The Event

#a11yTO is excited to announce we are bringing back #a11yIRL, or Accessibility in Real Life, Conference, a one-day event focused specifically on the built environment.

Hosted at Telus in downtown Toronto, #a11yTO brings together hundreds of attendees for single track conferences made up of a playlist of lectures, demos, and lightning talks.

Mark October 21, 2020 on your calendar as the day to build your knowledge, build your network, and join a community of people building Accessibility In Real Life.

Come join accessibility professionals, advocates, and people new to accessibility as we discuss case studies, trends and ongoing issues in accessibility.

What is “IRL”?

Joining us from the digital side? Not sure what gets covered in a conference dedicated to accessibility in the built environment? Here are some examples of what people talk about in accessibility offline, or “in real life”:

• Universal design and inclusive design
• Industrial design
• Signage and wayfinding strategies in the built form
• Co-design and hackathons
• Working with advisory groups and stakeholder partners
• Conducting accessible meetings and consultations
• Inclusion and representation 
• Designing buildings, interiors, and landscapes 
• Planning communities 
• Play spaces and recreational opportunities
• Accessible housing, ageing-in-place, and adaptability 
• Integrating new advancements such as beacons and smart technologies
• Inclusive placemaking
• Accessibility as part of sustainability, resilience, and green initiatives
• Ensuring accessible end products through project management, procurement and specifications 
• Anticipating the needs of ageing population 
• Designing for people who are Deaf/deaf/Hard of Hearing 
• Designing for neurodiversity
• Changes to legislation, codes, guidelines and standards
• The impact of the Accessible Canada Act. 

... and more. You can expect to meet people from a wide range of backgrounds:

• Architecture,
• Landscape architecture,
• Interior design,
• Industrial design,
• Project management,
• Facility management,
• Municipal governance,
• Planning,
• Real estate development,
• Healthcare,
• Education,
• Research,
• Tech,
• Community and city building,
• Disability rights and advocacy,
• Housing,
• Placemaking and other city builders,
• Our friends from the digital side,

... and people from other fields who care about and want to learn about accessibility.