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Peter
Rickards - Founding President of ADDE
 Peter
has become a passionate advocate for improving employment
opportunities for people from disadvantaged communities.
“I decided to form ADDE because I found so many
barriers to getting back into the workforce” Peter
said. Many organizations such as State Federal, and
Local Government, and Disability Agencies which you
would expect would be leading from the front in employment
of people with disabilities, were not doing so. I became
tired of trying to change these injustices by myself
with no obvious results. After nearly two years of frustration
I realized that organizations and government only take
you seriously if you speak from an organization which
has credibility and numbers. There were so many people
like me having the same problems and many people I came
across had just given up trying to find work because
it is too difficult when employers are not taking a
pro-active approach. The next step was to get together
to try and get change happening and create our own employment
opportunities” Peter Rickards said.
Since completing a post graduate qualification in Recreation
and leisure studies, Peter played a leading role in
developing Recreation and Leisure services for people
with vision loss for 26 years at Vision Australia before
being made redundant in 2003.
His achievements included production of videos, a program
series broadcast on National Radio for the Print Handicapped,
and the publishing and writing of several books which
sold world wide. Also the establishment of many National
and State Blind and Disability sporting and recreation
associations.
Peter played a leading role on the Disability Advisory
Committee at Boroondara (winners of Prime Ministers
employer award 2005), and he developed a business plan
for the BtB (Becoming the Boss disability empowerment
training program) at Action for Community Living. Another
achievement is the establishment of a small business
by Peter and his partner.
Despite loosing his vision at a young age while living
in Africa, Peter has been keenly involved in many sports
and recreational activities himself, the highlights
of which have been to represent Australia internationally
in three different sports.
In 1980 Peter competed in the second winter
Paraolympics In Norway in the 10 and 20 kilometer cross country
skiing events coming within the top 10 in the world.
In 1982 he won a gold medal in the 5 kilometer walk
in Hong Kong at the Asian disability games. And In 1990
his sailing team won bronze at the first world blind
sailing championships in Auckland New Zealand.
Other highlights have included entering teams in three
five day 400 km canoe Murray Marathons, and the annual
international Dragon boat festival, and leading a trip
of vision impaired people who paddled the circumference
of Port Philip Bay over eight days in sea kayaks.
In addition to being father to three almost grown up
children, Peter still finds time to play golf, go bush
walking, cross country skiing, ball room dancing, canoeing,
organize fund raising events for charity, and play chess.
He also has been a leader of a Cub Scout pack for nine
years. Recently Peter was President of Rostrum public
speaking club, and represented his club at the Victorian
public speaking finals in August 2005. He also was part
of the inaugural Leadershipplus program in Australia.
Peter was born in New Zealand and also lived in South
Africa for five years before his family came to Melbourne
in 1970.
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