This week we highlight All Abilities Day at the Australian Open which took place on 21 January at Melbourne Park, featuring world #1s Grace Hobbs and Ross Patterson, who caught up with Sam to chat about their experiences.

Then after Grace and Ross we hear from Liz Dalakouras, the editor of Vision Australia's fortnightly newsletter For Your Information (FYI), and Frances joins the show for a Reader Recommended.

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It's a Midsumma special episode of Talking Vision as we feature two interviews from the live outside broadcast which took place as part of Midsumma Carnival Day on 19 January at the Alexandra Gardens.

You'll hear from Sam Colley and Karan Nagrani as they interview trans disabled theatre all rounder Oliver Ayres, then later on Conrad Browne and Tess Herbert catch up with Anastasia Lee, board member at the Victorian Pride Centre.

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Sam catches up with Ben Harrington from Travellers' Aid, offering accessibility and mobility services for passengers with disabilities at major stations but also events such as the Australian Open.

And speaking of the Open, Action Audio is back for the 5th year in a row to provide an auditory companion for tennis fans who are blind or have low vision, Sam chats with Tennis Australia's Gerard Mason all about it to find out more.

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Sam speaks with music therapist Emily Shanahan following the recent developments around NDIS funding for music and art therapies, and the positive impact it has had and continues to have for people of all ages with disabilities such as blindness or low vision.

Then after we hear from Emily, Maureen from the library is back on the show with a preview of all the exciting things going on in the library for 2025, and Frances wraps up the program with a Reader Recommended.

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We celebrate World Braille Day on the show this week, with an extra special anniversary in 2025 as this year marks the 200th birthday of braille since Louis Braille innovated the writing system in 1825.

Sam kicks off the show speaking to Tristan Clare, chair of the Australian Braille Authority as well as publications officer at Next Sense to talk about why braille plays such a vital role for people who are blind or have very low vision.

Later in the program you'll also hear from braille music specialist Jordie Howell, she gives us a rundown of braille music including a chat about the annual braille music camp in Mittagong for young braille musicians around Australia.

Support this Vision Australia Radio program: https://www.visionaustralia.org/donate?src=radio&type=0&_ga=2.182040610.46191917.1644183916-1718358749.1627963141

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This week we feature the best of Talking Vision in 2024, with some of Sam's favourite interviews from the year as you sit back on Christmas Day for a holiday special episode of Talking Vision.

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Sam speaks with Associate Professor Matthew Butler from Monash University's Faculty of Information Technology and president of Round Table, Sonali Marathe, who tell us about a new series of 3D printing guidelines for educational materials designed to be tactile and accessible to students who are blind or have low vision.

We also catch up with editor of For Your Information, Liz Dalakouras, to get an update on the final issue of FYI for 2024, and Frances is back with a Reader Recommended.

Support this Vision Australia Radio program: https://www.visionaustralia.org/donate?src=radio&type=0&_ga=2.182040610.46191917.1644183916-1718358749.1627963141

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This week Sam speaks with Dale Pierce and Sharon Taylor, two participants heading along to take part in the Vision Australia Trek for Vision.

The trek takes place over five days from April 29 to May 3 2025 on the Abel Tasman track on the South Island of New Zealand, to raise vital funds for Vision Australia client services such as the quality living groups helping people navigate life with vision loss.

To donate to Dale and Sharon's trek you can visit this link to Dale's fundraising page or this link to Sharon's fundraising page

If you would like to join Dale and Sharon or find out more about Trek for Vision you can visit visionaustralia.org/trekforvision

Support this Vision Australia Radio program: https://www.visionaustralia.org/donate?src=radio&type=0&_ga=2.182040610.46191917.1644183916-1718358749.1627963141

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.