Celebrate International Day of Persons with Disabilities

Published on
November 23, 2023
Arts, heritage and events
Home and community

Join the City of Ottawa for a virtual event on Thursday, November 30 from 10 to 11:30 am to celebrate International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

This year’s keynote speaker is Professor Jay Dolmage, author and founding editor of the Canadian Journal of Disability Studies. He will be discussing the United Nations theme this year, “Sustainable Development Goals for, with and by persons with disabilities,” and the topic of bias awareness, specifically how it relates to persons with disabilities.

The event will feature several other speakers. Mayor Mark Sutcliffe will provide remarks and proclaim December 3 International Day of Persons with Disabilities in Ottawa. Alta Vista Councillor, and Councillor liaison for the Accessibility Advisory Committee, Marty Carr, will speak about the Committee’s mandate and Accessibility Advisory Committee Chair, Vania Karam and Vice Chair, Holly Ellingwood will speak to the new Committee’s work this term.

The United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities will take place on Sunday, December 3. The observance of this day is celebrated worldwide through recognition events hosted by municipalities, organizations, agencies and others who play a vital role in identifying and eliminating discrimination, marginalization, exclusion and barriers that people with disabilities face.

Please register for this virtual event online by 4 pm on Wednesday, November 29.

To promote the inclusion of all participants, the following supports are in place for the event:

  • American Sign Language (ASL)
  • Langue des signes québécoise (LSQ)
  • Continuous real-time captioning in English and French
  • Simultaneous French translation

When registering, please let us know if you require any additional disability-related accommodations to participate.

For more information on City programs and services, visit ottawa.ca, call 3-1-1 (TTY: 613-580-2401) or 613-580-2400 to contact the City using Canada Video Relay Service. You can also connect with us through FacebookX (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.