Founder’s Story.

Lived Experience Leadership

Founder Context and Rationale

Like many neurodivergent adults, NCF’s founder experienced repeated employment disruption driven not by lack of capability, but by bias, inaccessible environments, and unspoken institutional expectations. These experiences were compounded within healthcare systems. She was denied access to primary care on the basis of being “too complex” as a patient, and, as a young adult undergoing cancer treatment, encountered significant gaps in communication, understanding, and coordinated support. These failures reflect well-documented systemic risks faced by neurodivergent adults and illustrate how exclusion operates in high-stakes contexts with direct consequences for safety and outcomes.

While working within British Columbia health authorities, Lara became the first openly autistic and ADHD professional to speak publicly about workplace inclusion and neurodivergent safety. In clinical and organizational settings, she worked closely with neurodivergent patients and staff frequently labeled “difficult,” “non-compliant,” or “complex,” despite the primary barriers being inaccessible systems rather than individual behaviour. These experiences informed a core conclusion: sustainable systems change requires neurodivergent leadership embedded in design, implementation, and accountability—not consultation alone.

Organizational Purpose and Approach

The Neurodiversity Change Foundation (NCF) was established to address structural inequities affecting neurodivergent adults across healthcare, employment, mental health, justice, and media systems. NCF advances practical, evidence-informed, and rights-based solutions aligned with frameworks such as the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

NCF’s work moves beyond awareness-raising to focus on implementation, institutional accountability, and measurable systems improvement. Programs are designed to support organizations in reducing preventable harm, improving access and safety, and embedding neurodivergent-informed practices into policy, training, and service delivery.

Rather than placing the burden of adaptation on neurodivergent individuals, NCF partners with institutions to change how systems operate. A core organizational principle is the ethical stewardship of neurodivergent knowledge, ensuring lived experience is integrated responsibly and with governance integrity.

Why This Work Matters

NCF exists because systems do not change without deliberate intervention. Change occurs when those most affected by systemic failures are empowered to lead, when institutions commit to accountability, and when solutions are grounded in both rigorous evidence and lived expertise.

NCF is guided by a clear mandate: to advance systems that are safer, more equitable, and more effective for neurodivergent adults—without requiring them to compromise their dignity, health, or identity to participate.