Participants
Join National
Discussion
at Virtual
Tables

As 1,000 people across 16 cities joined AmericaSpeaks National Town Meeting on autism policy in 2009, dozens of others took part in the discussion at virtual tables. At the event, families living with autism, adults with autism, advocates, elected officials, service providers, and other community members shared their perspectives about the policies need to support adults with autism. The participants discussed and rated strategies for addressing policy issues such as, housing, employment, and community life. They then prioritized the top strategies within each of the three topic areas.

Virtual table participants watched presentations from the national discussion online via a webcast. When it was time to discuss the issues, virtual participants joined volunteer facilitators on a conference call line and chat room. As they came to agreement, their ideas were submitted online to a team of analysts who integrated them with those of participants in the rooms across the country. Online polling keypads enables virtual table participants to vote on their priorities over the course of the day.

The policy agenda that emerged from the discussion was presented to Members of Congress and other leaders at a summit in Washington DC several months later. Participants were invited to join a national consortium to continue to address these issues locally and nationally.