Accessibility plans matter. But a plan sitting on a website doesn’t remove a barrier.
The real change happens when accessibility starts showing up in the everyday life of a community: at the beach, in a municipal building, during a job interview, on a website, or in the decisions being made around a council table. Across Nova Scotia, municipalities are finding different ways to turn accessibility commitments into action.
In Inverness County, on Cape Breton Island, that action can be seen at the beach. The Inverness Development Association partnered with the Inverness County Accessibility Committee to improve access to Inverness Beach. Today, the municipality describes it as one of the most accessible beaches in Atlantic Canada.
And that isn’t the only local example. In Chéticamp, community-based transportation organization L’Acabie provides accessible and affordable transportation. At Lake O’Law Provincial Park, an accessible fishing dock provides access to fishing platforms, a picnic area, parking and an accessible washroom.
These changes make a difference to something pretty fundamental: whether people can participate in the places and activities that are part of community life. Travel to the other end of Nova Scotia and accessibility looks a little different.
The Municipality of the District of Yarmouth has completed accessibility audits of municipal buildings and started making improvements based on what it found. Instead of treating the audit as a one-time exercise, identified improvements are being incorporated into longer-term capital planning.
Yarmouth has also been working on less visible barriers. Microphones have been added at customer service counters. Accessibility considerations have been incorporated into information going to Council. Accommodation language has been added to job postings. Staff have received learning on plain language and digital accessibility.
None of those actions alone makes a municipality fully accessible. Together, though, they start changing how a municipality works.
There is another lesson in the Truro-Colchester region. The Town of Truro, Municipality of Colchester, Village of Bible Hill, Town of Stewiacke and Village of Tatamagouche have chosen to work together on accessibility.
Their Regional Accessibility Advisory Committee brings municipal representatives together with community members, with at least half of the community representatives being people with disabilities or representatives of disability organizations.
For smaller municipalities, collaboration can make accessibility work much more manageable. Communities can share knowledge, resources and ideas instead of each trying to figure everything out independently.
These examples also remind us that accessibility doesn’t have one starting point. It might start with a beach, an audit, a microphone, hiring process, or a conversation with residents who experience barriers.
The important part is moving from intention to action, learning from what happens, and continuing to improve. You don’t have to make everything accessible at once. Start somewhere. Listen. Make a change. Learn from it. Then make the next thing you do more accessible than the last. Ready to move from intention to action?
Join our free Leading Change for Accessibility cohort this October. You’ll explore practical ways to build accessibility into your organization, identify where to focus, and take realistic next steps toward meaningful change. Learn more and register.