BCANDS' 2021

Indigenous Disability and Wellness Gathering

The Gathering

The 2021 Gathering will be held in Victoria, BC and on the ancestral lands of the Lekwungen People. We will be celebrating BCANDS' 30th anniversary and the 7th anniversary of Indigenous Disability Awareness Month (IDAM) being recognized and proclaimed.

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The Gathering brings together Indigenous and non-Indigenous governments, leadership, service providers, community members and others to learn, connect, and collaborate in addressing the unique barriers Indigenous peoples with disabilities face. We will continue to take the necessary steps forward in dismantling both historical and current barriers, and the attitudes and perceptions that negatively impact Indigenous peoples living with disabilities. By forming new and expanded partnerships, we can collaborate and identify the best practices for the broader disability and health sectors.

Together, we will help shape a Canada that is inclusive and responsive to the needs of all peoples and abilities.

Indigenous persons living with a disability often face many unique jurisdictional barriers, restrictive policies, and discrimination when seeking necessary supports for their specific disability-related needs. These factors, and others, contribute to the exclusion and the lack of recognition of Indigenous persons living with a disability as equal members in our society. This population continues to be marginalized, and COVID-19 further amplified these conditions.

Statistics Canada notes that the frequency of disabilities among Indigenous persons is higher than the national average, which is conservatively estimated at 30%. Other research suggests the overall disability rates for Indigenous peoples in Canada is up to three times higher than the national rate within some age groups. It is also known that the prevalence of disabilities and the likelihood of becoming disabled for Indigenous women in impoverished populations, significantly increases. In 2016, Statistics Canada also stated that 4 out of 5 First Nation communities have a median income below the poverty line.

BENEFITS OF ATTENDING THE 2021 GATHERING

• Learn about the latest news and initiatives relating to Indigenous disability and wellness in Canada;

• Participate in the 7th anniversary Indigenous Disability Awareness Month;

• Learn from Indigenous and non-Indigenous leadership, service providers, advocates, governments about the barriers, priorities, and opportunities relevant to your organization and / or community;

• Interact with Gathering Speakers, Delegates, Colleagues and Vendors in the Indigenous disability sector from across Canada;

• Experience on-site disability and health information and resources at the numerous Vendor tables;

• Enjoy a welcome Gathering bag with information and swag, three hot breakfasts, three hot lunches, beverage breaks, daily door prizes and more;

• Enjoy the Tuesday evening Mix & Mingle Social, including traditional dance;

• Attend the presentation of the BCANDS 2021 National Indigenous Partnership Award; and

• Enjoy the numerous attractions beautiful Victoria has to offer

Speakers

The Honourable Carla Qualtrough - tentative

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Carla Qualtrough is the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion. Previously Minister Qualtrough was the Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Accessibility, and prior to that was the Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities. Prior to her career in politics, Carla was successful lawyer, dedicated volunteer, and Paralympic swimmer. Committed to equity and inclusion, Carla has practiced human rights law at the federal and provincial levels. She chaired the Minister’s Council on Employment and Accessibility in British Columbia, and was an adjudicator with the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Tribunal.

Carla has been visually impaired since birth. Passionate about the power of sport and physical activity to change lives, Carla has volunteered locally, nationally, and internationally, including with the International Paralympic Committee and for the Toronto 2015 Pan and Parapan American Games. She has been President of the Canadian Paralympic Committee and Chair of the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada. Carla was on the Board of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport, and was Vice-Chair of the Delta Gymnastics Society. As an athlete, Carla won three Paralympic and four World Championship medals. Carla has degrees in political science from the University of Ottawa and law from the University of Victoria. Among many awards for her work, she has been named one of Canada’s Most Influential Women in Sport six times, received a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 and was the 2017 recipient of the BCANDS National Indigenous Partnership Award.

Steven Estey

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Steven Estey is a former Human Rights Officer at Disabled Peoples' International, a Canadian based non-government organization that works globally to advance the human rights of persons with disabilities. Steven is currently under contract with BCANDS as the Lead Consultant in the Society's work domestically and internationally on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

For more than 25 year Steven has worked with disabled peoples' organizations, human rights institutions, governments, intergovernmental organizations and United Nations agencies to advance disability rights. Steven has extensive experience in the areas of government relations, international cooperation, economic development, human rights and disability.

Erin Christensen

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Erin Christensen is the British Columbia Aboriginal Network on Disability Society's (BCANDS) Accessibility Lead. Erin has engaged and coordinated with First Nation leadership, organizations, and community membership across Canada around accessibility issues and the Accessible Canada Act. Erin is also the lead in annually promoting and raising awareness of National Indigenous AccessAbility Week across Canada. 

#Gathering2021

Sponsors

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Register for the Gathering as a Delegate or Vendor