Accessibility Awareness Week

Did you know over 22% of the NWT population is living with a disability? Disability is a dynamic lived experience of restricted or limited participation in life that results from the interaction of an individual’s bodily impairment and their physical and social environment.

Did you know 7% of Canadians self-identify as living with a mental health related disability? In the Northwest Territories only 59% of residents identify as having good or excellent mental health compared to the national average of 69%

The NWT Disabilities Council celebrated its 40th Anniversary in 2018. The 1978 the Council began as a group of parents of persons with disabilities who were advocating for opportunities to accessible recreation in Yellowknife. Since then, the Council has grown to an NGO with over 700 registered members with employees in every region of the territory supporting persons with disabilities across the lifespan.

In 2015 the NWT Disabilities Council completed a services survey that asked people with disabilities and caregivers their perspectives on their quality of life and their access to employment, education, recreation, and community. In this survey 26% of participants identified that they had felt they had lost employment opportunities due to disability stigma and employer discrimination. In Canada the employment rate of Canadians with disabilities was 49% compared to 79% for Canadians without disabilities.

Every year over 900 NWT residents are registered accessible parking permit users.

Below is our 2021 Persons with Disabilities’ Accessability and Inclusion Awards