Action is thrilled to announce the launch of a brand-new podcast series, Books Beyond Barriers – a podcast exploring the books, resources, research and insights all about the disability community.
In each episode, host Krissy Wright, librarian at the CCS Disability Action Library and Information Service, will provide helpful resource recommendations, share gems of information, and sometimes invite special guests to share their insights.
Combining approximately 20 years of experience managing the research library at the Donald Beasley Institute with a wealth of knowledge and lived experience of disability-related issues, Wright is passionate about ensuring everyone has access to good information about disability.
"What if I told you that there is more between the pages of a book than paper and words?” she says. “Come with me on a journey to discover gems of information that just may change your life journey, anecdotes you relate to but also make you laugh and cry, or give you the knowledge to do your job in a different way with a different outcome."
Books Beyond Barriers will be a place to find resources on specific topics, learn something new about disability and hear from people across the disability community. The podcast is an extension of CCS Disability Action’s free Library and Information Service, which offers over 5,000 resources on disability and the wider disability sector and is available to anyone, anywhere in New Zealand.
Wright hopes the show will help listeners understand what support and resources are available as well as inspire more people to access the library service, from disabled individuals, parents and teachers to academics, journalists, and health professionals.
"I want to open this world of knowledge to as many people as possible, not only through Books Beyond Barriers but via our library website, the physical library itself and our other communications," says Wright.
“We want to make sure that knowledge is accessible for everybody, and they are actively encouraged to use it to become more independent and informed.”
The Books Beyond Barriers podcast is being produced in partnership with Dunedin community access station Otago Access Radio (OAR FM Dunedin – 105.4FM and 1575AM). New episodes will air fortnightly on Wednesdays at 10:30 am and replay on Saturdays at 12:00 pm, starting 19 June 2024.
Full episodes and transcripts will also be available on the CCS Disability Action website following their release: https://www.ccsdisabilityaction.org.nz/books-beyond-barriers
For further information contact:
Krissy Wright
Librarian
CCS Disability Action
Phone: 027 244 6350
Email: info@ccsDisabilityAction.org.nz
About the Library and Information Service
As part of its commitment to creating more accessible and inclusive communities, CCS Disability Action offers a free nationwide library to ensure everyone has access to good information and resources.
The Information Service provides a wide range of resources on disability and the wider disability sector. Anyone can use the Information Service free of charge, no matter where they are in New Zealand.
People can visit the Dunedin-based library in person, search the catalogue online and have resources mailed to them, or ask the librarian to research for them. The information provided may help answer questions, offer guidance on “where to from here?” or convey the latest research and thinking on relevant subjects.
For more information, please visit: https://www.ccsdisabilityaction.org.nz/library
CCS Disability Action background information
CCS Disability Action is the largest disability support and advocacy organisation in Aotearoa New Zealand.
We support people with all types of impairments and have been working alongside disabled people since 1935. We are at the forefront of service provision, advocacy and information sharing in the disability sector. We partner with disabled people, their families and whānau to remove barriers at an individual, community and national level. Our vision is to see every disabled person and whānau hauā interwoven into the lives of their whānau and community.
We provide direct support to around 5,000 children, young people, and adults through our 18 branches, which operate from Northland to Invercargill. Our support focuses on breaking down barriers.
CCS Disability Action is a leading advocate for inclusive education in New Zealand, working to ensure that disabled students have equal access to learning opportunities in their local education setting.
We also run New Zealand’s nationwide Mobility Parking Permit scheme. This scheme currently supports more than 160,000 people to access their communities and facilities more easily. Our subsidiaries, Lifemark and BarrierFree, advocate for and provides universal design consultancy to improve the accessibility of New Zealand’s housing and built environments.
We receive a mixture of government and charitable funding.