Educational and behavioural psychologists have made major contributions to the field of communication intervention for individuals with developmental and physical disabilities. A brief personal perspective is provided on some of the major works and contributors that have shaped the field over the past 25 years. Major contributions and personal influences include: (a) David Premack and other ape-language researchers; (b) Reichle's work on graphic-mode communication; (c) Bondy and Frost's Picture-Exchange Communication System; and (d) a chance encounter with some unused communication devices. The advances made over the past 25 years in this area have been dramatic and have enabled many non-speaking individuals with developmental and physical disabilities to communicate more effectively.