Basel-based disability podcaster flies the flag for Jersey - Jersey Evening Post
by James Sharp · Jersey Evening PostPosted inNews
Basel-based disability podcaster flies the flag for Jersey
by James Sharp 24 May 202622 May 2026
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Despite interviewing ministers, disability campaigners and some of Jersey’s most prominent public figures, the creator of one of the Island’s fastest-growing accessibility podcasts has never actually been here, as James Sharp found out…
The JD Dragon Disability Podcast has become one of the foremost vehicles for exploring accessibility and inclusivity issues for disabled people in Jersey.
Its creator, Josh Downey, has interviewed Enable CEO Sean Pontin, Minister for Social Security Lyndsay Feltham, Assistant Chief Minister Carina Alves and even received a congratulatory email from Lieutenant Governor Jerry Kidd.
His areas of focus include making the States Assembly more inclusive, improving accessibility in Elizabeth Castle and the Jersey Opera House, and making voting more convenient for disabled Islanders.
Incredibly, though, Josh is yet to have actually stepped foot in Jersey.
“I was actually born in Sydney, Australia,” Josh explained over a Teams call. “Part of my ancestry is actually from Aberdeenshire originally, and then at the age of 13 my family moved to Basel, Switzerland.”
In his final year at secondary school in Switzerland, he explained, a teacher encouraged him to begin a podcast “all about the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”.
From there, Josh embarked on setting up a truly border-defying podcast by reaching out to key players in disability rights across a wide range of jurisdictions.
“I’ve interviewed people entirely in German, I’ve incorporated Greek, Llanito in Gibraltar, where I’ve interviewed a number of people, as well”, he explained.
But, for one reason or another, something about Jersey left a particularly strong impression.
“Jersey is the big one,” Josh nodded. “I have the analytics on my phone and you can see that Jersey is rapidly, rapidly growing in terms of audience places – now [the podcast] is really becoming popular on the Island, especially in St Helier itself.
“I didn’t ask for these amazing people who I met thanks to Jersey, but I’m so glad that I did meet that incredible community, and obviously I’d love to connect more with them and work with them.”
He added: “I feel a stronger sense of connection there than to say, for example, the people I know in my home country, because the people in Jersey are just so outgoing, they’re so honest, and I haven’t felt that sense of connection in a long time.
“Disability is beyond borders, and, for me, the people of Jersey are like family – the people I’ve met are like family to me.”
Josh’s successful podcast proves, he argues, that sheer geographical distance needn’t prevent inter-jurisdiction collaboration.
“For me, disability is the closest thing humanity has to a universal language”, he opined.
“Because, for me, it’s not about defining a person by their ability, it’s about defining them by what makes them as a person – and, in Jersey, that’s where the focus of conversation is.”
Turning to the the concept of accessibility in Jersey, Josh strikes a perhaps surprisingly optimistic note.
“It has potential,” he insists. “The people I met, they have the potential to make Jersey a very accessible location.
“To me, it’s like you’re building a Lego set, and you have all the pieces, you just need to get the instruction booklet to know how all the pieces fit together.”
Josh is clear that it is of utmost importance to adopt an internationalist perspective in order to ensure the world becomes a fairer place for disabled people.
“Jersey has their own systems, and I do feel that every country and territory can learn from one another.
“This is the universal journey that we’re on, it’s not like we’re trapped in our little box, we can all communicate with each other – that’s the universality of disability.”
In terms of actionable improvements that can be taken to help Islanders living here, Josh offers a few solutions.
“I would say that simply installing a ramp to make certain buildings more accessible – like, that shouldn’t be that difficult to do.”
He was shocked to find that a disabled friend in Jersey was dissuaded from running for elected office because of a lack of accessibility in the States.
“How hard is it put a ramp in? I’ll go back to that point – but hopefully, as long as their voices have been made heard, then hopefully that change should come about.”
“The pieces are there,” he reiterated. “And let’s see how the new government measures put them in place.”
Looking ahead, he hopes to one day come to Jersey to deliver a presentation at a local school, like Highlands College.
“That would honestly just be a dream come true, to be able to connect with these incredible people that I’ve met along the way.”
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