When you think of changing attitudes toward disability, what are the two strategies that spring to mind? The two most popular responses to that question are unfortunately strategies that have been shown to be ineffective: public awareness campaigns and simulations. CDPA, as part of the Canada Access & Inclusion Project through SCI Canada, was selected to advise the federal Minister… Read more »
How has the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms been used to achieve equity and justice for people with disabilities in Canada? This is the question addressed by a recent publication of a long-standing project of the CDPA, and the work of several partners and students. The paper examines the 14 cases heard by the Supreme Court of Canada where… Read more »
Doing policy-relevant research is a rewarding experience, but it not necessarily part of the skill set or incentive system in academic research. A new article (brought to my attention by Amy Latimer, lead for the Sport & Recreation team) acknowledges this difficulty, and proposes a four-part approach to what they call “strategic science”. The approach begins by establishing relationships with… Read more »
TORONTO, Sept. 24, 2015 /CNW/ – The leaders of Canada’s largest disability organizations serving upwards of four million Canadians with disabilities are urging government leaders, influencers and the public to support a new non-partisan campaign to introduce federal legislation to ensure accessibility, inclusion and equal opportunity for Canadians with disabilities, and to fulfill Canada’s commitments to the UN Convention on… Read more »
As the Americans with Disabilities Act turns 25 years old, interest is again mounting for a Canadians with Disabilities Act. With a federal election scheduled for October 2015, a coalition called Barrier-Free Canada has reiterated the call. Several high-profile disability organizations, including several of our partners, have joined the movement. Recently, Andre Picard wrote in the Globe and Mail that… Read more »
If Canadian disability policy over the past 25 years has been effective in promoting equality and inclusion, then it stands to reason that the daily activities of people with disabilities should be looking more and more like those of their non-disabled counterparts. A test of this assumption has been conducted by the federal disability policy team of the CDPA. Canadian… Read more »
Members of the Canadian Disability Policy Alliance examined the Ontario election campaign of 2011 to identify the extent to which it “opened doors” to electoral participation for persons with disabilities. A recent publication, More Than Voting Booths: Accessibility of Electoral Campaigns for People with Disabilities in Ontario, outlines the findings. Obstacles to electoral involvement for persons with a disability are not… Read more »
Working with Steven Christianson and the March of Dimes, David Shannon and Mary Ann McColl developed recommendations to ensure equity for disabled citizens under The Fair Elections Act. The March of Dimes team secured an invitation for the CDPA to present at the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs for Bill C-23, the fair elections act. On March 31,… Read more »
Under the expert leadership of Spinal Cord Injury Canada, CDPA and CDPP have partnered with 28 community organizations to provide advice to the federal Minister of Sport and People with Disabilities, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, on what to include in new national accessibility legislation. This 18-month project is part of an extensive public consultation on the issues and barriers facing… Read more »
The first edition of the of the policy scan was produced 5 years ago and has since been one of the most visited documents on the Canadian Disability Policy Alliance website. The second edition has been updated for the next phase of our work as an Alliance. It reminds us how much work needs to be done. Since there is… Read more »
