Reference hub

Tools, articles, and data

Everything referenced on this site, gathered in one place — including the self-assessment tool that started a lot of this for me.

Start here

Take five minutes: the Implicit Association Test

Harvard's free bias test measures automatic preference — including, in its disability version, preference for physically abled people over physically disabled people. I took it myself. My result wasn't flattering. I think everyone should take it before deciding where they stand.

Take the test →

Companion reading on bias

Why disability bias is a particularly stubborn problem

Harvard Gazette — disability bias barely shifts over time, unlike race or age bias. Read it →

What is Ableism?

Disability & Philanthropy Forum. Read it →

Is "Ableism" The Right Word?

Andrew Pulrang, Forbes, 2023. Read it →

A voice worth hearing — not a rebuttal

Your Ableism is Showing

Jamie Shields argues for claiming "Disabled" with pride and rejecting euphemism. I keep this on file because I want to be in genuine, informed conversation with it — not to build a case against it. Read it →

Frameworks & official instruments

Enabling Good Lives & the social model

Read it →

NZ Disability Strategy 2016–2026

"Disability is something that happens when people with impairments face barriers in society. It is society that disables us, not our impairments." — Whaikaha, Ministry of Disabled People. Read it →

UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD)

Quoted repeatedly across the talks and essays this site draws on. Read it →

Washington Group Short Set of Questions on Disability

The standard six-question functional-limitation screen used in official measurement. Read it →

Academic papers

Owens, J. (2014)

Exploring the critiques of the social model of disability. Read it →

Twardowski, A. (2020)

Controversies around the social model of disability. Read it →

West, R. et al. (2023)

On online ableism, discussed alongside Dylan Alcott's public profile. Read it →

New Zealand data

Stats NZ

Disabled people fare worse in work and wellbeing. Read it →

Sport NZ — Active NZ Disability Spotlight

Disabled New Zealanders take part in weekly sport and recreation at lower rates than non-disabled people. Read it →

Inequities in the physical activity of disabled young people in Aotearoa

A stakeholder SWOT analysis of the physical activity sector, New Zealand Medical Journal. Read it →

The National Youth Health and Wellbeing Survey 2021

Disabled young people report markedly higher distress and lower belonging than non-disabled peers. Read it →

History of Disability in Aotearoa NZ

Colonisation, eugenics, institutionalisation, and the path to Enabling Good Lives. Read it →

Practical — outdoor education & recreation

Creating Inclusive Outdoor Recreation Organizations

My own 7-part practical guide and 12-point framework for making an outdoor-rec organisation genuinely inclusive.

#AdaptMTB and AdventureWorks Learning

The two-year fight with ACC for adaptive mountain-biking funding, and what came out of it.