Developing CIHR's action plan on accessibility and systemic ableism: Progress and next steps
Message from the co-chairs of the CIHR External Advisory Committee on Accessibility and Systemic Ableism

Development of the CIHR Accessibility Plan

In alignment with the requirements of the Accessible Canada Act (2019), we are pleased to announce that CIHR's Accessibility Plan will be published by the end of December 2022. The Accessibility Plan identifies barriers to accessibility in CIHR's funding policies, programs, and services; and proposes actions to prevent and remove these barriers. The identification of barriers to accessibility is informed by a review of policies and practices at CIHR; an environmental scan of peer-reviewed and non-academic literature (e.g., commentaries, personal blogs, social media posts); and community engagement activities.

We would like to extend our sincere appreciation to members of the CIHR External Advisory Committee on Accessibility and Systemic Ableism for their dedication, commitment, and exceptional guidance on co-developing the CIHR Accessibility Plan. We would also like to thank members of the health research community who participated in our public consultations earlier this year, including the virtual discussion sessions with persons with disabilities.

Next Steps

Developing the CIHR Accessibility Plan is an important first step towards improving accessibility and eliminating systemic ableism in Canada's health research funding system. We recognize that we have much more to do and there are many perspectives we would like to learn from. As such, CIHR will develop an expanded, more in-depth Accessibility and Systemic Ableism Action Plan next year, informed by continued consultations with the research community. The development of this second plan will include actions to influence the broader health research system.

How you can contribute

Consultations with the community are ongoing and will continue into winter 2023. We welcome further contributions to this work by completing our survey on ableism and barriers to accessibility. We also invite other research funding organizations who have participated and led similar public dialogues on systemic ableism and accessibility to collaborate with us. Please contact edi@cihr-irsc.gc.ca and let us know if there are opportunities where we can learn from and/or support your activities, as a way for us to move forward together in addressing systemic ableism and barriers to accessibility in the health research funding system.

We look forward to keeping you informed on our progress.

Sincerely,

Dr. Tammy Clifford
CIHR Vice-President, Research – Learning Health Systems
CIHR Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Champion

Dr. Mahadeo Sukhai
CNIB Vice-President, Research & International Affairs
CNIB Chief Accessibility Officer

Date modified:

2022-12-05