GTA Disability Coalition

03/06/2026

The National Housing Council will be holding a hearing on the lack of accessible housing. From March 26-June 5, the review panel will be collecting submissions through an online form.

The review panel will examine three questions:

1. How is the lack of accessible housing affecting people in Canada?

2. What system-wide gaps, and what government actions and inactions, are getting in the way of Canada's progress on the right to housing and the rights of persons with disabilities?

3. What actions and solutions should governments and communities lead to make better progress on the right to accessible housing for people with disabilities in Canada?

You can find more info on the review panel here:

02/27/2026

An important reminder of how the disability rights movement is interwoven with the civil rights movement that inspired it!

02/24/2026

Earlier this month Toronto City Council made their final vote on the 2026-2027 budget. While there were some wins for initiatives like EPIC and Rent Bank, there is still more work to do in advocating for better funding for disabled residents.

David Meyers from Centre for Independent Living in Toronto - CILT Inc. shared what we should continue to ask from the city.

Learn more about the GTA Disability Coalition at GTADC.ca

Description: David Meyers speaks into a microphone with a group of people in front of a barrier at the doors of City Hall.

02/20/2026

Last week Centre for Independent Living in Toronto - CILT Inc. and other GTADC partners attended the Budget Rally at City Hall and had the honour of speaking. Here's a clip of what David Meyers, CILT's Senior Manager of Independent Living Programs, had to say.

Learn more about the GTA Disability Coalition at GTADC.ca

Description: A video of David speaking into a microphone in front of a group of people

02/13/2026

What a powerful moment to be a part of! While the weather may have been cold, we're grateful to everyone who was able to show up and demand better housing, services and lives for Torontonians with disabilities!

02/06/2026

“It is urgent that the city direct additional investment into primary prevention by increasing the number of new units that are deeply affordable AND accessible so disabled Torontonians are justly housed! It is troublesome that many of the city’s housing announcements include mention of affordable units but rarely, if ever, do you clearly state how many accessible units there will be.”

Kim Adlard, the coordinator of the GTA Disability Coalition at Centre for Independent Living in Toronto - CILT Inc., spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at Etobicoke Civic Centre about Toronto’s crisis of deeply affordable and accessible housing.

Watch her full deputation here:

Kim Adlard, the coordinator of the GTA Disability Coalition, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at Etobicoke Civic Centre about Toronto’s crisis of dee...

02/06/2026

“While homelessness is a mass disabling crisis, our partners at Toronto Shelter and Support Services and Toronto Alliance to End Homelessness tell us that day by day, disabled folks are still routinely refused shelter spaces in our city’s shelters and provided no alternative options once they are refused because inaccessibility is a structural problem in our city. And so there’s no place for them to go.”

David Meyers, Centre for Independent Living in Toronto - CILT Inc.'s Senior Manager of Independent Living Programs, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at City Hall about Toronto’s rising disabled unhoused population and the urgent need for accessible shelter stock across the city’s shelter system.

Watch his full deputation here:

David Meyers, CILT's Senior Manager of Independent Living Programs, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at City Hall about Toronto’s rising disabled unh...

02/06/2026

“Over 87% of Women with Disabilities risk being trapped in abuse due to legislated poverty & lack of accessible airborne-safe affordable housing. Likewise, housing insecurity is skyrocketing for many across Tkaronto.”

Aasiya Hussain, CEO and Executive Director of Ecohesian, spoke virtually at the Budget Subcommittee at Scarborough Civic Centre about increasing funding for strategies to protect Disabled People during disasters (including extreme weather climate crises), AC & heating, snow removal, health and safety, safe air & water, and accessible affordable housing.

Watch her full deputation here:

Aasiya Hussain, CEO and Executive Director of Ecohesian, spoke virtually at the Budget Subcommittee at Scarborough Civic Centre about increasing funding for ...

02/06/2026

“According to the Wellesley Institute’s report on ‘Thriving in the City with a Disability,’ it is more expensive to live with a disability than without one. Every day I log onto social media, I see members of the disability community crowdfunding online for their rent, for food, for repairs to their mobility aids and more.”

Dev Ramsawakh, a program assistant at Centre for Independent Living in Toronto - CILT Inc., spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at Scarborough Civic Centre about how poverty impacts disabled people in Toronto, stressing the need for improved poverty reduction and social participation strategies specifically for disabled communities.

Wellesley Institutes's Thriving in the City with a Disability Report:https://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wellesley-Institute_ThrivingwithaDisability_Framework_Final_Sept-24-1.pdf

Watch their full deputation here: https://youtu.be/-p7mchT88jo

Dev Ramsawakh, a program assistant at CILT, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at Scarborough Civic Centre about how poverty impacts disabled people in...

02/06/2026

“People who have access to community and accessible affordable housing often start to thrive despite society being ableist. We can get there; we can lift people up."

Keat Welsh, the IDE+A Project Coordinator at Centre for Independent Living in Toronto - CILT Inc., spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at Etobicoke Civic Centre about the lack of statistics on accessible housing, the need for more accessible co-op housing and reducing social isolation for disabled people.

Watch their full deputation here:

Keat Welsh, the IDE+A Project Coordinator at CILT, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee meeting at Etobicoke Civic Centre about the lack of statistics on accessi...

02/06/2026

“Contrary to popular belief, lack of housing causes mental health problems more than the reverse. In terms of costs – human and financial – it is more cost effective to provide housing than it is to respond to crises and keep people in shelters, jails and hospitals.”

Jennifer Chambers, Executive Director of the Empowerment Council, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee at City Hall about increasing funding to Toronto Community Crisis Service and affordable, accessible housing.

Watch her full deputation here:

Jennifer Chambers, Executive Director of the Empowerment Council, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee at City Hall about increasing funding to Toronto Community...

02/04/2026

“Even though healthcare delivery is a provincial responsibility, the City shapes whether people can access care through transportation services like Wheel-Trans, with 4.4 million projected rides in 2026 demonstrating the demand and reliance on accessible transit for health appointments.”

Keya Osborne, Director of Disability Justice at CNIB, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee at North York Civic Centre about how the City of Toronto can improve access to healthcare through transportation, built environments, communication systems, community health programming, and public health funding.

Watch her full deputation here:

Keya Osborne, Director of Disability Justice at CNIB, spoke at the Budget Subcommittee at North York Civic Centre about how the City of Toronto can improve a...