Sometimes, people have to shout just to be heard. Last summer, at the age of 43, Lin completed what she describes as the "craziest thing" she has ever done: carrying a 13kg backpack and all of her camping equipment, she walked the entire South West Coast Path, 630 miles (1,014 km), from Poole to Minehead.
It was her first long-distance hike. Growing up in Singapore, hiking was never part of her life. It wasn't until she moved to Hong Kong in her twenties that she discovered a love for walking in nature. What started as a personal passion gradually became something much more meaningful. This journey was never just about walking.
When passion meets reality
For nearly 19 years, Hong Kong was Lin's home. Her work focused on suicide prevention and neurodiversity research, and she began a PhD exploring the lived experiences of autistic adults around the world. Like many researchers, she hoped her work would contribute to greater understanding and more inclusive policies.
But over time, she became increasingly aware of a difficult reality. Many neurodivergent people, particularly those from ethnic minority and other marginalised communities, remain largely invisible in research, despite often facing additional barriers. Their experiences are rarely represented, their perspectives are overlooked, and the challenges they encounter are too often misunderstood.
The emotional weight of seeing these inequalities, combined with the demands of academic life, eventually led to severe burnout. Lin left her PhD programme and later moved to the UK to begin a new chapter.
Finding people who shared the same vision
After arriving in the UK, Lin reached out to people working in autism and neurodiversity, hoping to find others who believed that lived experience should be at the heart of change. One of those people was Dr Zhe, founder of Chinese Autism CIC.
Their connection quickly grew beyond a professional introduction. Through Chinese Autism CIC, Lin saw a community organisation working directly alongside Chinese-speaking autistic people and their families, listening, supporting and advocating where support has often been difficult to access.
What brought them together was not simply a shared cultural background, but a shared belief that everyone deserves to be heard, especially those whose voices have too often been overlooked.
"Some people have to work much harder just to be heard."
Reflecting on her journey, Lin wrote: "We all have a voice, but some people have to work much harder, sometimes shouting with everything they have, before anyone will listen."
Silence does not always mean agreement. Sometimes people remain silent because no one has asked them. Sometimes because no one has listened. Sometimes because stigma, inaccessible systems or fear make speaking up feel impossible. When voices are missing, opportunities to learn from lived experience are lost.
Why walk?
Lin knows that walking cannot solve structural inequalities. It cannot change systems overnight or remove the barriers faced by autistic people and other marginalised communities.
But walking became something she could do when many other things felt beyond her control. Each step became a reminder that progress is still possible, even when the destination feels far away. Last year, she walked in memory of her beloved cat. This year, she is walking for herself, and for everyone whose story deserves to be heard.
Walking for change
This summer, Lin has returned to the South West Coast Path to take on the challenge once again, walking 630 miles, and as far as she can go.
Where the funds go
More importantly, Lin hopes to encourage people to share their own lived experiences. Every story shared helps build greater understanding. Every conversation challenges stigma. Every donation helps create opportunities for communities whose voices are too often unheard.
- 80% — Chinese Autism CIC
- 20% — South West Coast Path Association
If you would like to follow Lin's journey, you can find her on Instagram at @justafairday. Thank you, Lin, for reminding us that meaningful change begins by listening, and by making space for every voice to be heard.