Inclusion Canada’s Inclusion Matters July 2024 Newsletter

July 30, 2024

Inclusion Canada’s national and international work through our monthly Inclusion Matters newsletter.

July 2024

Inclusion Matters

July 2024

Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) Update

On June 28, the federal government released the draft CDB regulations. The public now has until September 23 to provide their feedback. Inclusion Canada is actively analyzing the draft version and will be submitting our feedback. These regulations are the rules that will be implemented regarding who can qualify for the benefit, what the application process looks like, and other important eligibility requirements. There is much we disagree with.

You can read the regulations here. >

In the coming weeks, we will be providing some useful tips on how you can submit your own feedback. In the meantime, the most helpful thing you can do is contact your provincial or territorial government and tell them not to reduce or clawback the benefit from existing provincial/territorial government disability supports.

Our friends at Maytree have developed an excellent tool with lots of resources you can access to help you advocate, including draft template letters you can use to send to your provincial/territorial governments.

Access the tool here. >

Meaningful Participation: What it is, and who it’s for

Last fall, Inclusion Canada’s Senior Policy Analyst, Rachel Mills, hosted a series of conversations with people with intellectual disabilities and their families about how the government of Canada can make their communication more accessible. The resulting conversations were fruitful and provided important insight into what meaningful participation looks like for someone with an intellectual disability and/or their family members.

In this blog post, we explore the topics discussed during these conversations and offer some lessons that can help break down communication barriers.

Read the full post here. >

Ready, Willing & Able Success Stories – Meet Donna: The Cashier Inspiring Change at Red River Co-Op

Red River Co-Op is one of the many companies that has partnered with our employment initiative, Ready, Willing and Able (RWA), to maximize the inclusion of people with an intellectual disability and/or on the autism spectrum in Canada’s labour force.

Donna works as a cashier at Red River Co-Op’s new Southdale location in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She quickly became one of their most reliable cashiers, known for her accuracy and friendly demeanour.

Donna is one of five people profiled in RWA’s latest success stories series, now available on their website.

Read Donna’s full story here. >

Inclusion Canada in Action

For the April-June quarter, RWA generated 253 jobs for job seekers with an intellectual disability or autism. This represents the highest quarterly total ever!

Three new resources were added to The Inclusive Workplace website:
The Employer Journey: Building your Path to Inclusive Employment
Building Workplace Safety through Inclusive Employment
Explore Self Employment Careers: Three Part Course for Self-Advocates

On July 11, RWA National Coordinator Sinthea Chowdhury, representing Inclusion Canada, joined Minister Kamal Khera in Toronto for the launch of the national employment strategy for people with disabilities in Canada.

Inclusion Canada met with the Senate of Canada’s Accessibility Staff about their 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan. We offered feedback about their first progress report, and we provided practical ways to make their plain language materials easier to understand and use.

What are the Sustainable Development Goals and what do they have to do with Disability in Canada?

More than 20 years ago, the United Nations brought together leaders from 189 countries. They decided to work together to tackle difficult issues, such as poverty and hunger. They set progress goals to accomplish by 2015. When 2015 came around and more work was necessary, they created the Sustainable Development Goals which would be worked towards and re-assessed in 2030.

Disability is mentioned 11 times in the Goals. As the 2030 deadline approaches, Inclusion Canada has revisited these goals and offered recommendations for future work, as well as explored the impact of these goals on people with an intellectual disability and their families.

Click here to read more. >

Partial Day Attendance in Canadian Schools: and Inclusive Education Canada Survey

Inclusive Education Canada is conducting a survey on partial day school attendance and the experience of parents with this practice.

The survey is still open for another few weeks and is an opportunity to provide us with your experiences. We are looking to have every region of the country represented in this survey. If you live in Newfoundland and Labrador or Nunavut, we’d particularly love to have you included in our data.

If you and your child have encountered partial day school attendance, we would really appreciate a few minutes of your time to provide your feedback.

Click here to access the survey. >

Upcoming Dates & Events

August 5 – Civic Holiday (Inclusion Canada offices closed)

BC Provincial Election 2026

Self Advocate here is a page on about bc provincial election 2026 what need to know to go out vote se

A New Five Year Blueprint for Change on Home Sharing

Self Advocates Attention on Home Share Changes Highlighting this for Self Advocates that basing it on in the plan Throughout this work, self-advocates consistently described what matters most: • “People make sure I’m okay and that my home is safe.” • “People notice what’s not working and fix it so I can do well.” • “If something goes wrong, someone will look into it quickly and it gets fixed.” • “The people who work with me have the skills to

Community Living Month Oct 2026

October 2026 has been proclaimed Community Inclusion Month in British Columbia, recognizing the importance of building communities where everyone has the opportunity to belong, participate, and thrive. The proclamation is an important statement of what an inclusive province should look like: a place where everyone has opportunity, choice and control in their own lives, and where people with disabilities are welcomed as full and valued members of their communities. But a proclamation is only the beginning. The real work of

National Disability AI and Enabling Technology Virtual Summit 2026

1. Smart Homes for Independence Alexa Brill & Kathy Brill Self-Advocacy Ever wonder how people with significant disabilities can live independently? Hear from Alexa Brill and her Mom, Kathy Brill, on how Alexa uses smart home and other assistive technology to help her live independently in her own home. Also, learn how problems and barriers discovered along the way can be solved, and how her parents helped her achieve this independence. Alexa Brill Bio: Alexa Brill graduated with a Bachelor’s