My role
Area of focus
Project Coordinator
Research Assistant
David Pereyra
Inclusive Design
Accessibility
Co-creation
The project.
The Business Innovation Guide for Inclusion Design and Accessibility (BIG IDeA) was a research project that brings together businesses, customers with lived experience of disability and designers to collaboratively advance accessibility innovation in Ontario and create a culture of accessibility and inclusion. The project is funded by An Enabling Change Project with the Government of Ontario and we operate out of the Inclusive Design Research Centre (IDRC), housed at OCAD University.
We were:
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Collecting inclusion barriers and hosting design challenges to create inclusive alternatives
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Mapping accessibility of Ontario in our BIG IDeA mapathon
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Recognizing accessible businesses through customer reviews, showcases and badges
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Providing resources, training and help on inclusion and AODA compliance
What I did.
My role was wide-reaching. I assessed local businesses' accessibility practices. I then reworked this data into accessibility challenges for participants to solve at our Inclusive Design Challenges. These events were workshops for people of all abilities to come together to design inclusive and equitable solutions. In addition to planning and setting up these events, I was also responsible for facilitation. This included giving keynote speeches, ensuring participants were collaborating and making sure the event was on schedule.
For the other events we held, which are often promotional in nature, I was responsible for scouting and booking locations, engaging local businesses, and promoting the project.
I was also the liaison between my team and external partners. We collaborated with local city groups so we could get businesses to assess their accessibility practices and send challenges to the project so we could develop solutions during events.
