having a global impact on inclusion

Internationally there are 650 million people with disabilities in the world. Too often people with intellectual disabilities and their families have a shared and common experience of poverty and isolation.

We know that:

It's estimated that 80% of people with disabilities are living in developing countries
The World Bank estimates that people with disabilities make up as many as 1 in 5 of the poorest of the poor.
Inclusion International estimates that 26 million people with an intellectual disability live on less than $1 a day

Collective action and response is required to ensure that people with disabilities around the world are included. The Government of Canada, the disability community, the international development community and civil society all have a role in combating exclusion and poverty of people with disabilities. Inclusive development practices and the new UN Convention provide potential tools for making change.

In order to address this issue CACL is working to achieve the following objective:

Canada has a major global impact on advancing human rights, enabling inclusion and securing full citizenship for persons with intellectual disabilities and their families around the world.

This objective will be achieved when:

Canada plays a leadership role as a model citizen internationally for its approach to disability and inclusion.
Canada's international policy incorporates a lens on disability and includes specific measures to advance inclusion of people with disabilities internationally.
Canada has achieved Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for people with intellectual disabilities in Canada and been a leader in investing in their achievement internationally.
Canada ratifies and implements the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

CACL has launched a public dialogue to engage Canadians in thinking through how we can work together on this issue. Join us in an on-line conversation on:

In 2008, what global realities are people with intellectual disabilities and their families facing in regards to poverty, development and exclusion?
Why is this the case? What factors are shaping this reality?
What needs to be done to have a global impact on inclusion? What is the role of the Government of Canada? What is the role of civil society, the disability community and the development community?

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Toronto: March 27, 2008

On March 27, 2008 the Canadian Association for Community Living hosted a public dialogue on international issues and intellectual disability in partnership with Community Living Ontario and the Ontario Council for International Cooperation.

Moderated by Sally Armstrong – a prominent author and international human rights activist – this dialogue was titled ‘Can Canada have a global impact on inclusion?’ and offered an opportunity for open discussion on how Canada can play a role in promoting the inclusion of people who have an intellectual disability internationally.

CACL's Anna MacQuarrie spoke about the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and how it can be used as an advocacy tool at home and abroad.

» Download notes from Toronto's Global Issues Dialogue