The LEGO Group has unveiled a range of projects to celebrate and support neurodivergent children during World Autism Acceptance Month in April. 

The initiatives kicked off yesterday when Alabama-based nonprofit org KultureCity certified all LEGO Stores in the US and Canada as sensory-inclusive for neurodivergent builders. This certification process involved staff training, support tools, signage and offering sensory bags at checkout containing noise-reducing headphones, fidget tools and strobe-reduction glasses for visitors to use in stores. 

New changes are also coming to LEGO Life Magazine following a two-year audit by Special Networks. This UK-based research and consultancy firm proposed a number of improvements to make the global publication more accessible to neurodivergent readers, including numbering the boxes used in cartoons, planning new content that suits varied abilities, and ensuring consistent and meaningful use of visuals. LEGO has implemented these proposals in the publication’s latest edition and will continue to do so moving forward. 

Lastly, LEGO collaborated with three autistic creators to launch a series of Love the Way You Think short films earlier this week on its official YouTube channel. Each video showcases the talents of an individual creator, including Canadian pencil artist Casey Vormer, Japanese painter Gaku and American LEGO builder Allyson Gail (who uses the iconic bricks to make models of food with cute faces).