GATINEAU, QC, Sept. 22, 2016
CNW

The Government of Canada is working to ensure greater accessibility and opportunities for Canadians with disabilities in their communities and workplaces. To this end, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities today invited national not-for-profit organizations with a focus on disability to apply for funding through the 2016 Social Development Partnership Program Disability Component (SDPP-D) call for proposals.

Under this competitive process, eligible national disability organizations are invited to submit funding proposals over a six week period until November 3, 2016 for innovative projects that identify, develop and test promising practices and tools that promote the social inclusion of people with disabilities. The practices and tools may be new or build on existing programs and services.

Government of Canada Launches Call for Proposals to Support the Social Inclusion of Canadians With Disabilities full article

Adriana Almeida Santos, 15, carries the Olympic Flame in the city of Belém in state of Pará, Brazil. Photo: UNICEF/Fred Borba 8 September 2016

Welcoming the start of the 2016 summer Paralympic Games, which got underway in Brazils Rio de Janeiro yesterday, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said that the Games not only showcase the extraordinary abilities of athletes living with a disability, they also promote the rights of all persons with disabilities.

The Secretary-General believes that Paralympic athletes are change makers and role models, and are symbols of courage and aspiration for us all, the Secretary-Generals spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, told a news briefing at UN Headquarters in New York today.

Top UN Officials Highlight How Paralympic Games Show That Ability, Not Disability, Defines a Person’s Accomplishments full article

Do you know an individual, group or organization whose work or services improves access for Calgarians with disabilities? If so, we want to celebrate them and their accomplishments.

Accessibility Awards

Since 2009, we have been handing out the annual accessibility awards to recognize people who create an accessible and barrier-free city. Leanne Squair is the Issue Strategist that supports the Advisory Committee on Accessibility which sponsors the awards.

“Improving accessibility benefits everyone, especially as our population ages,” says Squair. “There are many people including businesses and organizations who are breaking down barriers for people with disabilities by raising awareness, using universal design, or applying innovative technology in our community. These awards recognize and celebrate Calgarians who are doing this important work.”

Accessibility Awards: Nominate Someone Who Improves the Quality of Life for People With Disabilities full article

31 August 2016

With a week to go before the Rio Paralympics, new research from the English Federation of Disability Sport (EFDS) has shown the public’s desire to see more disability sport in the media.

With many media channels set to cover elite disability sport at the Rio Paralympics, the report flags the importance of coverage beyond the Games and on a par with non-disabled people in sport.

To support journalists and those who provide news content on disabled people in sport, EFDS is also releasing a better practice Guide to accompany the research.

New Research Finds Demand for More Disability Sport News full article

Anne Kaier
DISABILITY AUG. 24, 2016

The checkout lady’s panic surged as she held the coins six inches above my hand and dropped them into my palm. They clanged until I made a fist. She ran her fingernails through her hair.

“What’s wrong with you?” she asked, her voice rising to a higher pitch. I slid the money into a jeans pocket and stroked my thigh to calm down.

Finding Refuge With the Skin I’m In full article

Jacki Andre
Huffington Post, Aug. 22, 2016

Do you know how much a manual wheelchair costs? Not the kind you buy from the Sears catalogue when you break your leg and need someone to push you around for six weeks. I’m talking about the kind that a paraplegic might need, that offers the correct ergonomic support and fits the lifestyle of the person who will rely on it for years.

These Are The Hidden Costs Of Living With A Disability full article

Carla Qualthrough, Ottawa’s minister responsible for Canadians with disabilities, announced a series of national discussions on the first national accessibility legislation. By Laurie MonsebraatenSocial justice reporter
Sat., Aug. 27, 2016

Carla Qualtrough, who is legally blind, grew up learning alternative ways of doing almost everything.

“When I was growing up, it was called accommodation. But today it’s called innovation,” said Qualtrough, 44, Canada’s federal minister of sport and first-ever minister responsible for people with disabilities.

The human rights lawyer, former Paralympian and world championship swimming medalist is helping Canadians think about disability in a new way as she crafts the country’s first national accessibility legislation.

Blind MP to Draft Canada’s First National Accessibility Law full article

In-person consultations to inform the development of planned accessibility legislation announced
August 23, 2016 Whitby, Ontario Employment and Social Development Canada

Today, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities, visited the Abilities Centre in Whitby, Ontario, and hosted a panel with three young Canadian innovators to discuss how accessibility drives innovation. The Minister toured the centre, noting the accessibility measures in place there, which serve as an example for other communities across Canada. Minister Qualtrough also announced the schedule of the in-person consultations organized to inform planned accessibility legislation.

Minister Qualtrough participated in a dynamic discussion with the three young Canadian innovators:

How Accessibility is Driving Innovation in Canada full article

Just like other children learn how to crawl, Evelyn slowly figured out how to wheel By Chris Purdy, The Canadian Press, CBC News
Posted: Aug 18, 2016

Evelyn Moore isn’t the fastest kid on the racetrack, but she’s by far the tiniest.

At 13-months old, the paralyzed toddler skilfully wheels her homemade wheelchair around the simulated track at Treehouse, an indoor playground in northeast Edmonton that she often visits with her mom.

Several school-age children whiz by on souped-up tricycles and she stops to stare and clap.

“She really gets around now,” says Kim Moore, who first put her daughter in the makeshift chair basically a purple, foam Bumbo seat on wheels at seven months.

Paralyzed Edmonton Toddler a Whiz in Homemade Wheelchair full article

Roughly one in five Americans lives with a disability. So where is our pride movement? Rosemarie Garland-Thomson
DISABILITY AUG. 19, 2016

Not long ago, a good friend of mine said something revealing to me: “I don’t think of you as disabled,” she confessed.

I knew exactly what she meant; I didn’t think of myself as disabled until a few decades ago, either, even though my two arms have been pretty significantly asymmetrical and different from most everybody else’s my whole life.

Becoming Disabled full article