Accessibility as a Core Design and Governance Principle

Led by Sean Lee, this session will draw on the experiences of Luke Anderson, Eliza Chandler, and Yvonne Felix, who have influenced the fields of design, disability advocacy, arts practice, and the built environment. Each panellist brings a unique perspective on access and disability culture, while sharing a commitment to embedding access into the decisions and relationships that shape how a space is imagined and experienced by the communities they serve.

Together, they will explore practical approaches to embedding accessibility into governance, planning, design and day-to-day operations. Participants come away with concrete ideas for applying these principles within their own organizations–not as an add-on, but as something that shapes the decisions, relationships, and structures that define a space.

The event will be supported through ASL interpreters.

About the Presenters

Sean Lee – Facilitator

Sean Lee (he/they) is an artist and curator exploring the assertion of disability art as the last avant-garde. Orienting towards a “crip horizon”, his practice explores the transformative possibilities of access aesthetics as an embodied politic that can desire the ways disability disrupts.

Sean holds a B.A. in Arts Management and Studio from the UTSC and is Director of Programming at Tangled Art + Disability. He currently serves on the board of the Toronto Arts Council (TAC) and CARFAC Ontario, and is Chair of TAC’s Visual and Media Arts Committee.

Luke Anderson – Panellist

After sustaining a spinal cord injury in 2002, Luke Anderson experienced firsthand the barriers faced by wheelchair users. He co-founded StopGap Foundation to raise awareness about accessibility and inclusion. Through education, community partnerships, and iconic brightly painted ramps in 60+ communities, StopGap inspires barrier removal and policy change. Luke is a professional engineer, co-chair of the Accelerating Accessibility Coalition, and a recipient of the Governor General’s Meritorious Service Medal.

Eliza Chandler – Panellist

Eliza Chandler (she/her) is an Associate Professor in the School of Disability Studies and the Executive Director of the Office of Social Innovation at Toronto Metropolitan University whose work is grounded in disability arts. As a scholar, curator, and organizer, she explores how disability arts reshape cultural spaces through critical access, disability justice, and disability-led creative practice. Eliza’s work highlights disability arts as a vital site of political, aesthetic, and world-making knowledge.

Yvonne Felix – Panellist

Yvonne Felix is the Executive Director of Centre[3] for Artistic + Social Practice (transitioning to Centre[4] Arts), a disability-led contemporary arts organization in Hamilton, Ontario. She is an accessibility consultant, multidisciplinary artist, and nonprofit executive with more than 20 years of experience advancing accessibility, disability culture, inclusive design, and community engagement.

Drawing from her lived experience with vision loss, Yvonne works at the intersection of contemporary art, technology, research, and accessibility. She collaborates with artists, researchers, community organizations, and public partners to develop innovative approaches that increase participation and remove barriers in the arts. Her work focuses on disability-led leadership, inclusive cultural spaces, and the role of accessibility as a driver of creativity and innovation.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Department of Canadian Heritage.