Descortinar [diversity]

There are apparently obvious and simple concepts that, from close up in a dialogue or from a distance, from the top of a barrier, become much more complex to embrace. Is diversity one of these concepts? What place is there for divergence? Catarina Oliveira and Raquel Tavares Lebre, in the sixth Descortinar of the season, disentangle this concept, as vast as humanity, but so limited by stereotypes. What's left of the box when it's emptied?

Catarina Oliveira, 35, from Porto, nutritionist, consultant and trainer for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, ambassador for Associação Salvador and Head of Academy at AccessLab. She is currently studying for a postgraduate degree in Disability Studies and Human Rights at ISCTE. She creates digital content for the project she created on Instagram: @especierarasobrerodasonde, which has over 50,000 followers, where she aims to break down prejudices and taboos related to people with disabilities and create spaces for dialogue and education on the subject. She also works as a speaker at schools, universities, companies and collaborates with national and international brands, with the aim of clarifying concepts such as ableism and presenting solutions and good practices for accessibility, interaction and promoting the representation of people with disabilities in the different spheres of our society.

Raquel Tavares Lebre, autistic, co-founder and vice-president of Associação Portuguesa Voz do Autista, a self-advocacy association whose mission is to provide a platform for the diverse voices of people on the autism spectrum and to promote the acceptance and inclusion of autistic people in their communities; through the development of training, mentoring, support, research and inclusion projects in the areas of health, education and employment, among others. As well as running this association, she is a lecturer and trainer on autism and neurodiversity in schools, universities, companies and for the general public.