Paloma Gonzalez-Bellido has a deep appreciation for the incredibly diverse ways different organisms achieve their goals. "I study diversity and I am always in awe of how the different animals solve problems in their own way, for their own niche,” she says. She studies the impressive aerial hunting behavior of flying insects, dragonflies and robber flies in particular. Observing their strategies is all in a day’s work for Gonzalez-Bellido, an associate professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior.
A few years ago, Gonzalez-Bellido had the chance to bring together her professional and personal endeavors and foster an appreciation of diversity through a new project. Her daughter started auditioning for roles and building a portfolio as a voiceover performer — and navigating an entertainment industry that lacked authentic representation for ADHD girls. Often encouraged to "mask" her personality to fit in, she faced a world that expected neurodivergent children to change who they are. Gonzalez-Bellido saw it as a call to action and reached out to DPD Casting, a casting office well known for championing inclusivity in the industry. She worked with DPD to organize webinars and information sessions around the topic. The community showed up and Flight Camp took off.
The education program, which includes an animated series paired with opportunities for children and their families to engage with the content, is equal parts primer on fantastic insects and an exploration of neurodivergence. Set at a summer camp in Lake Itasca, Minnesota, the show follows a cast of primary-school insects like Maisey, a monarch butterfly with autism, and Dani, a blue-tailed damselfly with dyslexia, as they discover their unique traits, both challenges and strengths, that make each of them distinctly awesome. Each character provides both a lesson in biology and aspects of neurodivergence.
Take Robin, a robber fly with ADHD. Known for their powerful toxins, in Flight Camp, this characteristic creates a stigma that leads Robin to hide her true self. She compensates for her inattention by aiming for impossible perfection, until she realizes that at camp, she is embraced exactly as she is.
Much of the series began as a DIY labor of love by Gonzalez-Bellido and her daughter. Despite having no formal animation training, the scientist enlisted industry pros and created prototypes. Just as important, she developed activities for kids and their families to engage with the content in person. So far, Flight Camp has been featured at the Bell Museum and the Monarch Festival. It was an incredibly time-consuming labor of love. "I truly believe that when you’re in a situation to make change, you better at least try,” says Gonzalez-Bellido. “You just go for it, right?"
Gonzalez-Bellido notes that views on neurodivergence are complicated. Her goal with Flight Camp is to level the playing field. “Society expects neurodivergent kids to make the full effort to fit into the mainstream,” she says. “But when neurotypical kids learn early about other perspectives and brain types, the load of the ‘double empathy problem,’ in which mismatched communication styles and lived experience can impede understanding, can be shared more evenly. Flight Camp is about finding that middle ground.” –Stephanie Xenos