Purpose & Mandate
The purpose of the Accessibility Committee is to promote inclusive and accessible practices by making accessibility and inclusion-related recommendations to policies, procedures, bylaws, and infrastructure. The goal is to create greater equality and inclusiveness for all Islands Trust residents, employees, and clients.
If you have experienced a barrier to Islands Trust programs, information, or offices, or have observed someone experiencing a barrier, please share your feedback about that by one of the methods described on the Accessibility and Inclusion page.
The Accessibility Committee is a mandatory requirement under the Accessible British Columbia Act effective September 1, 2023.
The Accessibility Committee will meet four times per year. Meeting Records can be found on the What’s Happening/Meetings and Events webpage by choosing the Type of Body as “Accessibility Committee”.
Roles and Responsibilities
The Accessibility Committee’s roles and responsibilities are assigned through Islands Trust Council policy.
The Accessibility Committee provides advice to the Islands Trust Council and management by undertaking the following responsibilities:
- identify barriers to individuals (public, employees, trustees) in or interacting with the organization in offices, owned or leased locations, Islands Trust Conservancy lands owned or leased, including meeting and public hearing locations
- identify barriers to individuals (public, employees, trustees) in or interacting with the organization electronically through the Islands Trust website, social media accounts, telephone, electronic meetings or other electronic means
- advise the organization on how to remove and prevent barriers to individuals in or interacting with the organization
- develop an Accessibility Plan that address the issues identified, with options and recommendations to remove the barriers, and advise on implementation of the Plan
- review the Accessibility Plan every three years and seek public feedback on the Accessibility Plan; and, as part of the review, seek feedback generally from the public on potential accessibility barriers and how to remove and prevent barriers to individuals in or interacting with the organization
To meet the requirements of the Accessible British Columbia Act, the Islands Trust Accessibility Committee comprises:
- a minimum of one and up to four representatives from organizations that support people with disabilities, or who have disabilities, in the Islands Trust Area;
- a minimum of one person who is Indigenous
Members
TBD – Trust Area resident
TBD – Trust Area resident
TBD – Trust Area resident
TBD – Trust Area resident
TBD – Trustee, TBD Island Local Trust Area
TBD – Trustee, TBD Island Local Trust Area
TBD – Trustee, TBD Island Local Trust Area, Islands Trust Council Chair, (ex officio)
Support Staff
E: Legislative Services Clerk
T: 1-250-405-5167
Terms of reference
The term for each of these positions is to December 31, 2026. Terms of reference for the Accessibility Committee can be viewed here.
Definitions
For the purpose of this Committee, the following definitions found in the Accessible British Columbia Act apply:
- Accessibility – allows all people can take part in their communities through work, play and other daily activities
- Disability – an inability to participate fully and equally in society as a result of the interaction of an impairment and a barrier
- Impairment – includes a physical, sensory, mental, intellectual, or cognitive impairment; whether permanent, temporary or episodic
- Barrier – anything that hinders the full and equal participation in society of a person with an impairment. Barriers can be caused by environments, attitudes, practices, policies, information, communications or technologies, and are affected by intersecting forms of discrimination.