Sesame Place San Diego was designed with autistic friends in thoughts, however they are not the one ones who profit from its lodging.
Each attraction is graded so friends know what kinds of sensory stimulation to count on.
Elmo and the gang are skilled to regulate their interactions round friends’ consolation ranges.
On a sunny day in Chula Vista, California, guests have been swept away to the avenue of their childhood imaginations: Sesame Road.
Sesame Place San Diego brings the acquainted faces and areas of the beloved TV collection to life for teenagers of all ages, however the newly opened park was designed with particular friends in thoughts.
Like the unique Sesame Place close to Philadelphia, the theme park is a Licensed Autism Heart, and autistic friends aren’t the one ones who profit from its accessible lodging.
“We have actually made a particular effort to ensure that everyone understands what kind of expertise every of our points of interest provides in order that no matter who you might be, you’ll be able to decide whether or not or not it is the fitting expertise for you,” mentioned Sesame Place San Diego and SeaWorld San Diego park president Jim Lake.
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Sensory guides
Elysha Cruz did her analysis earlier than visiting together with her 10-year-old son Angelo, who’s autistic and nonverbal, and 17-year-old daughter Alena.
“My son introduced me right here; it is his favourite (present),” Cruz mentioned of “Sesame Road.” “That is the one (child’s present) he watches.” Even so, Cruz wasn’t positive how Angelo would do on his first experience, Elmo’s Rockin’ Rockets, which spins whereas riders management if their automobile strikes up or down.
Each attraction on the park has a sensory information, in addition to an accessibility information for friends with impaired mobility.
On a scale of 1 to 10 – with 1 being low sensory stimulation and 10 being excessive – Elmo’s Rockin’ Rockets scores 3 for contact, 1 for style, 4 for sound, 3 for odor and 1 for sight.
“As a result of each particular person is completely different, particular with sensory sensitivities or perhaps even they is likely to be sensory looking for, sure rides or points of interest is likely to be a greater match for them,” mentioned Meredith Tekin, president of IBCCES, the credentialing group behind the park’s autism middle certification. “What we wish to do is empower the guests to not solely really feel snug going to that location as a result of they know what to anticipate, however we additionally need them to have the ability to select their very own journey.”
Sporting a Tremendous Cookie Monster cape that lightly flapped within the wind, Angelo’s smile mentioned all of it.
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“He’s doing actually good,” he mother mentioned.
Character encounters
Friends with sensory sensitivities may even see themselves mirrored in Julia, a Sesame Road character who’s autistic and sometimes paired with different characters like Rosita for meet and greets. Julia did not contact followers however as an alternative held tight to her stuffy and typically turned away from crowds.
Zoe Gross, director of advocacy for Autism Self Advocacy Community, which labored with Sesame Road to develop Julia’s character in 2017 earlier than breaking ties with the corporate, stresses the significance of understanding “the variety of the autism spectrum, by way of each the way it presents and who’s and is not autistic.”
All the characters on the park are skilled to select up on whether or not friends are good with hugs or choose a wave or simply to be of their presence, with out daring gestures.
One younger customer carrying noise-canceling headphones, which can be found by way of visitor providers, was in a position to stay in his consolation zone whereas posing for a photograph with Elmo and Cookie Monster. Elmo provided a joyful greeting, retaining a distance and his palms folded.
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“The coaching of our frontline workers has been actually necessary and moreover the coaching for our management, which is much more intensive,” Lake mentioned.
No less than 80% of guest-facing employees should full specialised coaching to qualify as a Licensed Autism Heart.
“That is actually simply to assist them do their jobs higher as a result of what we sometimes discover is a whole lot of people wish to be useful, they wish to be pleasant, however they’re uncertain of what to do and they also hesitate to have interaction,” Tekin mentioned. “What we wish to do is simply break down these obstacles and make it snug for these theme park employees to do their job, which is simply to assist the guests have enjoyable.”
Autistic self-advocates are concerned with trainings and serve on IBCCES’ advisory board, together with different consultants in fields starting from neurology to particular training.
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“The thought is to sort of fill in information gaps, present the autistic people’ perspective and supply tips about methods they will have a greater expertise,” Tekin mentioned.
Designated areas
Extra lodging embody particular parade viewing areas away from crowds.
Gross notes that theme parks are inherently intense sensory experiences with crowds, noise, vibrant colours, typically flashing lights and the potential for a number of factors of interplay with strangers, so lodging can “make it attainable for many individuals to attend a theme park who could not in any other case accomplish that.”
Friends who want a much bigger break from the blare can unplug in quiet rooms.
Story continues under.
“They’re actually snug,” Lake mentioned. “There’s beanbag chairs; there’s video games to play. … You’ll be able to actually have sort of a decompression second to chill out after which you’ll be able to return out and have enjoyable once more.”
Ana Karina Suarez, an occupational therapist who’s autistic and whose youngsters are autistic, says she might have used these sorts of areas when her teenagers have been little and nonetheless can at the moment.
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“As an autistic mum or dad or caregiver, I profit particularly from quiet rooms, low sensory areas and low sensory parade viewing,” she mentioned. “These accessibility options would make it attainable for me to take my 5-year-old neurotypical niece. I like spending time with my niece and taking her on particular outings, however not all enjoyable locations are accessible to me as a result of I am simply overwhelmed by sensory overload. … Having these accessibility options would release my power so I can dedicate extra time and power to ensure my neurotypical niece has a terrific expertise and so I might be totally current afterward as nicely.”
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Curb impact
“It is important that theme parks make experiences accessible to autistic friends of all ages,” Suarez added.
Marc Swanson, CEO of SeaWorld Parks and Leisure, nonetheless remembers listening to from a father after the unique Sesame Place turned a Licensed Autism Heart in 2018.
“This was the primary time he might take his teenage son to a theme park and actually felt like he might have a great time,” Swanson mentioned.
By making the park extra accessible to autistic friends, different friends with sensory wants or neurodiversity can even profit.
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Story continues under.
“Sensory sensitivities are a giant a part of autism, however they’re additionally a part of a variety of variations and disabilities,” Tekin mentioned. “For instance, people who’ve Down syndrome, they may have sensory sensitivities, PTSD, nervousness. … If you happen to embody all of the sensory wants, about one in six folks have a sensory want or sensitivity.”
The cascade of advantages are known as the curb impact.
“It is named after like curb cuts and sidewalks, that are legally required due to entry for wheelchair customers however are additionally useful to folks with strollers and folks utilizing walkers and folks in many alternative sorts of conditions,” Gross defined.
Swanson mentioned Sesame Place San Diego’s purpose is to accommodate all friends.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Toreros -2; over/under is 146.5
BOTTOM LINE: San Diego hosts Idaho after Kjay Bradley Jr. scored 27 points in San Diego’s 72-67 loss to the Southern Utah Thunderbirds.
The Toreros are 1-4 in home games. San Diego is 1-1 in games decided by 10 or more points.
The Vandals are 0-2 on the road. Idaho is sixth in the Big Sky scoring 35.3 points per game in the paint led by Julius Mims averaging 8.0.
San Diego scores 70.0 points per game, 7.3 fewer points than the 77.3 Idaho allows. Idaho averages 9.3 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.9 more makes per game than San Diego allows.
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TOP PERFORMERS: Bradley is scoring 19.6 points per game and averaging 2.8 rebounds for the Toreros.
Mims is averaging 12.3 points and seven rebounds for the Vandals.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Firefighters were battling a vegetation fire on Otay Mountain in San Diego County Saturday that had the potential to reach 200 acres, authorities said.
The fire was reported around 2:10 p.m. Saturday in the Otay Mountain Wilderness area, just east of Otay Mesa, according to Cal Fire San Diego. By around 4:45 p.m., the fire had spread to 58 acres but crews had already reached 10% containment.
“Fire crews are making good progress on the fire. There is currently no structure threat or evacuation,” Cal Fire wrote on X.
The San Diego Fire Department, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Land Management were assisting in the effort.
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The cause of the fire was not immediately clear.
This is a developing story. NBC 7 will continue to update this page with more information as it arrives.
#Border77Fire [update] The fire is now approximately 20 acres. Fire crews are making good progress on the fire. There is currently no structure threat or evacuations. pic.twitter.com/Pns6Kfsbd6
— CAL FIRE/San Diego County Fire (@CALFIRESANDIEGO) November 23, 2024
Members of the Kumeyaay Nation met with Indigenous leaders from around the world this week to discuss Indigenous ecological knowledge and envision how cities can incorporate it into their sustainability plans.
Held in celebration of Indigenous Heritage Week and Native American Heritage Month, the Sustainable Design Forum provided a space for Indigenous people to exchange their expertise on global issues such as wildlife conservation, climate change, deforestation and reef preservation.
The weeklong event featured panel discussions with leaders as well as cultural activities across the city, including a tule boat launch, art displays and a showcase of Indigenous films.
It was organized by San Diego Sister Cities and UC San Diego Global Initiatives and co-hosted by the Kumeyaay and Maasai people, an Indigenous group from Kenya.
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The event highlighted the commonalities between Indigenous people across the globe — from the Tembé people of Alto Rio Guamá, Brazil, Ryukyuan people from Okinawa, Japan, to the Noongar and Nhanda Yamaji people from Perth, Australia — in their struggle to preserve their land and ways of life.
“The land that we come from is on both sides of the border: Half is on this side, another half is in Baja California, Mexico,” said Stan Rodriguez, president of the Kumeyaay Community College, to a group during the forum on Thursday.
After having suffered against centuries of colonization, “it’s important for us to keep our identity of who we are as Native people,” he added. “And that struggle is worldwide.”
Other local tribal members were also a part of the forum, including Stephen Cope, the chair of the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, and artist Johnny Bear Contreras, who moderated the panel discussion and recently created a living land acknowledgement sculpture installation at San Diego State University.
Several of the international leaders were welcomed to San Diego on Monday at the San Pasqual Reservation Cultural Center in Valley Center, including Walter McGuire, of the Noongar people from Australia, who performed an Aboriginal song using boomerangs as musical instruments.
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“This has been a dream to bring us all together,” said Jessica Censotti, the executive director of San Diego Sister Cities, during the welcome ceremony.
Sister Cities International was founded in 1956 by President Eisenhower to establish connections based on “citizen diplomacy” — where residents could collaborate on economic, cultural, educational and community development without the influence of governments.
San Diego’s chapter was created more than 60 years ago and has 24 partnerships in 23 countries. But the Sustainable Design Forum, which has been in the works for nearly two years, is the first Indigenous gathering.
“We didn’t want just city-to-city, government-to-government,” Censotti said. “It was important … to bring Indigenous leaders together to create unity.”
Nashipae Nkadori, a member of the Maasai people of Kenya, said on Thursday evening before the panel discussion that she was most looking forward to sharing how her community is working to improve access to water. Currently, people must often walk 10 miles in the heat for water.
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Other Maasai representatives were set to discuss wildlife conservation and how Kenyans can coexist with wild animals outside of designated parks.
“I’m looking to learn from the people who are not from Kenya,” she said, as well as encourage other communities to “join our efforts in some of the work we’ve been doing.”
Nkadori described the Maasai as “the face of Kenya” and noted that the tribe has worked to maintain its cultural traditions and lifestyles amid modernization across the country. But they have been forced to change in some ways.
The Masaai are considered pastoral, living semi-nomadically as they move with their livestock. But over recent years, climate change has led to severe famine and droughts, as well as economic shifts, and families can’t afford to raise as many animals as in the past.
Thousands of miles away in Japan, the Ryukyuan peoples have faced their own challenges.
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Gabriel Sink traveled from the island of Okinawa with his sister and Kinjo Koji, a marine researcher who has played a key role in coral transplantation. Coral bleaching, caused by rising sea levels, has devastated large swaths of Okinawa’s reefs.
Sink, 22, said he’s glad to be able to help share Koji’s work on the global stage, especially since Okinawa is a small island and many of its inhabitants, especially those who are older, aren’t tech-savvy.
He’s also grateful to connect with other Indigenous communities that have faced years of oppression yet keep fighting for their languages and cultures.
“It’s so cool that everyone can meet up here,” Sink said. “I feel less alone.”
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