Community
Building connections between research and community
Connecting community and research for better impact
The Azrieli Accelerator invites researchers and community members to participate and partner in the shaping of the research we support.
Why we engage communities
The Azrieli Accelerator facilitates opportunities for people from the community and experts here at UCalgary to engage in research that is informed and inspired by lived experience of neurodivergent individuals and their families.
How we engage communities
We offer training and mentorship opportunities that open the door for community members and researchers to participate in community-engaged research. Our Azrieli Accelerator Research Community Council (AArCC) includes members with lived and living experience who lend a community perspective to Azrieli Accelerator initiatives.
So that...
Researchers, community members, caregivers and families can build connections and be well-prepared to partner in research and ensure that research studies are shaped with real-life application in mind.
Meet Rae Martens
Knowledge Broker, Azrieli Accelerator
Rae Martens has been a part of the disability community in varying capacities for 20+ years. She is the bereaved parent to a young man born with medically complex disabilities who passed away in 2020. She is also someone with lived experience of disability herself as an ambulatory wheelchair user with a neurological condition.
Rae was a respite worker for neurodivergent children in care and has been a partner in health and policy research for over ten years. She is deeply passionate about knowledge translation and ensuring new knowledge is put in the hands of those who need it. She has been a steadfast advocate to ensure the fingerprint of lived experience is seen in the development of new research. This is why she is honored to function as a Knowledge Broker with the Azrieli Accelerator team.
Azrieli Accelerator Community Council (AArCC)
AArCC provides perspectives and feedback to Azrieli Accelerator projects and activities based on members' lived and living experience with neurodevelopmental conditions. Through the Advisory Council, the Azrieli Accelerator seeks to build capacity across our research and operations team to do our work in such a way that optimizes its potential of having a positive impact in the lives of people living with neurodevelopmental conditions.
Amanda Black
Amanda Black is a late-diagnosed autistic individual, and her late diagnosis led to an interest in neurodiversity research and diagnostics. She is a recent graduate of the University of Calgary with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in psychology. During her degree, she conducted research surrounding neurodiversity, with a particular focus on autism spectrum disorder.
Greta Heathcote
Greta Heathcote is the Associate Director, Work-Integrated Learning for Neurodiverse Students Initiative at the University of Calgary. She is also a doctoral student in the Werklund School of Education researching co-design best practices and Universal Design for Learning with neurodivergent students. Greta and her son Callum work as Family & Youth Research Partners with the Precision Neurodevelopment Lab led by Dr. Sarah MacEachern.
Robyn Land
Robyn Land is an advocate, peer mentor, and mother to two neurodivergent children. Her youngest child was born with a severe congenital heart defect, which has fueled her drive to navigate and support her children’s needs. She serves as the Co-Chair of the Safety Family Advisory Council at Alberta Children’s Hospital and is a Peer Mentor, having completed courses at both Alberta Children’s Hospital and Stollery Hospital. Robyn's expertise lies in supporting and implementing policy into systems and processes at an operational level and she is passionate about building systems that support the entire family unit.
Keltie Marshall
Keltie Marshall is mom of an extra-large, multi-racial adoptive and foster family. She and many of her 10 children live with medical, physical and developmental disabilities. Her education and career experience are primarily in non-profit and volunteer management. In 2020 she co-founded Hold My Hand AB, an advocacy group for disabled children. In 2023, Keltie completed a certificate in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Her current volunteer positions include director at the Tourette OCD Alberta Network and the Inclusive Education Committee for Edmonton Public Schools.
Kristina McGuire
Kristina McGuire is a mom to two exceptional children, one with severe medical complexity and both with neurological and developmental differences. She is a retired surgical and pediatric nurse and is now actively involved with the pediatric health community in a non-clinical capacity, working with several patient and family advisory councils, charitable organizations, and peer support networks. Kristina uses her experience as a former patient, a mother, a family caregiver, and a nurse to foster positive change in healthcare. She focuses on patient and family engagement practices, patient-oriented research, and the promotion of using lived experience as an expert knowledge source.
Family Engagement in Research Course
The Family Engagement in Research (FER) course builds capacity for engaged research partnerships between people with lived/living experience (both self-advocates and family members) and researchers. It is designed for people from the community who want to build their skills to partner with research in universities and hospitals, as well as for researchers (graduate students, research coordinators), clinicians and health care providers who want to build their skills in partnering with people with lived/living experience to design impactful research.