What can you do once you have a list of your community’s natural resources?

The sky’s the limit!

Kathie Snow

Miners, searching for gold, diamonds, and other hidden treasures, use a variety of tools in their quest. And success comes through patience, perseverance, and hard work. We can follow in their footsteps, and mine the natural resources in our communities, in our quest to ensure people with disabilities are included in all areas of life.

Before going further, however, we need to address the Readiness issue. Too many of us say we’re waiting for either the community or the person with a disability to be “ready.” Well, our communities and individuals with disabilities are ready! What do we really mean by Ready? And who set the standards on Readiness—are they written down somewhere, carved in stone?

Consider this: during the tumultuous ’60s, was Being Ready a requirement prior to the integration of African-American children and adults in schools, workplaces, and other locations? No. There were, however, some who begged the Federal government: “Give us time to get ready,” and the reply was a resounding, “No!” Integration was achieved by simply doing it. The same can be true in the disability arena.

Now, back to mining our natural resources and finding the gold in our own back yards! The treasures in our communities may not glitter like rare gems, but their value is immeasurable. And while many of these treasures may be hidden (because they don’t have store fronts), others (with store fronts) are right before our eyes—we just haven’t seen them for what they’re worth.​ Click here to continue.

 DISABILITY IS NATURAL!

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Disability Is Natural Books and Media

Mining Our Natural Resources