February 3, 2017

We are excited to announce that the IDRC has received a grant from the Oak Foundation’s Learning Differences Programme.

With funding from Oak, the IDRC is helping leaders of social justice-related activities by and for youth around the globe authentically engage diverse learners. Youth-led social justice movements can be empowering experiences that build connection to community, self-confidence, and a more positive mindset within marginalized populations. However, social justice initiatives are not always designed to accommodate diverse learners, who are over-represented within marginalized populations. If these initiatives are designed inclusively, with the appropriate scaffolding and accessibility features, they can create a positive pivot point in the lives of youth with learning differences.

The IDRC is not only supporting inclusive design in the online tools and software these initiatives utilize, but is also actively sharing resources, ideas and frameworks that help activists and leaders understand the needs and potential of different learners. Its toolkit will be a far-reaching, open-source combination of online resources, websites, web code, exemplars, hubs and tools that will remove barriers to participation to youth social movements for youth who learn differently.

To see the work as it is happening and to join the project, visit the Social Justice Repair Kit wiki page

November 30, 2016
December 3, 2016 marks the United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

IDRC Director Jutta Treviranus will attend events at the UN Headquarters in New York.

To learn more about accessibility rights and legislation in Ontario and in Canada, listen to Episode 3 of the Quantization Podcast.

November 30, 2016
The IDRC participated in the IIDEX National Summit on Accessibility on November 30th, 2016.

This summit focused on appreciating how diverse stakeholders help shape and improve our design.

The summit’s panels focused on two essential issues: Inclusive Play and Policy. The IDRC’s Director, Jutta Treviranus, lead the Summit.

November 30, 2016
On October 13-14, 2016 the DEEP – Discovery conference brought together an international community of over 100 diverse participants to discuss timely, difficult, and engaging topics.

This year’s theme was: “Our Data: Who owns it, who controls it, what can we do with it?”

DEEP 2016 welcomed the participation of four initiatives that each brought essential perspectives to the agenda, namely: international collaboration, platforms for inclusive prosperity, privacy, and life-long learning. The EU project Discovery, the SSHRC supported TIPP consortium, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner supported project on privacy and inclusion, and several open education projects all participated in DEEP 2016. Participation from each of these projects helps to ensure that conversations and plans will be acted upon and the work started at DEEP will continue well beyond the conference.

Congratulations to the graduates of the Delta cohort of the Masters of Inclusive Design. The newly celebrated Master of Inclusive Design are:

• Catalina De la Rocha
• Rushmita Alam
• Erica Charbonneau
• Geordie Graham
• Dennis Lagman
• Jingyi Lai
• Yu Lin
• Chengyi Lu (Zimmo)
• Amita Pharshy
• Deepshikha Sharma
• Taliesin Smith
• Vanessa Vilic Evangelista
• Caren Watkins
• Jacob Willow
• Jeff Woodrow
• Koni Xie
• Yu Zhang
• Mohsen Mahjoobnia

Join us in celebrating their accomplishments.

For a third year, the Inclusive Design Institute is pleased to offer a free innovation summer camp for high school students. Starting in July across 6 locations across Ontario, the Sprout Ideas Camp blends social innovation, technology, and design thinking skills to engage students in building problem solving and teamwork skills.

Mentors from the industry and post-secondary institutions will support students as they prototype, develop, and present their ideas. The camp is completely free of charge and transportation funding is available for anyone in financial need.

The dates and locations for the camps are:

• July 11-15: Niagara (DSBN Education Centre)
• July 18-21: Hamilton (UN University)
• July 25-29: Fort Frances High School
• July 25-29: Toronto (OCAD University)
• August 15-19: Toronto (York University)
• August 22-26: Thunder Bay (Lakehead University)

For more information, registration, and a video from last year’s camp, please see the Sprout Ideas Camp website.

May 29, 2016 –  Today people around the world are celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day (or GAAD) as a way to raise awareness about the importance of building accessible websites and digital content so that people with disabilities are able to access them with ease.

For more information about Global Accessibility Awareness Day, visit their website.

We offer many services, tools, and resources to help you toward your accessibility goals:

• WebSavvy – Accessibility Reporting, Consultation, and Auditing
• AChecker – The Free online Accessibility Tool
• Learning Web Accessibility: Courses and Resources
• IDRC Web Accessibility Workshops

What is it like to attend the Web For All Conference? Can’t make it to Montreal this year to take part? Elizabeth Neal from the American Foundation for the Blind shares her experiences from this year’s conference. The conference theme this year is “Education for All on the Web”.

Elizabeth makes remarks on Jutta Treviranus’ keynote: “[Jutta] argued that accessibility strategies must recognize that accessibility is relative—to individual requirements, goals, and context—not absolute. Therefore, we need regulations that are responsive and evolving, not static.”

Elizabeth also remarks on Michael Cooper’s talk about Web Accessibility for the 2020’s and the challenges that lay ahead.

Visit “Reflections of a First-Time Attendee at the Web For All Conference” at the American Foundation for the Blind’s website for the complete article.

In December 2013, the province of Manitoba passed legislation on the Accessibility for Manitobans Act which defines 5 new accessibility standards for the province. The first standard, customer service, must be met by 2017. But what comes after the law has been passed?

On March 15, IDRC director Jutta Treviranus visited the University of Manitoba to share experiences and best practices of Inclusive Design in a legislated landscape.

” ‘Since laws are not agile, our choices within the law are important.’ She emphasizes the importance of responsive, iterative solutions that focus on collaboration among diverse perspectives.”

Source: “Planning for accessibility Beyond the law“, University of Manitoba.

How we live and how we die are questions that need further exploration and discussion set within an inclusive framework that engages a broad spectrum of individuals and perspectives, particularly the perspectives of our most vulnerable populations which includes persons who experience disabilities or the effects of aging. Research is showing that many Canadians support assisted death. The controversy is situated within many contexts, predominately institutional spheres, where law and policy makers are subject to pressures from many different perspectives, including self-interest groups.

This leads to the heart of the question: who should decide when and how we die?

Please join OCAD Graduate Studies in Inclusive Design in “A Conversation on the Future of Physician Assisted Death”.

Registration required at : http://goo.gl/forms/4Mpp3ouvYe

Update: Panelist Bio’s – A Conversation on the Future of Physician Assisted Dying in Canada