Russell Lehmann is an award-winning and internationally recognized thought leader, speaker,
poet, and advocate contextualizing autism, mental health, disabilities, and the overall human
condition. His words have been featured in the USA Today, LA Times, NPR, Yahoo! News,
Success Magazine and archived in the Library of Congress.
A graduate of MIT’s “Leadership in the Digital Age” course, Russell sits on the national Board
of Directors for The Arc of the United States and is a lead council member for the Autism
Society of America. He also serves as an advisor to NEXT for Autism. Additionally, Russell has
been the Youth Ambassador for the mayor of Reno, Nevada, and a member of the Nevada
Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities as well as the Nevada Commission on
Autism Spectrum Disorders. Russell is also a contributor for Psychology Today.
Russell showed signs of autism as a newborn, however, he was not formally diagnosed until the
age of 12 after suffering through 5 weeks in a lockdown psychiatric facility.
His new book, “On the Outside Looking In” recently hit bookstores nationwide.
In 2018, Russell was named as Reno-Tahoe’s “Most Outstanding Young Professional Under 40”.
In 2019 & 2020, Russell lectured for the prestigious King’s College of London and the
Mohammed bin Rashid Center for Special Education in Abu Dhabi, respectively. In 2022,
Russell was invited to the Finnish Parliament to discuss government supports that are needed in
Finland for individuals on the spectrum.
Named the 2022 Advocate of the Year by the Autism Society of America, Russell currently
travels the world spreading hope, awareness, and compassion in a raw and dynamic fashion,
while also setting his sights on erasing the stigmas and stereotypes that come with having a
disability. Russell’s passion is to be a voice for the unheard, for he knows how difficult and
frustrating it is to go unnoticed.