When the world isn’t built for you, you learn to redesign it.
I’m a speaker, writer, and facilitator, who creates spaces where grief and joy, limitation and possibility, are held together.
My work is rooted in lived experience and ancestral threads to reimagine what’s possible—through connection, care, and collective creativity.
Our systems were built for a narrow few, but the future demands more expansive thinking. Living in the margins forced me to rethink how I live, move, and create. That process of reinvention is not just survival—it’s a generative, visionary act. My work is about lifting up these practices and helping others learn from them.
What I offer
• Keynotes, workshops, courses and ongoing groups grounded in lived experience
• Consulting on access, care webs, and cultural change
• Practices for sustainable creativity in disabled and non-disabled communities
Why it matters
• Disability is a lens for innovation, not a barrier to it
• Interdependence is how we survive—and how we thrive
• Everyone benefits from systems built with care at the center
How I work
• Storytelling that makes systemic issues personal and felt
• Consulting that prioritizes real access, not checkboxes
• Workshops and talks that reframe care as creativity
Core themes
• Disability as culture, creativity, and community
• Building worlds rooted in access, interdependence, and belonging
• Rethinking care as not just necessary, but transformative
Testimonials
I have struggled for many years with chronic pain, trauma, and confusion about my identity after receiving the label "Disabled person." I started working with Xander a year ago, and the growth and change they've helped me achieve around these struggles are deep and palpable. As a disabled person themselves, Xander has a uniquely personal understanding of what it's like to grapple with just how much disability can change your life and sense of self. One thing they've helped me see is that these changes can actually be empowering as you learn new ways of recognizing and embracing your worth in a capitalist society where worth is often measured in monetary standing and contributions. Xander approaches each session from a place of deep listening and compassion, and while they happily offer guidance, they always follow my lead, allowing me to go where healing is most needed in the moment. Xander is thoroughly focused and present throughout each session, making me feel held, heard, and completely respected. Their grounding and visualization exercises help me feel connected to all living things, which is very healing when you feel different and alone due to disability. They have helped me foster community and a new sense of self-empowerment, and are incredibly skilled at approaching challenges in creative ways. Xander is helping me find community both with other disabled people and with allies. For the first time in my life, I'm understanding that my worth is inherent and that I have so much more to offer the world than I thought.
I am incredibly grateful for the support and guidance Al provided to my kiddo during her time in first year at CSU. As someone with ADHD, my kiddos had some challenges navigating academic and personal life the first year and learn new study and time habits - which were often overwhelming, but Al offered tailored coaching that not only helped develop effective study habits and organizational skills but also boosted their confidence. The strategies they worked on together were practical, and my kiddo saw immediate help in her ability to manage her time, and implement the strategies Al taught. Thanks to Al's coaching, my kiddo not only was able to tackle their studies but also learned valuable life skills that will continue to serve them well beyond college. Thank you Al!
Xanders voice empowers through vulnerability, lived experience and wisdom and knowledge gained. From this vulnerability, Xander reaches out to others who are experiencing marginalization, isolation and disconnection, due to being different in our society, and creates interconnection, belonging and community. I spent twenty years homebound by chronic progressive illness. I am grateful for restored health. I am finding in Xander’s work, deeper healing for my years of physical struggle, and I am finding inspiration for my life and my work today.
Al has been working with both of my young adult kids for 2 months and I’ve seen more progress and results than over a year of therapy. Al is much more than a coach: they both felt understood and safe. The positive results (job offers and improved grades) speak for themselves. I am very grateful.
