Alberta Employment First Network

04/17/2026

🎉 DEAM 2026 Grant Applications are NOW OPEN! 🎉

Have an event idea to promote in your community? Now’s your chance to bring it to life.

The Alberta Employment First Network (AEFN) is offering grants to support Disability Employment Awareness Month ( ) events across Alberta this October—and every year, the movement keeps growing. Here's how you can be a part of it...

Grant details:
👉Up to $5,000 per organization
👉$35,000 total funding available across Alberta

From workshops and panels to hiring events and community initiatives—we can’t wait to see what you create.

👉How to apply:

1️⃣Review all requirements
2️⃣Create an account on our new platform, Awardify, to access the application
🔗Link in bio

Have questions? Reach out anytime: hello@aefn.ca

Let’s make DEAM 2026 bigger, bolder, and more impactful than ever.

03/26/2026

Save the date...

for the 5th annual DEAM IDEA Conference! Coming to Edmonton from October 6th - 8th at NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute of Technology)! 📣

This year's event will feature a networking event, a job fair, and many learning opportunities during Disability Employment Awareness Month.

Stay up to date with conference details by subscribing to our newsletter and check out the 2026 conference site page here : https://aefn.ca/2026-deam-idea-conference/

We can't wait to see you in October.

03/06/2026

We are hiring! 📣

We are excited to announce that our team is GROWING and we are looking for amazing new additions to the team. These roles are full time and follow a hybrid work model.

AEFN is hiring for the following roles :

-3 Regional Engagement Coordinators for northern, central and southern Alberta

- Indigenous Engagement Coordinator

Applications remain open until March 20th 2026. The roles would start between the last week of April and first week of May.

Please apply through the following link :

https://aefn.ca/aefn-careers/

03/06/2026

02/27/2026

We are proud to be a Gold Sponsor of the upcoming 2026 ACDS Conference! Have you registered yet?

Impact 2026 Conference Registration Open Video

02/23/2026

What can we actually do about the cuts to disability services in Alberta?

This is not a lecture. It’s about giving you real tools you can use and share with your family, friends, and allies so we can push back effectively and together.

If you care about disability rights in this province, this conversation matters.

Register now: https://www.albertandpcaucus.ca/events/events-calendar/post/learn-to-advocate

02/19/2026

📣 📣 📣

AEFN, in partnership with Better Belonging, is exploring how a Disability Employment Service Provider (DESP) Collaborative can help organizations work together to better support Albertans with disabilities to find and keep meaningful employment.

We are inviting everyone who works within disability employment services to complete a short survey to identify the challenges you face in your work, and which of those challenges could be addressed collaboratively. ⤵️

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CN6YJJ8

This Needs Assessment survey takes approximately 5 minutes to complete and responses are confidential. Please share this survey with all employees who work in employment services.

Why are we exploring a Disability Employment Service Provider (DESP) Collaborative?

- to build capacity for employment service providers in the disability sector

- changes to the sector are affecting people with disabilities

- pain points to be addressed collaboratively

- resource sharing across the province

- to build a community of practice

Stay tuned for the future of this collaborative, and we appreciate our network taking the time to fill out the Needs Assessment survey.

02/18/2026

Haven't had the chance to attend a Black History Month event yet?

There are still a handful of virtual and in person events happening across the province. This year's Black History Month theme is “30 Years of Black History Month: Honouring Black Brilliance Across Generations — From Nation Builders to Tomorrow’s Visionaries,” which highlights the enduring strength, creativity, and transformative impact of Black communities across time.

Events coming up in the next few days :

Calgary:

💫 Celebrating Black Scholarship - https://events.ucalgary.ca/pesjo/event/510449-celebrating-black-scholarship
💫 Black History Month: Black Lives in Alberta - Over a Century of Racial Injustice Continues - https://www.calgarylibrary.ca/events-and-programs/programs/black-history-month-black-lives-in-alberta-over-a-century-of-racial-injustice-continues
💫 Black History Month: Africa is Not a Country, It’s a Continent - Arts & Craft- https://www.calgarylibrary.ca/events-and-programs/programs/africa-is-not-a-country-its-a-continent-arts-and-craft
💫 Black History Month: An Evening with Wakefield Brewster - https://www.calgarylibrary.ca/events-and-programs/programs/an-evening-with-wakefield-brewster

Edmonton:

💫 Tales and Taste - https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/tales-and-taste-tickets-1977796167578?aff=oddtdtcreator
💫 ROOTED & RISING-A Black History Month community celebration! - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rooted-rising-a-black-history-month-community-celebration-tickets-1982462108533
💫 In Our Image: Black Bodies on Canvas - https://luma.com/tflscaxs
💫 The Development of Alberta’s Black Community- https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-development-of-albertas-black-community-tickets-1977979913166?aff=oddtdtcreator

If you're looking for events in your area, visit your city or town's municipal government's website. The events above can be found on https://www.calgary.ca/events/black-history-month.html
and https://www.edmonton.ca/attractions_events/schedule_festivals_events/black-history-month

City of Calgary – Your Local GovernmentGateway AssociationMentorAbility AlbertaUniversity of CalgaryCalgary Public Library

12/24/2025

Happy Holidays from Alberta Employment First Network! 😍

Have a wonderful end of year with your community and may you feel rested and rejuvenated for 2026. We have lots of work to do! See you next year, thanks for being a part of the AEFN community.

This year we were able to accomplish quite a few things, all with your help. ⬇
✨28 events supported
✨30+ speaking opportunities
✨hosted the 4th annual DEAM Conference
✨100% increase in attendance at the DEAM IDEA Conference
✨21 DEAM AEFN Grants given out

Curious about what else we did this year? Read the overview!
https://aefn.ca/alberta-employment-first-network-2025-year-end-wrap-up/

👋🏼

12/03/2025

Today is International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) 👏

The theme for 2025 is : Fostering disability inclusive societies for advancing social progress

What does this really mean? It means that for all of us to move forward into an inclusive society (or work place!) , people with disabilities need to be included in all you do and in your communities. 📣

We hope you get to attend an IDPD event today or this week, check out the Alberta wide events on our calendar - https://aefn.ca/all-events/

There has been an uptake in IDPD events this year which makes us happy to see. Let's keep the momentum going!

11/28/2025

November was Indigenous Disability Awareness Month ⤵️

”IDAM raises awareness about and celebrates the significant social, economic and cultural contributions that Indigenous people experiencing disability bring to our communities. It’s also an opportunity to mobilize to address the complex, ongoing intersectional challenges Indigenous people face in their every day lives.”

Read more here : https://www.supportedemployment.ca/november-is-indigenous-disability-awareness-month/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22151472453&gbraid=0AAAAACQJ9S-t9IIldZ5XZESIiaamsqwg3&gclid=CjwKCAiA55rJBhByEiwAFkY1QAu42a4ObhgxEPZgCEZOIfxHgiJLzcyrsZkTj8mFKSvIzcdfQXW_dhoCrMQQAvD_BwE

AEFN attended an event held by Community Futures Treaty 7 to celebrate and raise awareness on the initiative. At this event, many Indigenous employment centres across Treaty 7 received awards for their work during Disability Employment Awareness Month (DEAM). We were able to hear stories from lived experience that showcased the importance of intersectional employment services.

Thank you Community Futures Treaty 7 for a wonderful event!

11/26/2025

Join us December 3 to increase awareness of diverse abilities and promote inclusion for Albertans with disabilities.