Thursday, 20 November 2025
11:00am – 12:00pm (AEST – Queensland time)
12:00pm – 1:00pm (AEDT – Sydney time)
2:00pm – 3:00pm (NZDT – New Zealand time)
Webinar: via Zoom
Cost:
- Free for ASID members
- $25 for non-members
About
Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN) is the executive peak body for disability in Queensland. QDN is a state-wide organisation of, by, and for people with diverse disability. Their work is focused on disability rights and advocacy and their motto is ‘nothing about us without us’.
To further QDN’s goal of social inclusion for all people with disability, QDN has established a Peer Leaders Program. The Peer Leaders work to make inclusion stronger across all areas of people’s lives through developing their leadership skills and mentoring. They work with Government authorities and other organisations to co-design responses to issues such as health, housing, transport, employment and disaster management, so that people with disability are at the forefront of decisions made about them.
This webinar hosted through ASID (Australasian Society for Intellectual Disability), will introduce two Peer Leaders with Intellectual Disability: Paul O’Dea and Donna Best.
The webinar will show how the process of Peer Leadership and co-design is having real life impacts in Queensland.
Paul and Donna will share their work as Peer Leaders and a specific project related to disaster preparation and recovery that is the result of a co-design process.
Speakers
Paul O’Dea
Peer Leader at Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN)
Paul O’Dea is an active member of Community Living Association and serves as the Treasurer for both its committee and the Independent Youth Housing Group (IYHG), a housing cooperative run by people with disability who manage their own housing and supports. Paul is a Peer Leader with QDN where he supports others in Disability Inclusive Emergency Risk Reduction (DIDRR) and person-centered emergency preparedness in times of disaster. Passionate about inclusion and community, Paul is a founding member of the Nundah All Stars, a performance group that has produced an annual musical since 2010.
Donna Best
Peer Leader at Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN)
Donna Best has been an active leader in Queensland’s self-advocacy movement for the last four decades, participating in the first ever Queensland self-advocacy meeting in 1984. Donna has championed the rights of people with intellectual and dual disability, and supported others to have a voice, a say, and be listened to. She is a strong advocate and standing alongside others. She has had a leading role in establishing and maintaining QDN Hot Topics groups as a welcoming meeting place, peer support and learning exchange for people with intellectual and dual disability. Donna has also held governance roles over the past decades with Queensland Advocacy Incorporated (QAI) and contributed to the formation of organisations and groups such as Speaking Up For You (SUFY).