U of A community working toward better accessibility and inclusion

This National AccessAbility Week (May 29 to June 4), we recognize University of Alberta researchers, teachers, learners and community members who are combatting ableism and removing barriers to accessibility. We also acknowledge the road ahead to become a more disability-inclusive university.

If you are in need of accessibility related support or information, the university offers resources including the Academic Success Centre which helps coordinate students’ disability-related accommodation needs for participation in university programs.

Here are eight ways U of A researchers, teachers, learners and community members are striving to create a future accessible to all:

• Children with severe mobility issues could control toys or even power wheelchairs with their minds using a device developed by a team out of the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine.  
  

• STEM communities might better address inequality and barriers faced by researchers with disabilities, says Faculty of Science graduate student.
  

• Meet Danielle Peers, a former Paralympian and professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation who works in the multi-disciplinary field of critical disability studies examining participation in parasport.
  

• An Engineering graduate student is using his research on wheelchair biomechanics to help create a more accessible world.
  

• Aspiring para-rower and Steadward Centre youth coordinator helps others with disabilities navigate the world of sport and activity.
  

• When designing spaces for people living with disabilities, there’s more to consider than whether they are physically accessible, says ALES human ecology researcher.
  

• From exclusion to inclusion: Arts professor Joshua St. Pierre challenges the disability narrative. 

• Faculty of Education professors and alumni share five strategies to foster inclusion and help you broaden your community.