It will be some time before disabled youngsters from Northland wing their way to an overseas exchange experience but a Ruakaka woman's plan to see it happen is beginning to fly.
Julia Hartshorne said the Achieve 2B (A2B) Trust she founded is moving closer to its inaugural pilot scheme where a disabled youngster will be able to live abroad in the kind of programme available to non-disabled students.
Ms Hartshorne said she continues to be amazed and inspired by the heart-wrenching stories and tenacity of young people and their experiences of applying for exchanges and other opportunities: "Some with success and others not, all because of their disability."
As a high school student Ms Hartshorne, who has mild cerebral palsy, spent a year in the US under the international AFS programme. She was turned down twice because of her disability, but her determination saw her become the first disabled Kiwi student to live overseas with that scheme.
Achieve 2B has recently established a partnership with an Australian organisation, Interchange-Outer East, which also creates opportunities for young people with disabilities. The partnership is expected to lead to an Australian-based co-ordinator role for Achieve 2B student placements there, Ms Hartshorne said.
