At the end of August this year, the first meeting of The Spectrum Circle community, founded by Tavi, took place at a cafe in Jumeirah. The goal of this new group was to organize gatherings for neurodivergent individuals.
Tavi, who also runs the event and marketing agency True North Marketing, planned an evening filled with specially designed activities and reserved a space for about ten people. However, she would be satisfied even with just two attendees, as she herself is neurodivergent and is well aware of the various mental challenges that must be overcome when participating in such social situations.
Organizing the event involved several difficulties. When she first announced the group on Threads, some people mistakenly thought it was a community for single people, and she had to filter hundreds of messages. Furthermore, she approached at least four cafes, and their reactions ranged from extremely irritating to openly disrespectful. Tavi notes: 'The first few cafes wanted me to guarantee that everyone would order for 50 dirhams,' even though she did not want any such conditions. Other cafe managers did not understand what 'neurodivergent' meant, and those who did understood did not want to provide the space. 'As soon as I said the word 'spectrum,' I saw how their tone and attitude changed,' she adds.
Eight people gathered at the cafe. They chatted during icebreaker games where they shared one interesting fact about themselves unrelated to work, as Tavi aimed to avoid the 'standard script' of typical networking events. There were also other smaller games promoting one-on-one interaction. Tavi emphasized: 'I made it very clear that there was no pressure to participate. You can come to the event and sit quietly the whole time if you want.'
Tavi is one of the few who has launched such spaces for neurodivergent people in the UAE where they can relax, unwind, and socialize. These places function as judgment-free zones where they can 'take off the mask'—a process often described as not hiding one's neurodivergent traits or behavior to appear neurotypical—and interact with like-minded peers.
There is also Dice and Divergence, which positions itself as a 'relaxed board game evening for neurodivergent adults' and meets on Wednesdays. According to its website, 'the plan is for it to grow into a full-fledged small community.' Event details listed on Meetup and the group's website indicated that the first game was scheduled for September 23rd at Tile Board Game Café, and participants could choose red, amber, or green markers to signal readiness to socialize. (The host declined to give an interview for this article).
Sara Youssef launched Neuroaffirm Hub last November. Her idea is to hold about five different meetings per month through this community. Youssef held the first meeting of her community, titled 'Walk and Talk,' this month at Boon Speciality Coffee Roasters in Dubai Hills Mall. Speaking about it the next day, she explained that participants could have coffee and walk around the mall either alone or together. She chose this activity deliberately because walking side-by-side reduces the pressure of maintaining eye contact.
Eight people attended, mostly aged 30 and 40. One of them, according to Youssef, felt relief by allowing themselves to relax. There was no formal agenda, and people were free to follow what suited them best—for example, some started walking alone and then returned to chat with the others. Several people stayed after the walk to get to know each other better. 'It was supposed to last an hour, but we spent hours there,' she smiles.
Youssef herself is neurodivergent, as are her children. 'And in this journey of navigating our own home, school, and everywhere else, I felt quite lonely and isolated... so I decided to create this platform where people could gather, show up, without feeling judged, and have a safe space,' she explains.
Navid Saed started the ADHD Mastery: Support and Solutions project last year but took a long break before reviving it this year. The group meets at various cafes in Mall of the Emirates every Saturday afternoon. He reports: 'Some people who come have autism, giftedness, bipolar disorder, or borderline schizophrenia. And we have people from all over the world—Egypt, Sudan, India, Japan, Pakistan, Ukraine.'
These meetings serve as an opportunity for participants to socialize, exchange information about good doctors, survival tips in the workplace, and even share employment opportunities. Saed explains: 'We also discuss our difficulties in the corporate world with task completion and punctuality.' He adds that 'some members financially support themselves by starting their own businesses or becoming investors, as it was painfully impossible for them to survive in the corporate world,' and hopes to host future 'dopamine and adrenaline-filled events,' such as picnics, board games, bowling, and paddle tennis.
