You Can’t Spell Inclusion Without a D

Ep. 43: The Intersection of Disability and Rural & Remote Communities

About eight million Canadians 15 and older have at least one disability. But there aren’t any statistics on exactly how many of them live in rural and remote parts of the country. Almost two-thirds of the 5,123 municipalities in Canada are consider moderately remote, more remote or most remote by Statistics Canada. In remote communities there are some distinctly different challenges compared to experiencing urban life with disability. For this discussion, we wanted perspectives from some of the most remote parts of Canada. So we picked the far northwest, and the remotest part of down east in The Maritimes. The Northwest Territories covers 1.1 million square kilometres, and much of it is remote. Down east, over 80 per cent of the province of New Brunswick is forest.                                        It’s the most rural province of the three Maritime provinces — New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island — that have coastlines on the Bay of Fundy and the Atlantic Ocean. Be sure to catch this conversation with: * Denise McKee, Executive Director of the Northwest Territories Disability Council * Shelly Petit, Chair of the New Brunswick Coalition of Persons With Disabilities   SHOW NOTES * Episode 43 transcript [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/TranscriptS7Ep43-DisabilityInRuralCommunities-15June2026.pdf] (PDF) * Government of Canada report, Age-Friendly Remote and Rural Communities: A Guide (HTML version [https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/healthy-living/friendly-rural-remote-communities-a-guide.html] | PDF version [https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/phac-aspc/migration/phac-aspc/seniors-aines/alt-formats/pdf/publications/public/healthy-sante/age_friendly_rural/AFRRC_en.pdf]) * Canadian Association of Supported Employment report by Janet Morris-Reade for ASPECT BC, Building Fair Employment Services in Rural and Remote Communities in Canada [https://www.supportedemployment.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/CASE-ASPECTBC-Building-Equitable-Employment-Services-in-Rural-and-Remote-Communities-Summary-FINAL.pdf] * Website — Northwest Territories Disability Council [https://www.nwtdc.net/] * Website — The New Brunswick Coalition of Persons With Disabilities [https://nbcpd.org/]

Ep. 42: Making Mega Sporting Events Accessible

Twenty twenty-six is a big year for big sporting events. In February, there were the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games, in Italy. Then — the geopolitical climate aside — there’s the 2026 FIFA World Cup with matches being played in Mexico, the U.S. and Canada from June 11 to 19. And then there’s the twenty-third Commonwealth Games happening in Glasgow, Scotland from July 24 to August 2. Glasgow 2026 will be the biggest sporting event of the year in the U.K. All of these events happen in numerous venues in their host cities. With thousands of athletes competing. And thousands of people attending — and working at — the events. But there’s a huge issue with mega-sporting events such as the World Cup, the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games. Accessibility. From how they’re promoted to the built environment of venues they’re held in, how accessible are these kinds of mega sporting events? And what’s the lasting social impact of making them accessible and inclusive? That’s what we’re exploring in Episode 42. And we’re doing that with two guests who are two of the most authoritative voices on sporting events accessibility in Canada. Don’t miss this engaging conversation with Brad McCannell and Jenn Bruce, PhD!   SHOW NOTES * Episode 42 transcript [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/TranscriptS7Ep42-MakingMegaSportsAccessible-15May2026.pdf] (PDF) * Read this article on The Conversation.com about how more Canadians are watching the Paralympics [https://theconversation.com/more-canadians-are-watching-the-paralympics-our-research-shows-why-that-matters-277035] * Read this article on sirc.ca by Paula Baker about the lasting social impact of inclusive creating mega-sporting events [https://sirc.ca/articles/the-lasting-social-impact-of-mega-sporting-events-creating-accessible-inclusive-legacies/] * Sporting Information Resource Centre (SIRC) website [https://sirc.ca/] * Read the new SIRC blog * Rick Hansen Foundation and becoming accessible [https://www.rickhansen.com/become-accessible]

Episode 41: Making Tourism Accessible

In the first episode of our seventh season, we’re kicking things off on a “touristy” note, with a conversation about making tourism in Canada — and globally — more accessible. Tourism is one of the most important sectors of the Canadian economy. And the global one. In Canada, it directly employs more than 700,000 people. Globally, more than 357 million people. And tourism is almost two per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Globally, it’s 10 per cent of GDP — US$10.9 trillion in 2024. Against the geopolitical backdrop in 2026, the number of people internationally making Canada a tourism destination, keeps rising. In the 2025 summer tourism season, there was record revenue for Canada’s tourism businesses. In all, $58.96 billion. Destination Canada predicts annual revenue in the tourism sector will hit $160 billion by 2029. People from all over the world are coming to see Canada — and that includes people who have a disability. Which begs these questions: * How accessible is tourism in this country? * What are best practices in making tourism, and tourist attracts and businesses, more accessible? * What are businesses and attractions in the tourism sector missing out on if they’re not accessible to both tourists and job seekers who have a disability? In Episode 41, a compelling national conversation about all this with these three guests providing their perspectives: * Jasmine Qi, Workforce Development Director at Tourism HR Canada (Ottawa, ON) * Shelley Petit, Chair of the New Brunswick Coalition of Persons With Disabilities (Fredericton, NB) * Jamie Millar-Dixon, principal consultant at MacLeod Silver HR Business Partners (Vancouver, BC)   SHOW NOTES * Episode 41 transcript [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/TranscriptS7Ep41MakingTourismAccessible-6April2026.pdf] (PDF) * Learn more about Tourism HR Canada [https://tourismhr.ca/], the New Brunswick Coalition of Persons with Disabilities [https://nbcpd.org/] and MacLeod Silver HR Business Partners [https://macleodsilver.com/] * UN Tourism, Ethics, Culture and Social Responsibility report (November 2025), Accessibility Guidelines for Tourism Businesses [https://www.e-unwto.org/doi/epdf/10.18111/9789284427130]

Ep. 40: The Intersection of Disability and Poverty — Intersectionality Series Pt. 2

In our season six closer episode, we’re delving into the intersection of Disability and poverty. Both are on the rise in Canada. The Canadian 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability showed, 27% of Canadians 15 and older have at least one disability. That’s eight million people. And that’s up 5% from the previous survey in 2017. And, 2022 and 2023 figures from Statistics Canada show, over one million people who have a disability, are Canadians with low income. And that’s even higher for people without disabilities — almost two million people. So what’s going on in this country? And does it depend on where you live in Canada? It wasn’t until 2003 that Human Resources and Development Canada introduced what’s called, the Market Basket Measure (MBM). It’s basically calculated by adding up the cost of one basket of goods and services that a family of four needs for a basic standard of living…and establishing how much income they need for that one basket. But disability advocates say the MBM leaves out a big thing — additional costs, such as mobility aids, that people who have a disability, have every year. They’ve given the federal government a failing “F”  when it comes to addressing the issues involved in the intersection of disability and poverty. Find out why…what needs to change…..and what motivates our two guests to advocate for change…in this compelling conversation with: * Rabia Khedr, National Director of Disability Without Poverty * Fabio Crespin, Senior Manager of Inclusive Employment at United Way Greater Toronto SHOW NOTES * Episode 40 transcript [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/TranscriptEp40DisabilityPoverty-24Nov2025.pdf] (PDF) * Disability Without Poverty website [https://www.disabilitywithoutpoverty.ca/en] * Disability Without Poverty’s 2024 Report Card [https://www.disabilitywithoutpoverty.ca/sites/default/files/2024-12/FINAL-Disability-Poverty-Report-Card-English_compressed.pdf] * Statistics Canada — Poverty and low-income statistics by disability status [https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1110009001] * Statistics Canada — A demographic, employment and income profile of persons with disabilities [https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2024/statcan/89-654-x/89-654-x2024001-eng.pdf] aged 15 years and over in Canada, 2022

Episode 39: The Intersection of Disability, Blackness and Gender — Intersectionality Series Pt. 1

Again this year, we’re delving into disability and intersectionality to close out the show for our 2025 season. It’s a broad topic — there are many directions to approach it from. In part one of our two-part season ending series, we’re exploring the intersection of disability, Blackness and gender. It’s a convergence that makes for a compelling conversation. One published report said, “little is known about the experiences of Black Canadians with disabilities who will experience disparities in education, employment and entrepreneurship based on the intersection of anti-Black racism and ableism.”   Then there’s their experiences within the Black community itself.   When you role all of these things together, what are the main challenges, or barriers to inclusion, faced by Black Canadians who have a disability? And how significant is the gender aspect in all of that? How much does access to employment supports depend on whether you’re a Black man, or a Black woman, who has a disability? And how much does history and colonialism play in all of this? What needs to change? These are just some of the questions we explore with our guest Ingrid Palmer. Ingrid is a passionate human rights advocate, an inspirational speaker on diversity, equity and inclusion, and the Principal IDEAL (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility Leading to belonging) Advocate for Realize Canada. Catch this compelling conversation with Ingrid!   SHOW NOTES * Episode 39 transcript [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/TranscriptEp39BlacknessDisabilityGender-27October2025.pdf] (PDF) * Realize Canada website [https://realizecanada.org/] * Ingrid Palmer’s speaker website [https://ingridpalmer.ca/] * Report — The Intersection of Blackness and Disability in Canada: A Brief Overview and a Call to Action [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Black-Canadians_Disability25.06.20-1.pdf] * Prioritizing Black Canadians with Disabilities in Bill C-22, Canada Disability Benefit Act — Submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology [https://www.odenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Brief-submitted-by-Ase-Community-Foundation.pdf]