A Geelong man will continue to share his experience living with a disability to help make positive change in the state government’s disability support.
Chris Varney has been reappointed to the Victorian Disability Advisory Council (VDAC) as chairperson for the council’s next term, which will run until July 30, 2028.
Mr Varney is the founding director of I CAN Network, an autistic-led organisation that delivers mentoring programs for autistic kids and teenagers, and will bring his lived experience of autism to the role.
“VDAC is a real privilege and it’s a terrific platform to share your lived experience with a disability and what you observe from your disability community,” he said.
“I really enjoyed my first term on VDAC… and I think the council’s lived experience can support government with the consultations they want to do in the community.
“I had quite intense anxiety growing up, which is very common among autistic people, but I was lucky to have a very supportive secondary school, which was a government school.
“I also had a teacher who had a disability herself, who was my real inspiration, and had a prosthetic leg, so she was really extraordinary and I learnt a lot from her example.”
Mr Varney is one of five returning council members alongside eight new members who will provide a range of lived experiences of disability and expertise in inclusion.
Disability, Fairness and Emergency Management deputy secretary Argiri Alisandratos said he thanked the new and returning council members for helping make the state more accessible and inclusive.
“The VDAC is instrumental in removing barriers to participation for Victorians with disability, ensuring that the views of people with disability influence important decision-making,” he said.
