About The Accessibility Exchange

This website is designed to help you find out more about
The Accessibility Exchange - a new platform that will connect people
with disabilities to federally regulated entities to work on accessibility plans.

This website is designed to help you find out more about The Accessibility Exchange. We have provided you with resources and blogs that give you more information about the benefits of joining us. The Accessibility Exchange will officially launch in late 2023. We hope to see you on the platform.

The Accessibility Exchange is an online platform that brings people together to build strong and effective accessibility plans. Diverse people with disabilities and Deaf people can assist federally regulated organizations in complying with the Accessible Canada Act.

The Accessibility Exchange hosts:

  • people ready and willing to work on plans and projects to help identify and remove barriers to access and inclusion
    • people with disabilities
    • Deaf people
    • people from community organizations
  • regulated organizations that want to complete plans and projects to improve accessibility as required by the Accessible Canada Act
  • resources, tools and training to help regulated organizations, people with disabilities and Deaf people work together on accessibility plans

The Accessibility Exchange connects regulated organizations to people with disabilities and Deaf people who might be hard to reach living in communities, such as:

  • Northern
  • Rural
  • Remote
  • Indigenous
  • Racialized
  • Migrant
  • 2SLGBTQI+

IRIS – Institute for Research and Development on Inclusion and Society – manages this project with the guidance of the Steering Committee, which includes:

  • British Columbia Aboriginal Network on Disability Society
  • Canadian Association of the Deaf - Association des sourds du Canada
  • Canadian Council of Rehabilitation and Work - Le Conseil Canadien de la Réadaptation et du Travail
  • Canadian Hard of Hearing Association - Association des malentendants canadiens
  • Council of Canadians with Disabilities - Conseil des canadiens avec déficiences
  • DisAbled Women’s Network Canada - Réseau d'action des femmes handicapées du Canada
  • Inclusion Canada
  • Realize - réalise
  • Spinal Cord Injury Canada - Lésions médullaires Canada

Many people have contributed to the project, including people from disability and Deaf communities, staff from regulated organizations and technical and legal experts.

The Inclusive Design Research Centre at OCAD University leads the design process and the website build.