FEATURED ARTICLE
A Canadian Innovation for Universal Design by Rebecca Blissett
Rebecca Blissett is a writer for the Rick Hansen Foundation, a Canadian-based non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with disabilities by creating an accessible and inclusive world. Rebecca has been a storyteller through using the written word and photographs her entire adult life. Her experience in journalism gave her a deep appreciation for telling untold stories, particularly when it comes to people with disabilities.
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ravellers love Vancouver International Airport (YVR) for its cascading waterfalls, open spaces, and First Nations totem poles. Rarely do they say they love it because it’s accessible, but that’s only because its thoughtful design elements are seamlessly integrated. In December 2019, prior to tight travel restrictions brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, the airport had a record year welcoming over 26 million passengers through the doors. In order to maintain their reputation as one of the best airports in North America, it conducted exit surveys – a tool that measures traveller satisfaction for performance insights. The surveys revealed that people with disabilities
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ranked their experience at YVR as being 'great' but were often unable to pinpoint why. “And that’s the perfect answer,” said Brad McCannell, Vice President of Access and Inclusion at Canada’s Rick Hansen Foundation. “Because if you don’t know why, it’s because you weren’t segregated. Your whole airport experience was normalized. You moved through the airport along with everyone else. It was ‘great’ because, as a person with disability, you were included.” In 2018, YVR became the first airport in Canada to achieve a Gold rating through the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certification™ (RHFAC) program, an innovative rating system that measures the holistic level of meaningful accessibility for people of varying disabilities affecting their mobility, vision and hearing. In Canada, building codes often differ between provinces and territories. A consistent national benchmark is a much-needed and welcome measurement. The Rick Hansen Foundation (RHF) launched RHFAC in 2017 with extensive input from the disability community and professionals in the built environment. The program trains industry
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