Benjamin Tarasewicz, a high-schooler with autism, provides inspirational stories and tips for reaching out to people with “differences;” also highlighted are talents that can go along with “disability.” Benjamin is an award-winning public speaker, musician, and actor; he was honored with the 2013 Temple Grandin Award and is the subject of a prize-winning book titled, “Benjamin Breaking Barriers: Autism – A Journey of Hope.” Since age 17, Benjamin has been regularly giving lectures about living with autism; he speaks at conferences, at universities and colleges, at middle-schools and high-schools, and at community venues. He has been featured in various news articles and on TV, has spoken for Talented and Gifted conferences and Autism symposia, and was a keynote speaker at the 2014 national conference of the US Autism & Asperger Association. Benjamin loves performing in choir and musical theater productions, and he is passionate about the great outdoors. He also enjoys creative writing, and collaborates with his mother in posting to “Benjamin Breaking Barriers: Autism Blog.” This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx

Be the first to comment