We asked tourism professionals and travellers “If you saw a person wearing a sunflower lanyard would you know what it represented?”
The results: a whopping 85 percent (195 people) stated that they did not know what a sunflower denoted.
We asked that question because we firmly believe that everyone has the right to travel and we want to be part of a world where all people feel confident to visit every corner of our wondrous country.
The above two factors together are why we have chosen Hidden Disabilities Sunflower as our 2024 social cause.
It is our hope that by supporting the Sunflower initiative that those who travel Australia with a hidden disability will feel better supported and those in tourism will gain a greater awareness of these people’s plight and how to support them better.
What is a hidden disability? One in every six people have a disability^. It’s the largest minority group in the world, and one that any of us can join at any time. Yet for many people their disability is not visible. It may be that they have a neurological, cognitive, neurodevelopmental, visual, auditory or processing disability. [Read more]
This suite of conditions is called ‘hidden disabilities’, and the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower is the global symbol used by those people in a silent request for understanding and a little extra support.
By helping raise awareness we will assist in moving closer to a society where an offer of help, understanding and kindness can make a huge difference to the daily experiences of anyone courageous enough to wear a Sunflower lanyard.
The Art of Attraction conference team will be Sunflower trained and you will be able to identify them from the Sunflower Supporter lanyards that they will be wearing. If you require additional assistance on any level during the conference you will be able to approach one of our team.
While no Australian airline has joined the Hidden Disability Sunflowers network, we want to give a big shout-out to the 10 Aussie airports where staff have been Sunflower trained: Adelaide, Albury, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Gold Coast, Hobart, Melbourne, Perth, Shellharbour Airport and Sydney.
^ WHO, March 2023