Luella Wheeler

Luella Wheeler

They/Them/She/Her

Why are you nominating for the Board?

My nomination is with the hope that I can support the work and purpose of ASAN AUNZ. I am especially eager to work with an Autistic-led organisation. I believe strongly that it is Autistic people that must lead the way in advocacy and policy for the support and inclusion of Autistic people within society. I have a particular interest in governance. I am passionate about representation, validation, and liberation of Autistic individuals and communities, work to promote neurodiversity affirming perspectives, and aim to uphold and nurture the mana of Autistic individuals and our communities.

What involvement have you had in Autistic self advocacy?

I am an active self-advocate and lived experience voice – both professionally and as a member of Autistic communities. I am an Autistic advisor with Altogether Autism – a free, nationwide autism information and advisory service in Aotearoa New Zealand, owned and operated by Your Way | Kia Roha which is a charitable trust offering information, support, and equipment to disabled people. Additionally, working with Altogether Autism I have provided peer coaching, research support, content development, writing, and policy review. I also work for Community Care Trust – a not-for-profit charitable trust that supports youth and adults who are autistic and/or have learning differences in Te Waipounamu | The South Island of Aotearoa New Zealand.

With Community Care Trust I am a member of the Advisory Panel of lived experience advisors. I am the representative of that panel to the board of Community Care Trust (my title is Special Advisor to the Board)

I also do advocacy work by being part of the Friends of the Medical Centre programme with Ōtākau Whakaihu Waka | University of Otago and speaking to medical students about my experiences as an Autistic person with co-ocurring medical conditions so they will be better informed to support their future patients.

In my Autistic communities, with friends and whānau I support individual journeys through identity, diagnosis, and self-advocacy. In my own life I’ve learned to self-advocate strongly and am now having much better experiences in my work, study, support and healthcare from having those skills. I know from my experience how life-changing self-advocacy can be.

What experience on and contributions to other boards and committees have you had?

In my role as Special Advisor to the Board at Community Care Trust I represent a lived experience perspective and ensure the experiences and rights of those supported are prioritised. The Advisory Panel I am a member of at Community Care Trust is a group of individuals with lived experience of disability and receiving support who review policy and feedback and report to the senior leadership team. Also at Community Care Trust I work to support bicultural strategy and upholding commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and have been part of a review panel to examine the ethics of behavioural support after I brought community concerns and critiques to the organisation’s attention.

In these roles I provide perspective from lived experience, from my connections with my communities and from understanding of the research that is valued by and validates our communities. I am a facilitator for Your Way | Kia Roha’s Local Disability Leadership Group. I am also an active member of my rūnaka (committee) – Kāti Huirapa Rūnaka ki Puketeraki and attend general and annual meetings.

I am currently studying the Not-for-Profit Governance & Finance Essentials course with Institute of Directors and I did papers in governance as part of my Graduate Diploma of Business, majoring in management.

What are your areas of expertise?

My areas of expertise/interest and experience are autism, trauma, te ao Māori perspectives, tikanga Māori, LGBT+/rainbow perspectives, healthcare accessibility, policy review, rights, peer support and coaching, participation in co-design, research support and review, national policy submissions, focus group participation. My career and study background is in scientific research.

Which of these areas do you have strong skills in that you would apply on the ASAN-AUNZ Board?

  • Governance expertise including experience on Boards and committees and/or leadership roles.
  • Government or stakeholder engagement.
  • Working with vulnerable cohorts.
  • Co-design facilitation and participation.

What else would you like the members of ASAN-AUNZ to know about you? (optional)

Ko Waitaha, ko Kāti Māmoe, ko Kāi Tahu, ko Kāti Pākehā kā iwi. He takatāpui ahau.

My iwi are Waitaha, Kāti Māmoe, Kāi Tahu, and Kāti Pākehā. I am takatāpui – I am Māori and a member of rainbow community. These communities are important to me and treasured by me alongside (and overlapping with) Autistic communities. For myself I experience my aspects of identity as intertwined and inseparable.

I come from a highly neurodivergent whānau with neurodivergence present in every generation.

I am passionate about manaakitanga – showing care for all, upholding dignity and rights, and enabling good lives. I am late-identified and have had my own version of the difficult journey up to that point of realisation, with challenges to all aspects of my wellbeing. My late identity was a significant turning point in my life towards authenticity and wellbeing and gaining a sense-making narrative of who I am. Having the understanding and insight of my way of being and having greater connection to other neurodivergent folk has been life-changing for me. I highly value our communities’ knowledge, wisdom and relationships and wish for all Autistic people to have autonomy and thriving to live in ways they choose.

My way of working is optimistic and forward-focused, I like to work with strong relationships with a high degree of care, trust and respect, I always support and validate lived experience voices and believe in being led by experience in all its diversity and variation. I like to hold space for diversity of experiences and believe in adding perspectives to build a wider view, to build collaboration as a collective, to support colleagues as whole humans, and I strongly believe in rights, mana, the importance of being trauma-aware, being guided by neuroaffirming approaches and I value inclusion with a strong awareness, and valuing of, intersectionality.

I believe strongly that Autistic people can thrive and deserve to thrive, free from pathologising narratives and affirmed in our natural differences. While I am strong in my values I am able to be open and accepting of others seeing things differently.

Mā ngā pakiaka e tū ai te rakau – With strong roots a tree will stand.

Professional development summary:

  • Groundwork – Understanding Te Tiriti (in-depth) workshop (2024)
  • Trauma Geek – Study Group: Holistic Nervous System Science (2024)
  • Leading Change – A webinar for women and gender diverse people with disability on leadership (2024)
  • A-type – Interoception and supporting strategies (2024)
  • Neurodiversity Celebration Week seminars (2024)
  • Whāraurau – The Māori experience of eating disorders (2024)
  • Te Tiriti-Based Futures & Anti Racism (2024)
    The Institute of Directors New Zealand – Introduction to governance (2023)
  • Whāraurau – Introduction to trauma-informed sensory modulation (2023)
  • Neuroabilities Symposium (2023)
  • Autism From The Inside Summit (2022 and 2023)
  • Altogether Autism – Brain, Body and Behaviour workshop (2023)