Where are young people on the autism spectrum in the world of work? And are we truly listening to their experiences?
This video features the presentation of a study titled “A Case Study on the Social Bridge Approach within Social Entrepreneurship: Neurotypical Youth and Young Adults with ASD in Working Life.”
The starting point is simple yet often overlooked: employment rates among autistic adults remain strikingly low — even compared with other disability groups. What’s more, these experiences are usually told through the eyes of families, employers or service providers, while the voices of autistic individuals themselves often go unheard.
Beginning from this gap, we worked to share — with the wider public — a Photovoice study that conveys autistic individuals’ work experiences from their own perspective, grounded in the “social bridge approach.” With a neurotypical young person taking on the role of the bridge, we created an online exhibition called “Are We Aware?”, built from photographs taken by employed autistic youth and the stories behind them. Reaching beyond physical walls, the exhibition drew visitors from across the country and abroad; their feedback revealed both a rise in awareness and a genuine interest in new employment opportunities.
The video also includes ethically consented footage in which young autistic adults describe themselves and their work in their own words. Because that is the heart of this project: hearing experience directly from the person, rather than through an intermediary voice.
Awareness begins with the first step taken toward the other side of a bridge. Thank you for watching — feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.