Hello and bonjour!
Happy Spring to all youth leaders, adult allies, and supporters!
Thank you for being a part of Re:Action4Inclusion movement. We are inspired by your active participation and your contributions to strengthening youth leadership!
Keep up to date and share this newsletter with community builders you know and help build our network. Want to get involved to participate and organize youth-led workshops? Wait no more and join the conversation! If you are keen to join the movement, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
- Inclusive Education Webinar Highlights:To get an early start on celebrating February’s Inclusive Education Month, members of Community Living Ontario’s Council and Youth Advisory Committee hosted a webinar on January 26, 2022. This webinar focused on the educational experiences of people with and without a disability, and was attended by 100 participants from across Canada who represented students, parents, educators, teachers and self- advocates of inclusive education. The Council members and youth advisors shared their personal experiences, perspectives and vision for inclusive education. The webinar also included conversations on the value of real learning opportunities, the impact of inclusivity and the importance of understanding the diverse needs of students. As advocates and changemakers in Ontario, the insights shared by Council members and Youth Advisory Committee youth advisors were crucial to understanding the benefits of an inclusive education system, as well as what opportunities exist to make improvements for all students and advocates (with and without a disability), educators and teachers.
Community Living Ontario’s Council and Youth Advisory Committee generated the following recommendations: READ MORE HERE
- DISRUPT! Educational Workshop Series 2022:Re:Action4Inclusion launched DISRUPT! Educational Workshop Series 2022!
DISRUPT! presents a series of educational workshops for ALL students, youth, supporters, teachers, educators, self–advocates and passionate community-builders. The themes of the workshops are designed for like-minded youth to come together to exchange ideas, share powerful stories and learn more about creative ways to promote an inclusive Canada.
The program was launched with the celebration and workshop on Black History Month, held on February 15, 2022. Inspirational speakers at Community Living Ontario such as Eon Sinclair, Alison McLean and Brittany Manu shared artistic expressions of what it means to be Black and expressed powerful stories about the duality of the Black experience in Canada – hyper-visibility | invisibility. Speakers shared their perspectives, insights and best practices to address systemic racism and how exclusion affects all parts of their lives. The panel session was moderated by Re:Action4Inclusion’s youth advisor named Sarah Julius. Youth advisors from the committee also shared their thoughts and perspectives on the benefits of youth leadership and the power of social media for a meaningful change. The workshop was attended by 55 participants.
DISRUPT! hosted the second workshop on “Authentic Inclusion & Awareness”. Michael Jacques, Community Living Ontario Board President and Alumni of Re:Action4Inclusion joined as an inspirational speaker along with Re:Action4Inclusion youth advisors. Michael Jacques shared his story and life journey to promote inclusion, advocacy, independence and the power of perseverance. As someone with a lived experience, Michael found his voice through Re:Action4Inclusion and has been an avid contributor to build this movement! His insights and views on authentic inclusion provided a safe space to learn more about how youth leaders can follow similar footsteps to unleash their true potential! The workshop was attended by 71 participants and there was lot of interaction around how we can together work towards making an inclusive community.
Don’t miss out on upcoming workshops by DISRUPT! ALL youth, with and without a disability, are welcome to join these conversations. YOU are the leaders we are looking for!
- “Leading for Inclusion – Youth Speaker Series” – Updates from Youth Advisors!:Learn more about the youth led social media campaign!
The Youth Advisory Committee is leading a social media campaign to raise awareness on the importance of youth leadership to empower voices and make our schools and communities more inclusive spaces. You will get an opportunity to hear from our youth advisors on passionate topics that matter to youth, with and without a disability. The youth advisors are sharing their stories and how they continue to spark conversations for inclusive spaces for ALL youth.
To kick-off 2022, our youth advisors Sarah Julius, Alexandra Snider and Megan Den Dekker have shared their unique experiences and stories to promote social justice, hope and compassion. Through the Youth Speaker Series, a platform has been created for youth to be inspired by other youth leaders to learn and suggest ideas that can transform communities.
Are you seeking inspiration to learn more about how you can make a difference? Are you a youth leader with a likeminded vision?
Stay tuned to hear our dynamic youth advisors speak at our ongoing youth speaker series this year! Follow us on Instagram @r4Inclusion to find more information.
- “Siblings: Citizens with a Cause” virtual meet-up sessions!
“Siblings: Citizens with a Cause” is back just for you, siblings!“Siblings Citizens with a Cause” launched their own program, led by five inspirational siblings of Re:Action4Inclusion! The program consists of virtual meet-up sessions exclusively for youth advocates of a sibling with a disability. The virtual meet-up sessions will take place once a month for siblings to meet like-minded youth and talk about the joys, challenges, and responsibilities of being a sibling.
The first meet-up session held on Thursday, February 24, created a safe space for 20 participants and siblings to come together. The meet-up session focused on the siblings’ experiences of discovering their best qualities that were brought out by their siblings and that positive impact on their personal growth and development. The siblings also expressed their gratitude to learn, exercise open mindedness and support their siblings to recognize the best version of themselves every day. A committed action agreed by all siblings was to help one another as siblings and put their best foot forward! Further, ConnectABILITY.ca joined the conversation to share online resources relevant to siblings!
The second meet-up session was held on Thursday, March 31. Nine participants, including siblings and adult allies came together and shared great insights. The meet-up session focused on the siblings’ experiences with uncertainties, notably career planning and possibly leaving home. The siblings discussed their journeys of learning to grow as individuals while being strong allies to their siblings. The siblings were also empowered to share how they had overcome any uncertainty in the past. A committed action was agreed by all siblings to have an open and honest conversation this year with their family, to help create a plan and feel better about an uncertainty. Helen Ries, from Siblings Canada also joined the conversation in the latter half of the session to share about the organization and resources they offer to siblings!
Don’t miss out on our next virtual meet-up session in April! Stay tuned for all details and registration.
