Projects
Since 2010, Accessibility Services Canada’s CEO, Constance Exley, has been designing and delivering province-wide accessibility awareness and education initiatives, in partnership with the Ontario Government. Constance has been the Project Manager, Subject Matter Expert, and Content Creator for seven multi-year EnAbling Change Program projects in which her responsibilities included grant and report writing, work plan and budget development, acting as the subject matter expert, creating all project related resource materials, facilitation of all workshops and webinars, evaluation of project activities, recruiting and working with the project Steering Committees. Below are some of those projects.
Ontario Nonprofit Network
The Ontario Nonprofit Network is the umbrella organization for Ontario’s 58,000 non-profits. This sector generates revenues of $50 billion, comprises 15% of the province’s workforce, including more than 1 million paid staff and 5.2 million volunteers.
2010-2012: “EnAbling Nonprofits Ontario”
Target Audience: 58,000 Ontario nonprofits
Project Goals:
- Educate the sector on the AODA and Customer Service Standard
- Increase the availability of sector specific resources
- Support the capacity of the nonprofit sector to remove barriers for people with disabilities
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Research: Identification of existing accessibility statistics, resources and information.
- Webinars and workshops: Deliver 14 workshops and 4 webinars on the AODA and the Accessible Customer Service Standard.
- Communications and education campaign: Creation of new, sector specific resources, including project newsletters (15 issues), AODA fact sheets, and creation and maintenance of project website tailored to meet the needs of Ontario’s nonprofits.
2015-2016: “EnAbling Nonprofits Ontario”
Target Audience: 58,000 Ontario nonprofits
Project Goals:
- Increase the awareness of the AODA and its various standards amongst Ontario’s nonprofit organizations
- Increase nonprofit compliance reporting under the AODA
- Increase the ability of the nonprofit sector to address and manage common issues for staff and volunteers with disabilities as a result of training, resources, and support provided by this project
- Inclusion of more people with disabilities in Ontario’s nonprofit sector organizations.
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Environmental scan: Baseline survey at the beginning of the project and a follow up survey at the end of the project to identify nonprofit knowledge increase.
- Workshops and webinars: 4 workshops on “Leading a Culture of Inclusion” and 11 webinars, including:
- General AODA – Ask your accessibility questions!
- AODA Refresher for Ontario’s Nonprofits
- Accessibility for organizations with less than 50 staff
- Accessibility for organizations with more than 50 staff
- Accessible Communications and Social Media
- Creating accessibility policies for your organization
- Board Members: AODA Overview and Compliance
- Accessibility Resources for bilingual nonprofits
- Online resources and tools: Creation of project website to share information, including plain language summaries of requirements, and links to checklists, tools and links to existing and relevant resources.
- Case Studies: 10 case studies in blog, video, and podcast format highlighting organizations of various sizes, geographies, and sub-sectors.
Association of Ontario Health Centres
The Association of Ontario Health Centres (AOHC) is the policy and advocacy organization for nonprofit, community-governed, interprofessional primary health care organizations; their members are Ontario’s Community Health Centres, Aboriginal Health Access Centres, Community Family Health Teams and Nurse Practitioner Clinics.
2013-2014: “Accessibility…Beyond Disabilities”
Target Audience: AOHC membership – over 100 community-governed primary health care organizations. The membership includes Ontario’s Community Health Centres (CHCs), Aboriginal Health Access Centres (AHACs), Community Family Health Teams (CFHTs) and Community Nurse Practitioner-led Clinics (NPLCs).
Project Goals:
The goal of this project is to help AOHC member-centres comply with and be appraised of what steps are needed for compliance with the following AODA Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation:
- Customer Service Standards
- Information and Communication Standards
- Employment Standards
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Workshops and Webinars: 28 AODA workshops given to community health centres across Ontario and 8 webinars.
- Community of Practice: 4 theme specific teleconference sessions, including accessible communication best practices.
Ontario Camps Association
Ontario Camps Association (OCA) membership consists of 600 members, including 120,000 camp staff and approximately, 200 non-accredited summer camps.
2017-2018: “Camps Committed to Inclusion”
Target Audience: 600+ members and 200 + non-members camps across Ontario.
Project Goals:
- Ensure that OCA’s Accredited Camp Members throughout Ontario understand and comply with the AODA Standards
- Increase compliance reporting under AODA
- Increase in the ability of Ontario camps to address and manage common issues for staff, campers, and family members with disabilities
- Develop the skills, abilities, and confidence of OCA Accredited Camp Members and Non-Member Camps to be more inclusive of all types of disabilities
- Share best practices and health and safety standards among OCA Accredited Camp Members and Non-Member Camps for improved inclusion
- Increase the number of camps in Ontario that have the training, understanding and ability to include campers with disabilities
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Project Newsletters: 8 project specific newsletters created to highlight resources, events, best practices, and support available.
- Case Studies: 8 stories researched and written to profile accessibility best practices and successes from the perspective of staff, campers, and families.
- Workshops: 14 workshops on inclusive camps practices for staff and campers.
- Webinars: 5 informational webinars detailing the obligations and deadlines for camp.
Ontario BIA Association
The Ontario BIA Association (OBIAA) is the network that represents the more than 300 BIAs in Ontario. BIAs represent a wide variety of businesses – professional and creative services, high-tech, light industrial, restaurants, entertainment, banks, hotels, daycares, nurseries, schools and colleges, automotive and construction, churches, and their customers, who are residents and vital members of the business community. Through its member BIAs, OBIAA reaches businesses in rural, northern, urban, and suburban communities all across Ontario.
2014-2015: “Go ON: Building Accessible Communities”
Target Audience: 300 Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) and their 60,000 main street business members.
Project Goals:
- Ensure OBIAA member BIAs throughout Ontario understand and comply with the AODA Standards.
- Work with individual BIAs to identify ways that they can strategically and sustainably educate local businesses about their AODA obligations, including the requirement to file an AODA report.
- Recognize accessibility leaders in the business community by launching the Ontario Mainstreet Accessibility Awards program.
- Motivate businesses to comply with AODA because they see how it is good for their business.
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Pre and post project survey: Assessment of BIA knowledge of their legislative obligations.
- Communication and Outreach: 4 project enews issues
- Workshops: 20 workshops on the business case for accessibility, the requirements of the AODA, tips and best practices.
- Webinars: 4 webinars on the following topics:
- Accessibility and the Built Environment
- How to Host Accessible Events
- An Overview of the AODA for BIAs and Businesses
- Best Practices for Accessible Tourism
- Handbook for BIAs: To assist BIA staff in continuing to support their business members with AODA compliance, a handbook was written specifically for BIA staff, with detailed information on the AODA requirements and deadlines in an easy-to-understand format. It includes tips, case studies, best practices, and answers to specific questions that were asked during the project.
- Ontario MainStreet Accessibility Award: This newly created award category engages local businesses and profile their best practices and innovative solutions. This award continues to be given at OBIAA’s Annual Conference.
2015-2016: “Accessibility Smart Businesses”
Target Audience: 300 Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) and their 60,000 main street business members.
Project Goals:
- Engage the 300 BIAs and their business members in learning more about the business benefits of hiring persons with disabilities and how to go about successfully employing people with various disabilities.
- Work with individual BIAs to identify ways that they can strategically and sustainably educate local businesses about how to remove employment barriers and increase opportunities for persons with disabilities.
- Offer accessible employment related resources, tips, case studies, etc. through an online portal that will serve as the “go-to” place for 60,000 BIA business members.
- Ensure OBIAA member BIAs and BIA staff throughout Ontario understand and comply with the Employment Standard of the AODA. Success Stories, where provided, will be added to our resources and in newsletters.
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Research and Curation: Online clearinghouse of key resources and information related to businesses hiring people with disabilities
- Employer Engagement Campaign: “Disability-Smart: Make it Your Business” campaign, including the creation of 7 customizable accessible employment information packages.
- Workshops: Three Employer Forums held.
2018- 2019: “Accessibility on Main Street”
Target Audience: 300 Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) and their 60,000 main street business members.
Project Goals:
- Clarify the obligations of businesses and BIAs under the Accessibility Standard for the Design of Public Spaces (DOPS)
- Identify the ways in which businesses and BIAs can influence the accessibility of their public spaces
- Share information about the other AODA standards that businesses and BIAs need to comply with
- Showcase real examples of how businesses in Ontario and elsewhere have made their built environments more accessible to their communities and customers
- Identify invisible barriers businesses customers may be experiencing and how to reduce/remove/prevent them
- Highlight the benefits of making their businesses accessible and the potential for increasing their customer base
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Second Story Survey: Survey of BIA members who operate a second-floor business, or own a building where a second-floor business is located, to identify their built environment challenges, best practices, and ideas on how to identify, remove, prevent, and reduce accessibility barriers as a result of being on the second floor.
- Accessibility on Main Street Handbook: Low cost, no cost ways that businesses can remove accessibility barriers and be more welcome of a wider range of customers.
- Workshops: 4 workshops to gather ideas on, and challenges to, how BIAs and businesses can influence the accessibility of their communities. Areas explored during the workshops included built environment accessibility, invisible barriers to accessibility, leveraging the benefits of accessibility, and the ways businesses and BIAs can work with their municipalities to influence greater accessibility.
- Webinars: Four webinars to share and promote the information, case studies and best practices. Webinar included local businesses, BIAs and municipality sharing their accessibility best practices and challenges:
- The Role of BIAs in Accessible Main Streets (March 28)
- Accessible Customer Service (April 11)
- The Business of Aging (April 17)
- Accessible Heritage (April 24)
2019- 2021: “Accessing Our Heritage”
Target Audience: 300 Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) and their 60,000 main street business members, heritage planners and architects, Engineerings, building inspectors, policy makers, municipal staff
Project Goals:
The goal of this project is to bring together BIAs, Municipalities, Heritage proponents and subject matter experts, as well as Accessibility proponents and their subject matter experts, to spend a day working outside of silos; to find areas of commonality and create a platform for forward thinking, where both heritage and accessibility can be fully recognized and championed.
Key project activities:
- Accessibility Advisory Committee: Recruit and work with a cross-section of community stakeholders to guide and inform the project.
- Virtual Conference: The “Accessing Our Heritage” Conference was held virtually (due to COVID) on October 20, 2021 Read the conference agenda and session descriptions.
