RILEY Saban’s Young Citizen of the Year 2022 award recognises the Corindi Beach young man’s commitment to helping fellow people with disabilities and driving inclusivity in the world.

Riley, who has Grade 5 Dystonic Cerebral Palsy, told News Of The Area, “My entire life I have had to overcome challenges and adapt to the environment due to my physical disability.

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“As a very small child, I have been told, I was very determined to do the activities that everyone else did.

“I made sure that I was included in everything.

“This led to myself, my family, friends and support network having to think outside the box to find different ways of participating due to my physical disabilities.

“At thirteen-years-old, I was fortunate enough to be part of a two-episode documentary, with a biomedical engineer, Dr Jordan Nguyen.

“The documentary was about what it would be like to control environmental devices with electroencephalogram (EEG) technology.

“Jordan asked me what I would like to do, and I suggested I drive a car, as that was something my friends were unable to do at thirteen.

“We all worked as a team to make it happen.

“Little kids with disabilities would often stop me in the street to talk about how I could achieve all these things.

“This inspired me to make a difference myself.

“I knew then I had to support people with disabilities.

“My dream for the future is one I cannot do on my own – to live in an inclusive society.

“I hope that one day people with disabilities do not have to adapt to the environment.

“I hope that people with disabilities are a part of the planning processes every time, so we do not have to modify things later on.

“My vision is to do whatever I can to make this happen, whether it’s big or small, I hope to make a difference.

“My family pays me out for being the ‘ideas man’.

“I think the greatest strength I have is determination,” he said.

Riley is currently studying for a Cert 1111 in Assistive Technologies.

“This is broadening my knowledge on what’s out there and gives me the qualification to continue to do what I already do.

“I will be presenting with Dr Jordan Nguyen this year at the Luminosity Youth Summit in Port Macquarie.

“I am also a cofounder of Polyspine – a customisable supportive exoskeleton for people with moderate to severe physical disabilities.

“It provides support to users with physical disabilities so that they can participate in rehabilitative and recreational activities, outside of their main wheelchair or accessibility equipment.

“Polyspine acts as additional support to work in conjunction with equipment, furniture, and the like, which does not meet the accessibility or support requirements for an individual with a high-level disability.

“We have been approved through the TGA as a medical device and are currently doing trials and hope to have it on the market very soon.

“I was fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to organise meetings to initiate a more structured, and calendar-inclusive event for International Day of People with Disabilities, within NSW Public Schools.

“Due to Covid-19, we had to postpone the program to this year.

“Instead, I was part of a webinar on the day alongside the department of education.

“I am currently interested in the web3 sector and NFTs (Non Fungible Tokens).

“Who knows, I might create a web3 project.”

By Andrea FERRARI