The aim of this paper is to examine music as an innovation in special education using a case study to illustrate how factors such as ethnicity and ability can become insurmountable obstacles for participation. The purpose of my presentation is to discuss and obtain other teacher’s and researcher’s views and comments on this ongoing PhD project. Using an ethnographic approach, interviews and observations were conducted to study the meaning of music for a six -year -old First Nations boy in BC Canada, diagnosed with autism. In light of his situation, sustainable development seems unperceivable.