Chapter 14

Autistic Abilities—Denmark

Thorkil Sonne is founder and board member of Specialisterne, which employs people with autism and enables them to use their computer skills to provide valuable services for the business community.

I don't consider them autistic—they are more like specialists. They have very special qualities that make them focused, detail-oriented, and persistent. Wouldn't we be rewarding these qualities in a person who wasn't labeled as autistic? Why don't we just understand people for what they can do rather than label those who are not like us?

—Thorkil Sonne

THORKIL SONNE WAS DEVASTATED WHEN HIS SON LARS WAS diagnosed with autism at age three. Thorkil was, by his description, a traditional family guy having a traditional ...

Get Rippling: How Social Entrepreneurs Spread Innovation Throughout the World now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial