Whatsup In Disability    The local magazine for local people

                                                                                                                  

   ABOUT US

  

   Profile of Organisation

 Disability Media Association Inc (Australia) (DMAA) is a local independent, community, non-profit, volunteer  organisation, which produces a bi-monthly magazine called ‘Whatsup In Disability.’(WID), operates a Disability Information Office, distributes a centralised Diary Date broadsheet, a Disability Regional Directory and operates a local Community Notice Board.

     WID contains articles of disability issues, including local news, disability happenings, a readers forum and many other items of interest to people with disabilities, carers and professional people in the disability field.. Contributors are local people with disabilities, the Toowoomba Regional Council, Disability Services Qld  and organisations all over Southern Queensland. Most of the content is from local people with disabilities.

     Our purpose is to produce a quality disability magazine produced by people with disabilities, containing disability issues which can be shared around this region, bringing greater awareness and a better understanding for organisations and  people in this field.  The magazine also serves as  reference material for people fresh to this field. It also provides an interesting  occupation for many local people with disabilities, from Toowoomba to Roma.

      WID is distributed to subscribers and by individual sales and is the only publication in Southern Quensland in this field. It is funded by advertisers who pay small rates to insert their advert.   

    The magazine has been produced in this region for the past 19 years and is very popular with people with disabilities , carers and professional people in this field.

    Our income of approx $900 per month from Advertisers and Subscribers ($27 per year) is used to run all our activities at the office.

     The DMAA rented office is in a central location in Toowoomba and is also a volunteer run,  Disability Information Office with a Community Notice Board. (the only such specialist service in this area) producing also a fortnightly broadsheet on activities in the area. Volunteers also work with the Toowoomba Regional Council to put together the disability section of the Regional Directory of Services. 

Group established

     The present Incorporated Association was formed in Jan 2007, prior to this it ran for 2 years as an unincorporated association and before this was a private hobby project for 16 years.

Members

     DMAA has 32 paid up members

Average number accessing facilities

      We have 25 volunteers actively involved in the production of the magazine and the information program, most  have disabilities some are working professionally in the field. We have approx 3,000 readers probably a lot more. We have 34 advertisers (local disability services)

Principal age groups

     Our youngest is 23 the oldest 74.

     We produce the magazine as a community service to give to the disability community. We volunteer our time and our own pockets on occasions.  We are a non profit group and working in a low income field, we cannot  charge normal commercial rates for our product including advertising space. We charge rates just sufficient to pay our outgoings and rely on a lot of goodwill in the community.

     Subsequently our income is around $900 per month and outgoings just below this. We have managed to put aside, over the years, a reserve amount of about $2,000 which we save for emergencies.

     Our volunteers give their own time and also pay their own expenses if we cannot afford to. We do pay expenses to volunteers whenever we can but because our expenses are forever increasing this is not possible always. 

    Our main income is through advertising, which requires constant marketing and promotion. Our major difficulty is that several volunteers are in wheelchairs, but we do have an accessible vehicle now , thanks to a grant from Jupiters Casino.

    Our production of Whatsup In Disability has always been of benefit to the people of Toowoomba and Southern Queensland (incl Darling Downs and Lockyer valley), our main target areas. It is the only information product to offer written comments on a wide series of issues on subjects which people with disabilities and disability organisations value.  The magazine helps to unite people from all over the Darling Downs and Lockyer Valley as well as offering a valued role to people with disabilities working on the production.

     

Copyright  protected   2010    It is illegal to copy and use these pages for commercial use.