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Acquire healthcare and mental health services Access the voting booths Achieve educational goals and employment
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Secure accessible housing and transportation Train community stakeholders Enjoy recreational events
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January • 2024 ADVERTORIAL
The power of positive, solution-based journalism.
The Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York: A Long-Lasting New York City Disability Resource The Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York (CIDNY) is a leading social justice, independent living center for disabled New Yorkers living throughout the five boroughs. Established in 1978, CIDNY has served numerous residents living with disabilities. More than a quarter of the population identifies as having a disability, with nearly one million people in New York City alone. The reality is that at some point in life, disability touches us all. We are considered temporarily able-bodied. When faced with disability, people need a trusted and experienced source to turn to, and CIDNY f ills that crucial role. Whether people are looking for help navigating life with long COVID, benefits assistance, or just have a question or need someone to talk to, CIDNY can help. Your support helps CIDNY assist people with disabilities in acquiring healthcare and mental
health services, accessing the voting booths to exercise their rights, achieving educational goals and employment, securing accessible housing, obtaining transportation assistance, training community stakeholders about the impact of disability, attending and participating in recreational events such as sports, music, performing arts, and ensuring full integration to a barrier-free city that all can enjoy! CIDNY’s mission is to ensure that people can live as they choose, independently and in the community, as well as ensure that New York City is on the path toward accessibility for all. CIDNY has helped hold the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) accountable for accessibility issues, resulting in a global settlement to ensure that 95 percent of the subway is accessible by 2055. CIDNY has worked with disability advocates to hold New York City’s Department of Transportation accountable for
installing curb cuts and pedestrian-accessible signals on every street corner throughout the five boroughs, making our city more inclusive. CIDNY has also helped ensure absentee ballots are accessible for people who are blind, legally blind, and have learning disabilities so that no one is left behind when it comes time to exercise their right to vote. CIDNY has helped transition people out of nursing homes and into their own homes in the community, allowing them to relish their independence. At the same time, CIDNY has helped provide companionship to those isolated by COVID-19 via our reassurance wellness calls to consumers, especially necessary during a time when connection made all the difference. CIDNY has helped connect thousands of New Yorkers with sorely needed benefits such as health care coverage, food assistance, social security, and other benef its. CIDNY allows people with
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disabilities to find jobs, acquire their education goals, and much more, changing lives along the way. But we can’t do it alone. We need your help! Your support helps CIDNY assist people with disabilities in acquiring healthcare and mental health services, securing accessible housing, obtaining transportation assistance, training community stakeholders about
the impact of disability, enjoying recreational events such as sports, music, performing arts, and ensuring full integration to a barrier-free city that all can enjoy! You can support our work at CIDNY.org/donation. If you or someone you know is looking for assistance or have questions, please contact us at info@cidny.org or 212-674-2300.
Planting 'Koala Corridors' to Save Australia's Endangered Marsupial JILL GRALOW
When Lucy was rescued from a rural property in New South Wales two years ago, she was suffering from chlamydia, a disease widespread among koalas. Today, she's one of the lucky residents of tree corridors in the Australian state dedicated to protecting the marsupial by preserving its rapidly shrinking habitat. The vast networks of vegetation, planted by local conservation group Bangalow Koalas in the Northern Rivers region of the state, are a lifeline
for koalas and numerous other species like the endangered glossy black cockatoo, gliders, possums, and wallabies. They provide safe passage across the koala's increasingly fragmented habitat, increasing genetic diversity and protecting the animals from human threats. "Our corridors are actually trying to get them away from humans, from cars, from dogs," said Linda Sparrow, president of Bangalow Koalas. "They can safely move across the landscape and not have to put up with us humans." The koala is predicted to be
PRESIDENT OF BANGALOW KOALAS, LINDA SPARROW © REUTERS/JILL GRALOW
extinct in the wild in New South Wales by 2050, with some of the biggest threats being wildfires, habitat loss through logging and land clearing for development. It has already been declared as endangered in several states. A 2022 government report showed that Australia has lost more mammal species than any other continent. Founded in 2019, Bangalow Koalas has planted over 336,000 trees on 119 properties, contributing to koala conservation and boosting the local ecosystem. The group, which relies on community
LUCY SITS IN A EUCALYPTUS TREE PLANTED BY BANGALOW © SAUL GOODWIN/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS
MIGRANT CRISIS & NYC’s Homeless System
Join the conversation at HELP USA’s annual symposium. Experts will address the impact of migrant populations on NYC’s homeless systems and explore ideas for long-term housing stability. January 31, 2024 8:30AM—4:30PM The Museum of Jewish Heritage 36 Battery Place, New York, NY To view the agenda and learn more, visit helpusa.org
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volunteers, aims to plant 500,000 trees by 2025. "The neighbor would want to join and then another neighbor will want to join," Sparrow said. "It's like a domino effect where all these people all over the Northern Rivers want to join our corridor." Volunteer Lindy Stacker, who has been planting trees for over five years, said the activity was "better than meditation, better than yoga," and had rallied the community together. A recent report by the Australian Koala Foundation said the iconic marsupial was worth
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an estimated $3.2 billion per annum to the tourism industry. However, the World Wildlife Fund - Australia reported alarming declines in koala populations, with a 50 percent drop in Queensland and a 62 percent drop in New South Wales since 2001. Sparrow remains committed to the cause. "I can't imagine a world where there's no koalas in the wild," she said. "We're going to do everything we can possibly to make sure that doesn't happen." —Reuters
BANGALOW KOALAS VOLUNTEERS PLANT TREES, IN EWINGSDALE, AUSTRALIA © REUTERS/JILL GRALOW
