🌍 Today is World Autism Awareness Day, and this year's theme - Autism and Humanity: Every Life Has Value - resonates with the work we do at #ReACTproject. 💙So let's ask a question that matters for research and higher education: why don't we see more autistic people in academia? 📌Autistic researchers bring strengths to the table, such as deep focus, attention to detail, intellectual honesty, creativity, and an extraordinary capacity to immerse themselves in a field of knowledge. And yet, many quietly contemplate leaving the profession. 📌A study by Sandra Thom-Jones (2023) brought together 37 autistic academics from around the world to reflect on their experiences. Their advice for autistic people considering a career in academia? Know the role. Find the right people. Know and value yourself. Maintain balance. And proceed with caution and passion. 📌As Thom-Jones also writes for Cambridge University Press blog, the barriers autistic researchers face are: hidden curricula, opaque social rules, limited accommodations, and the exhausting weight of masking. 💙At #ResearchersACT, we believe that inclusive research environments are stronger. Teams that embrace neurodiversity benefit from a larger range of cognitive strengths. 💙On this World Autism Awareness Day, we commit to continuing our work toward research workplaces where every researcher - autistic or not - can contribute. 💙 Share this post to help spread the word. #WorldAutismAwarenessDay #AutismAndHumanity #AutisticResearchers #Neurodiversity #ResearchersACT #InclusiveAcademia #EveryLifeHasValue #ErasmusPlus ------------ References: Thom-Jones, S. (2023). Advice for autistic people considering a career in academia. Autism, 27(7), 2187–2192. doi.org/10.1177/136236132311… Thom-Jones, S. (2025, March 13). Why don't we see more autistic people in academia? Fifteen Eighty Four. cambridgeblog.org/2025/03/wh… United Nations. (2026). World Autism Awareness Day. un.org/en/observances/autism…