It was my priviledge to run a workshop at the CATE (Careers and Transitional Education) conference recently. I also attended a workshop by JP Michel and share his mahi here. Highly sensitive youth can find career decisions overwhelming, making alignment with values, workplace culture, and environment especially important. Here, JP Michel’s Challenge Mindset is used to explore practical ways to support highly sensitive youth to consider aligned fields, pathways, and real-world experiences. What if career exploration started with meaningful challenges instead of job titles?

My recent participation in the NeuroAbility Symposium highlighted that progress is most effective when educators, practitioners and nerodivergent people work collectively. The importance of listening to neurodivergent voices cannot be overstated and lived experience must remain central to policy and practice development. Small but intentional adjustments make meaningful and long-lasting differences in supporting neurodivergent individuals.

Some people are more sensitive to the environment than others. Recent research shows that individuals who are highly sensitive benefit greatly from time in nature. But how can nature help regulate a highly sensitive brain?

People differ in how sensitive they are to environmental stimuli. Scientific research shows that there are advantages for learning, such as attention to detail, for those individuals who are highly sensitive.

The participants in this qualitative study shared their experiences of sensitivity and learning. All participants found that aspects of the physical learning environment presented challenges for them. The study identified several key areas that the education sector could address to make the learning experience more equitable for highly sensitive learners.