Universities Canada is a membership organization that provides a voice for Canadian universities at home and abroad. The website of Universities Canada features a range of equity, diversity, and inclusion resources. On an annual basis, Universities Canada sponsors the Innovative Designs for Accessibility IDeA competition. Students are invited to submit innovative designs for making communities more accessible for people with disabilities in one of the following accessibility barriers categories.

• Category One: Attitudinal/System Barriers

• Category Two: Architectural/Industrial Design Barriers

• Category Three: Technological/Communications Barriers

• Category Four: Virtual Learning and Distance Education

Some of the winning proposals included;

• innovative labeling system that assists people with visual challenges to manage their clothes more independently

• novel assistive dressing device

• swing door shelter that offers vehicle users protection from the elements

• device to help drivers who are hearing-impaired detect emergency vehicles.

To learn more about Universities Canada, click here

To read about the innovative designs of the winners of the 2021 IDeA competition, click here.