When Katie “KD” Drackert received the 2026 Paul G. Hearne Emerging Leader Award from the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) in recognition and support of her work with Clear the Air ATX (CTA), it helped her to see that her efforts to promote clean air were making a difference.
“Winning the award was really reaffirming and literally all of my close friends were like, ‘Do you believe it now?’” she said.
KD used the funds she received from the Hearne Award to expand the reach of CTA, an organization she founded in 2023 that works to make air purification more accessible in Austin, Texas. Her impact demonstrates how the Hearne Award helps highlight disabled advocates making a difference in their communities.
While KD identified as chronically ill and disabled for much of her life, she became more involved in disability advocacy after developing Long COVID in 2021.
“Long COVID revealed what I was always afraid of, which was that when you become a certain level of disabled, people will leave, and jobs will let you go, and all of these things that you hear about, those became my reality when I got Long COVID, and that was pretty traumatic,” she said.
Air purification has emerged as a prominent disability justice issue. According to the CTA website, “Reducing the amount of viral particles in the air means we can decrease the risk of transmission, thus keeping our communities safer while maintaining vital social connections.”
“In terms of how we think about accessibility, clean indoor air isn’t necessarily perceived as an access issue when it is, because what took me out was just breathing the wrong air, and now I’m super disabled, and I could have had a lot of expenses and crises avoided had there just been clean indoor air, so I wanted to get these things on a national stage,” she said.
KD founded CTA to promote clean air and combat the spread of COVID-19 and other viruses. CTA runs air purifier lending libraries for community and personal events. Over 500 events have used CTA’s air purifiers so far. The organization also advocates for more awareness surrounding the dangers of Long COVID and the importance of clean air.
The Hearne Award funding has helped CTA pilot a purifier distribution project that provides air purifiers to local organizations in Austin for their offices and to distribute to multiply-marginalized individuals in the community. So many organizations were interested in receiving these air purifiers that CTA had to turn people down.
“AAPD giving us the opportunity to pilot this program allows us to potentially get more funding for this in the future, to have proof of concept. Like, hey, this works. Hey, people wanted this,” KD said.
The Hearne Award has also supported CTA’s local government advocacy. This year, CTA and the Long COVID Collective worked with Austin City Council members to write a proclamation recognizing Long COVID Awareness Day. KD also presented to Austin city officials about the impact of Long COVID.
“I believe that having the Hearne Award title behind myself at Clear the Air really helped with the city advocacy that we were doing because it makes people take a second look at you, makes them take you a little bit more seriously, and so that’s been one really amazing benefit that has been so, so helpful,” KD said.
KD formed CTA at a time when she was adapting to new symptoms and new medical conditions. She appreciates the funding and opportunities AAPD and the Hearne Award have provided not only for professional growth, but also for personal exploration.
“I have a lot of gratitude for receiving the Hearne Award. On top of resources and confidence, it’s given me time and space to explore who I am now at this chapter of my life, in this version of my body,” she said.
KD has created a diverse disability advocacy organization that values intersections and differences. Gaby Benitez, a public health researcher and lead organizer of CTA, praised KD for her vision of inclusivity.
“KD is truly a visionary who I think also really just believes in disability justice, and making sure that across different kinds of social justice areas, like wanting to make sure that disabled folks are being included within kind of all realms of organizing. So I think one thing that’s just really special about her approach is sort of the way she sees everything is interconnected,” Benitez said.
In addition to leading CTA, KD is also a first-generation college student at Texas State University studying communications with a concentration in civic engagement, persuasion, and advocacy. She hopes to continue her work with CTA and pursue a master’s degree in the future.
“In terms of where I’d like to go next with disability rights and justice and advocacy, I’d really like to just continue on with Clear the Air and working towards making the organization more sustainable because I really don’t view this as a little side project, like I view this as something that I would like to have full funding on one day,” KD said.
KD’s drive and persistence have made her a powerful advocate for clean air awareness in Austin and beyond. She reflected on the advice she has for the next generation of leaders in the disability community.
“If somebody says that your idea might not work and it’s a little out there, then you’re probably in the right direction because if it’s a little out there, that probably means that nobody’s touching it and it needs to get done, so go for it.”
Image Description: A headshot of KD, a white woman with short brown hair and clear glasses wearing a long sleeve emerald green blouse with a bow near her neck. KD is looking away and smiling softly.