Full Transcript for Talking Vision 840 Week Beginning 13th July 2026 (Highlights Program)

myself, I'm going to win this competition because I believe that I'm a winner. You know, when I get into a competition, I go with the spirit of a winner, you know? So yeah, the whole journey and the process was all exciting, you know, just challenging, exciting. But you need to keep pushing, you need to keep going. 00:03:49 S3: And I guess to understand the vision and the idea that you do have and that you, um, now are able to get that one step closer to fulfilling, understand your passion for radio and for being a DJ goes back quite some way. So could you tell us about how that all started? 00:04:07 S4: So when I got blind in 2009, I first asked myself a question that now that I'm blind, what do I do? What is it that I can do? What is that I'm passionate about? So I then said, I've always wanted to do radio. I've always wanted to be a DJ. And I've been keeping this, uh, this talent and ability in me for a while. So I just then, um, moved from one side of the world to the other side. And that's when I started trying to figure out, okay, if you're blind, how do you become a DJ? How do you become a radio presenter? How do you become a radio host? I went for some auditions in Zimbabwe. I never made it. Uh, I had journalists following me and saying to me, no, you're a good audition. But what you felt, what you felt, what happened was you just took my discrimination. That was in the auditions until finally I, I went to one radio station in Zimbabwe and they, I said to them, just give me the opportunity. Let me try it out and let's see how it goes when they give me the opportunity. Boom, I just went. So the journey has been exciting, interesting, challenging. And then you actually figure out that, um, there are jobs that are being said that are only meant for for the blind. Like for example, I, I'm going to be using Zimbabwe as an example. Most people in Zimbabwe are only expected if you're blind. Either be a teacher or be a um, a telephone operator like you work at a call centre or at the reception. And I said, no, no, no, no. I think, uh, people with disabilities also have got their own abilities that they want to do. So I said the same challenge that I face to get to radio. I do not want someone else to face the same challenge. I want them to be what? To have an easy way to mainstream radio. So that's when I had this whole idea to say, let us have a radio station that will be broadcasting online, but we'll use the studio to train the raw talent in able to equip persons with disabilities and give them a platform, a voice, and to also empower them to be able to work on their own two feet. 00:06:05 S3: And it's really fantastic to hear about you bringing your lived experience with the challenges and the obstacles that you have faced when pursuing your dream of becoming a radio presenter and a DJ. What sort of things have you found have been of benefit to you? People may be wondering out there, how does somebody become a radio presenter or a DJ when they are blind? Maybe there's some people out there who are in the same situation who are thinking, it's too hard for me, or people have said no a lot of times, how do I sort of overcome this barrier? 00:06:40 S4: Okay, so Sam, one of the biggest challenges that we have in the world is attitude. 00:06:44 S3: Yes. 00:06:45 S4: Okay. So I've often said this to a lot of people don't think for me, but ask me how we can do it. I'm the one who's got the solution or you, if you talk to me and I talk to you, we can negotiate. We come up with a solution. So the thing is out there, there is, um, the interesting thing is a lot of technologies out there and there's more technology that is coming to enable you to actually become an independent broadcaster. I use softwares and I just use a laptop that everybody else uses, and I'm able to do every other thing that I can do. I've worked on a radio station, you understand. Um, and I've been doing a research to say, how does one person actually do online radio? So each and every other day I'm figuring out new softwares, new systems. I'm consulting other people who are in the field to really figure out and find out how it can be done. And each and every other day I'm figuring out new things. So it's never too late to do anything. If you just believe in it. Just do your own research, find out who's doing it, who is that person who can, uh, give me more information. Definitely. You'll be able to, to make it. So in short, this is what I would actually say. Just get out there. Information is out there. Do your research and you get the exact, um, things that you're looking for. As much as I'm also saying to software developers, you know that as you. As you make your software work with the with the blind in mind, you know, think of a software which is just universal, whereby it can be used by the blind and by the sighted so that we don't leave anybody behind. And people don't feel that, no, I can't use this software people, people are limited. I believe in an inclusive society where we. One thing is made for everyone. 00:08:31 S3: It's so exciting to hear stories like this, especially as a host and a producer myself with low vision and, you know, hearing these stories is just fantastic. Every time I, um, have the opportunity to speak with somebody who is pursuing their dream like you are right now. And it's really amazing to hear all the messages out there that you've been able to share with people and, you know, the ways that you've overcome misconceptions that do unfortunately still pervade in society about people with disabilities. So it's, you know, such important work you are doing. And, you know, in regards to that work that you are doing, the Holman Prize, as we mentioned, does bring you closer to your dream of opening recording studios in Zimbabwe and Uganda that will employ and train blind and low vision people to become radio presenters. So, you know, what does it mean for you to see this becoming a reality

after so many years? And now it's sort of you have that extra impetus because of that, that funding from the Holman Prize. 00:09:38 S4: Most of the time, people with disabilities, we've got we've got visions, we've got dreams. But we fail to realize these dreams because of lack of funding or, or lack of experience and everything. Um, you know, I always look back to myself and I say, I've come far away and this is so amazing to be able to see me realize one of my dreams and my vision and just leaving that footprint on this earth, you know, whereby you inspire the next generation that it can be done and it should be done and it should be done by you and by me. So, um, I know, uh, the, the, the whole, um, uh, implementation of this whole project is going to be exciting. It's going to be challenges. Uh, you discover certain things. 1 or 2 things will change. But the whole idea at the end of the day is I'm looking at the bigger picture. What is it that we want to do? How is it that we can get blind people, efficient people being able to, to live their own lives and live their dreams? Because I believe you can use radio either as a hobby, as a career. If you're given the opportunity, it's good. But if you're not given the opportunity, you never discover the ability or the capability that one has. So for me, I'm quite interested about this. And, um, yeah, I, I'm taking up the challenge and I want to say what's going to be happening because yeah, very soon we'll be, we'll be shining like stars. 00:10:54 S3: I love that, that is fantastic. And you know, how can people follow your journey and follow the project over the next year or so? 00:11:05 S4: So if they go to 360 degrees with. names and dates on Facebook and on on YouTube. So what is NYAMZA 360 degrees with arms? Or they can just go and look for a Facebook page. Galaxy Radio Inc INCOA. They should watch out for. For the radio that's going to be up and running. Uh, right now we're up and running, but we are. We just got some music in the background, so they go to Galaxy radio.net. So www.galaxyradio.net. They'll be following the, the whole project, the whole dream and the whole vision is make an impact what in, uh, in people's lives and we change the world and we will be able to leave a footprint. 00:11:50 S3: That's a wonderful note to end on. Thank you so much. I've been speaking today with Tafadzwa Yamazawa, one of the three Holman Prize winners for his work within the disabled community in Zimbabwe and all around Africa. 00:12:12 S2: On Vision Australia Radio. You are listening to Talking Vision. Today we are highlighting some of the great interviews Sam conducted while hosting Talking Vision. Now over to Sam for his interview with William Chen. 00:12:23 S3: Our next guest is a researcher from Monash University, currently exploring a PhD topic regarding accessible transport for members of the blind and low vision community in Australia. His name is William Chen. You might have heard his voice before. He's back on Talking vision to have a chat with us today about some workshops he'll be holding later on in the year. So let's hear from him now. Well, welcome back to Talking Vision. It's great to have you. 00:12:55 S5: Thank you Sam. Lovely to have this opportunity again to talk about my research. 00:13:00 S3: Well, since the last time we caught up would be about 12 months ago. What have you been up to in that time? 00:13:09 S5: So from that time till now, we've been really busy on putting together our research findings from the study that we ran last year on AI use by the blind, low vision community to assist with travel or orientation and mobility. We've just submitted to a conference to publish our findings, but just to skim over it. We found a really large uptake of AI or generative AI use from the community. And what's really interesting is that we've found a couple of participants who have used generative AI to access public transport related information. And out of that, we found that public transport information, a lot of the times relate to real time info, and this is a perceived shortcoming of what generative AI tools could do, because a lot of the times it gives you outdated information. So what we're pivoting now is really looking at how the community accesses information around public transport, but also potentially, could AI play a role in assisting that process? 00:14:22 S3: And let's have a bit of a chat about that new research project around accessible public transport. How much has it dovetailed into the previous project that you've been involved with? Have you found there's been significantly different fields or issues that you're tackling, or is it much the same but from different angles? 00:14:52 S5: I think it's much the same from different angles. So our previous take was we wanted to look at the journey holistically, which has been really rare inside the research space. When you look at the planning stage, the during stage in the post journey stage, and you look at how these stages are interconnected because your planning stage informs about what you have to do while you're embarking on your journey and the information you gather while you're embarking on your journey informs your post journey reflection on hey, did that work? AM I going to embark on the same journey again? Or should I take a different route? So we see it as a cyclical nature, and in public transit space, it's almost the same where you have the planning stage, where it's looking up information about the services you want to embark, and it's about getting to stops or transit hubs, waiting for the services, getting on the service, knowing when to get off, and also having this reflection stage at the end. So it's almost similar or identical to the way we looked at it before, but it's just got a bit more granularity to it. So where there's a bit more I suppose, substages to the different stages of travel. And what we're also really interested in now

is looking at how these smaller substages can be interconnected, or be assisted with technology to make it seem more seamless. 00:16:21 S3: Okay, now just to go into a bit of detail about the project itself and how long it's been running for. What's been the progress like with the latest research project, and what have you found out so far? That's been quite interesting from your standpoint. 00:16:42 S5: So so far. This is very much in its early stages, at least for this current study about public transport. But in terms of what we've found is that we've found that the different parties or stakeholders involved within the public transport sphere, such as the operators, the department, government as well as the commuters. We all very much have the same intent. We want public transport to be as easy to use as possible. But what we've also found through research is that these different stakeholders, we have different values and we have different priorities. And this is one of the biggest reasons why barriers still exist in public transport. And that's because, for example, operators have budget constraints. They lack the transparency to really understand what the communities really want or what the commuters really want. And what we really want to achieve through our research is interviewing different stakeholders. So we're not just bringing in the perspectives of the blind division community, but we're also wanting to speak with public transport authorities, departments and operators to then really see how technology can mediate the different value conflicts or tensions that arise and really understand how we can break down some of the barriers of accessing public transport. 00:18:16 S3: Absolutely. Well, let's have a bit of a chat about that public outreach, and those workshops will tell us a bit about the workshops and what shape they will take and how people can get involved if they're interested. 00:18:34 S5: Yeah. Of course. So we're planning on running in-person, hybrid or online workshops to understand how the community engage with public transport, the tools that the community uses, and what are some of the gaps that exist in the network or in some of the tools? These workshops will run anywhere between 60 minutes to 90 minutes. We do have reimbursements offered. The reimbursements would be $60 Australian dollars or 40 USD per hour pro rata rate, depending on the amount of time that the workshop takes. And if it's in person, it's slightly higher to compensate for the time and travel costs associated. So if it's in person, it's around $80 per hour per day. And so the in-person workshops would be conducted either at Monash University, Clayton Campus or Monash University Caulfield campus. If it's online, it'll be conducted via Zoom. And if you would like to get in contact with us to be a part of this workshop, feel free to reach out to us via email on William dot Chen, that is william.chen@monash.edu, and we'll reply with a short two minutes pre workshop survey, just to understand you a bit better, so we can schedule workshops around your preferences. 00:20:11 S3: And, well, who can participate in these workshops? 00:20:16 S5: Great question Sam. We're looking for blind, low vision individuals who are 18 and above, and most importantly, who have either used or not used public transport. So we also would like to hear from you if you currently don't use public transport, but perhaps you've used it before and it'd be really interesting for us to find out exactly what stopped you from continuing using public transport. 00:20:44 S3: Okay, perfect. Well, well, I might get in touch and take part. I think this sounds like a fantastic initiative, so look forward to having a chat with you in a little while, but always great to have a chat with you in any case, and thank you very much for your time today. It was great to catch up and hear about your research. 00:21:07 S5: Thank you so much again for this opportunity, and I would love for you to be a part of the study. 00:21:13 S3: That was William Chen, the researcher from Monash University, having a chat with me today about accessible public transport. 00:21:25 S2: Lastly, here is Francis with the reader recommended. 00:21:28 S6: If you would like to indulge in a little bit of mystery reading. You can't go wrong with Sarah Bailey and her novel Into the Night. Troubled and brilliant, Detective Sergeant Gemma Woodstock finds herself lost and alone after a recent move to Melbourne. Broken hearted by the decisions decisions she's had to make. Her new workplace is a minefield and the partner she has been assigned is uncommunicative and often hostile. When a homeless man is murdered and Gemma is put on the case, she can't help feeling a connection with the victim and the lonely and isolated life he led despite being in the middle of a bustling city. Then a movie star is killed in bizarre circumstances on the set of a major film shoot, and Gemma and her partner, Detective Sergeant Nick fleet, have to put aside their differences to unravel the mysteries surrounding the actor's life and death. Who could commit such a brazen crime, and who stands to profit from it? Far too many people and none of them can be trusted. Let's hear a sample now of Into the Night by Sarah Bailey. It's narrated by Kate Hosking. 00:22:31 S7: Freezing air slices my lungs every time I breathe. I walk to the other side of the tunnel in an attempt to shift blood into my numb feet, I peer into its black depths. I assume it's just a long stretch of concrete and rubbish shelter for rats and mice that eventually merges with other concrete passages running underneath unsuspecting roads and buildings. Faded graffiti hugs the curved wall, the colourful scrawls harshly exposed by a mobile spotlight and fresh police tape across the entrance is taught, barely shaking in the breeze. The nearby asphalt path is slick, with recent rain high above. A plump moon peers down at the blunt edges of the city as the white puffs exit my mouth. I think about how much grittier the crime scenes always seem here than they did in Smithson. So much more sinister somehow. I was drifting into my second hour of sleep when the call came through. A fatal attack in Carlton. Putting the phone down, I threw a glance at the lightly snoring man in the giant bed beside me. I slipped out of the warm cocoon, stumbled into the small lounge, then quietly pulled on the clothes I'd stripped off only an hour earlier. After easing the door shut, I made my way to the lift and rushed through the gleaming lobby, eyes on the floor before jumping into a cab. The city is smaller at night, and less than 15 minutes later I'm staring into the face of a dead man. The wind biting at my nose and ears. My body aches for rest. I taste wine on my breath. Sex is still fresh on my skin. I pull my wool coat tighter around me and shake my head, forcing my brain to accept that for the next few hours, at least, sleep is out of the question. The forensics officers are silent as they go about their business, glowing in their puffy white uniforms. Their jaws are set as they pluck items from the ground with gloved hands and tweezers, dropping them carefully into evidence bags, their experienced eyes taking in the story of the scene. All I can hear is the endless buzz of the sprawling night. I jump slightly as a camera flash lights up the dingy surrounds once, twice again, and it reminds me of a music video. But in place of curvy dancing silhouettes, there is only the profile of the victim, his head hanging forward into his lap, his back hard against the wall. 00:25:01 S6: So that was Into the Night by Sarah Bailey, available from the Vision Australia Library. If you'd like to contact the library, their phone number is 1300 654 656, that's 1300 654 656, or you can email them at library at vision australia.org. That's library at vision australia.org. 00:25:26 S2: Thank you for listening to Talking Vision. We'll be back next week with more highlights of the wonderful interview Sam completed during his time as host of Talking Vision. 00:25:38 S1: You can contact Vision Australia by phoning us anytime during business hours on 130847466, that's 130847466, or by visiting vision australia.org, that's vision australia.org.