Rick Hansen Foundation

06/06/2026

As National AccessAbility Week comes to a close, we continue reflecting on conversations with leaders from across the accessibility community, including those with lived experience, and what it means to advance accessibility. From fostering a sense of belonging to thinking through an accessibility lens, their answers offer powerful insights into the progress we’ve made and the work still ahead.

▶ Watch the video and join the conversation!

06/05/2026

This National AccessAbility Week, one question still matters: How do we move accessibility forward – together?

We invited leaders, including those with lived experience, to share their perspectives, and their answers are as relevant today as ever.

Their insights remind us progress is happening, but barriers still exist in the spaces where we live, work, and gather.

Play the video and share your thoughts!

06/05/2026

When Michelle was a teenager, she remembers seeing Rick Hansen during the Man In Motion World Tour and knew what he was doing mattered.

That movement helped change how people across Canada thought about disability, and that work continues today.

This National AccessAbility Week, you can carry that momentum forward. Your gift helps build a Canada where accessibility, inclusion and belonging are part of everyday life.

Donate today at RickHansen.com/Donate and help create a future Michelle knows is possible.

06/04/2026

The Rick Hansen Foundation is proud to be part of a collective effort advancing disability inclusion in Canada. As a member of the National Disability Network (NDN), we are working alongside partners to advocate for five key recommendations in the next federal budget, focused on stronger rights, improved financial supports, accessible communities, and inclusive policies. The National Disability Network’s Disability Agenda aims to guide federal priorities by calling for:

1. Make the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) law in Canada.
2. Provide simpler, more equitable access to disability benefits.
3. A government-wide approach to disability inclusion.
4. Sustaining and strengthening the Canada Disability Benefit.
5. Accessible housing and infrastructure and increased employment supports.

While meaningful progress has been made, systemic barriers persist and our continued action is needed to build a more accessible and inclusive Canada.

👉 EN: Learn more: https://nationaldisabilitynetwork.ca/ -0
👉 FR : En savoir plus : https://nationaldisabilitynetwork.ca/programme-en-faveur-des-personnes-en-situation-de-handicap

06/04/2026

What better moment to announce the 2026 Difference Makers of the Year Award recipients than during National AccessAbility Week! 🎉

Each year, we celebrate youth who are creating meaningful change in their schools and communities through accessibility and disability equity. This year’s recipients are advancing access in incredible ways – from making astronomy more inclusive for people with vision disabilities, to creating a practical toolkit for more accessible schools, to designing low-cost custom assistive devices through 3D printing.

👏These projects are helping remove barriers, raise awareness and build a more inclusive future for everyone.

Learn more about this year’s recipients and the incredible impact they’re making in our blog: https://www.rickhansen.com/news-stories/blog/announcing-recipients-2026-rhfsp-difference-maker-year-awards

06/04/2026

Today, World Day for Assistive Technology, we celebrate innovation and the people whose lives are changed by it.

From AI tools that describe the world around us to eye gaze technology that supports communication, innovation is helping people learn, work, connect, and participate more fully in everyday life.

But innovation alone is not enough. Access matters too.

As we recognize World Day for Assistive Technology, we celebrate the tools that are opening doors, as well as the ongoing work to ensure everyone can benefit from them.

Read our latest blog: https://www.rickhansen.com/news-stories/blog/more-device-how-assistive-technology-expands-possibilities

Because when barriers are removed, possibilities grow.

Imagine waking up tomorrow and not being able to read a sign, hear an announcement, find your way through an unfamiliar building, or open a door independently.Now imagine technology helping to remove some of those barriers.That is the reality for millions of people around the world who use assistive...

06/03/2026

During National AccessAbility Week, we were proud to celebrate the inaugural Rick Hansen Many In Motion Day with students at the Rick Hansen School in Aurora, ON.

Students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 came together to explore what it takes to create more accessible classrooms, schools, communities, and a more inclusive world.

With Rick Hansen joining throughout the day, students experience meaningful learning, connection, and fun. Together with educators, students explored the importance of meaningful accessibility and how they can be a part of the Many In Motion movement.

📚 Bring Many In Motion to your classroom!

Watch the Many In Motion Day presentation with your class and complete the accompanying classroom resource.

Learn more: https://www.rickhansen.com/schools-communities/many-motion-day

06/02/2026

Celebrating the 40 RBC Barrier Buster Grant Recipients!

We’re proud to announce the 40 recipients of the RBC Barrier Buster Grants Program – organizations who are committed to removing physical barriers and creating more accessible communities across Canada.

Sharing this moment alongside our Founder, Rick Hansen, made this moment especially meaningful. His Man In Motion World Tour inspired National AccessAbility Week, and this program honours its 40th anniversary by continuing that legacy of breaking down barriers.

We were also honoured to be joined by Andrea Barrack, SVP Sustainability & Impact, RBC, who helped reveal the recipients.

Thanks to the support of RBC and RBC Foundation, these grants will fund 40 accessibility projects – helping more people participate fully in their communities.

A special thank you to Variety Village, one of the recipients, for hosting the announcement event, and to our national partners whose generosity and collaboration is helping to advance accessibility across the country.

Meet all the recipients at RickHansen.com/BarrierBuster and follow us to learn more.

06/02/2026

Michelle knows that many barriers don’t exist because they have to — they exist because no one stopped to think differently about accessibility.

That’s why her story is important, and why your support of the Rick Hansen Foundation can help create lasting change.

This National AccessAbility Week, your support can help create spaces and communities where more people can participate, belong and thrive. Your donation helps remove barriers, shift attitudes and build a more accessible and inclusive Canada.

Make your gift today at RickHansen.com/Donate and help move this work forward.

06/01/2026

This National AccessAbility Week, you can help remove the barriers that quietly exclude people every day by helping create a more inclusive society, and it starts with starting the conversation!

Here are a few ways to take part in National AccessAbility Week :
🔗 Download our National AccessAbility Week resources at RickHansen.com/NAAW and share them with your team, school, or community.
📂 Use our digital toolkit with posters, social posts, and templates to invite others into the conversation and help raise awareness.
🚩 Fly the National AccessAbility Week flag at your location or share it across your digital channels.
📖 Explore our Universal Design guidelines and identify one practical accessibility improvement you can make this month.
💙 Donate to support the ongoing work of removing barriers and creating access for all.

You can make inclusion a priority this week and every day.