volunteer documents

we have a number of documents that, through this post, will be made available to volunteers working with the project. the three documents being posted here are the volunteer information form, the volunteer information sheet, and the anti-oppression 101 mini workshop. all three of these documents are also presented to volunteers during the volunteer orientation or initial meeting with project coordinators, and are posted here for reference. volunteers who have not yet completed the volunteer information form are welcome to use this version to fill out and send back to project coordinators at contactaccessibletoronto [at] gmail.com.

– quinto

volunteer information form-fillable
anti-oppression 101 mini workshop
volunteer orientation sheet-volunteers-wordpress

volunteer callout !

hey there readers !

so as you may have noticed, since the inception of accessibletoronto we’ve only posted two audits. this is for a variety of reasons, including the fact that our dear dreadhead geoff is setting off on an epic journey for three months starting in may, and there’s a lot he has to get done before then. more importantly, though, we’ve come to realize just how huge a project this really is – to be able to properly audit a large number of spaces throughout the city of toronto is going to take a lot of people power. this is where you come in ! we are currently looking for volunteers to help us complete audits. the process is fairly simple – we provide you with the audit file and you (either on a computer, if you happen to own a laptop, or on a printed audit form) go to a space and fill out the audit ! the whole thing usually takes about half an hour. we are in the process of streamlining the form so it might be even less. we recommend doing audits in pairs but you’re more than welcome to go it alone if that’s how you roll. if you’re interested in partnering up with someone we would be happy to match you with another volunteer, or you can get a friend to volunteer as well !

people who would be well-suited for participating in this project are able to devote small chunks of time to completing audits (we’re super flexible about schedules for auditing – “whatever works for you works for us” is our motto). they are passionate about accessibility and have at least a basic understanding of what makes physical spaces accessible or inaccessible. they are also willing to meet up with one of the project coordinators (myself or geoff) before their first audit to get a crash course on accessibletoronto and to do a first audit together to get the hang of things.

so don’t be shy – if you’re interested in volunteering with us or have any questions about volunteering, please drop us a line by leaving a comment or emailing us at contactaccessibletoronto@gmail.com. we will get back to you as promptly as we can ! we like promptness. it’s cool.

all the best and hope to work with you soon !

– quinto

AUDIT – david’s tea : 424 bloor west

hey !

it’s time for our next audit release, david’s tea at 424 bloor west (between bathurst and spadina on bloor) !

about david’s tea (from their website) :

Our first store opened in 2008, on vibrant Queen Street in Toronto, Canada. Before long, first time customers became regulars, our neighbours became our friends and our store became a community fixture. And the same thing has happened at every new store since. Now you can find our tea shops in neighbourhoods and communities across Canada and the United States. And we’re not slowing down any time soon – we can’t wait to share the DAVIDsTEA experience with the whole world.

Walk into a DAVIDsTEA today and you can choose from over 150 types of tea, including exclusive blends, limited edition seasonal collections, traditional straight teas and exotic infusions from around the globe. Not to mention the largest collection of organic teas and infusions in North America.

Hours :
Monday – Saturday: 10:00am – 9:30pm
Sunday: 10:00am – 8:00pm

Contact information :
Phone : 416-964-0774
Email : customerservice@davidstea.com

The audit : davidsteaaudit-bloorwest-13december

*** Please note that information included in this audit is subject to change. Please feel free to alert us if you are aware of any changes to access information pertaining to this space and we will be more than happy to update the audit form.

– geoff and quinto

AUDIT – the green beanery : 565 bloor st. w.

hey !

it’s been a busy few days for us here at accessibletoronto and we’re proud to release our very first audit – the green beanery at 565 bloor st. west (bathurst and bloor).

about the green beanery (from their website) :

Green Beanery is Canada’s largest online retailer of coffee and coffee equipment, offering more varieties of coffee beans than any other retailer in the world and selling more roasters, grinders, and coffee makers of all descriptions than any other Canadian retailer.

We also have two storefronts in downtown Toronto. Our flagship store at 565 Bloor St West at Bathurst is Canada’s largest coffee equipment retail establishment — a 2650 square feet store with more than 100 feet of frontage at one of Toronto’s best known intersections. This store has a roastery that offers 90 varieties of roasted coffees – again more than any other retailer in the world. Our second location, at 636 King St West in Toronto’s entertainment district, is a Warehouse Outlet that services micro-roasters and restaurants as well as walk-in customers.

Green Beanery is a non-profit organization owned by Energy Probe Research Foundation, one of Canada’s largest federally registered environmental charities. Green Beanery’s profits support Third World development through the foundation’s Probe International division.

—

Hours :
Monday – Friday : 8 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Saturday : 9 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Sunday : 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.

Contact information :
Phone : 416-588-7700, ext. 1
Email : sales@greenbeanery.ca

The audit : greenbeaneryaudit-13december

*** Please note that information included in this audit is subject to change. Please feel free to alert us if you are aware of any changes to access information pertaining to this space and we will be more than happy to update the audit form.

– geoff and quinto

kylie joins accessibletoronto !

hey everyone,

i wanted to take a moment to introduce another new member of accessibletoronto – kylie brooks ! here’s a little bit about her :

kylie is a budding social justice activist. currently she is a computer technician student at george brown college. she has been desiring to do social justice related work. she is a queer/genderqueer, disabled, Deaf, person of color.

currently, kylie is working with the following nonprofits:

– ontario rainbow alliance for the deaf, events director (non paid, 2012 – 2013)
– children’s aid society of toronto, content manager for youthrap (independent contractor, paid)

i’d like to thank kylie for getting involved in the project ! we’re really excited to have her on board. kylie will be helping us out with fundraising, auditing, and some of the tech aspects of the project. thanks again kylie !

– kylie and quinto

accessibility audit form

hey all ! so this is an exciting day – the day i post the first version of our very own accessibility audit. i couldn’t have done this without the help of a friend over at the radical access mapping project in vancouver. this audit is based on the one they use for spaces in vancouver, adapted in several ways to fit this city. a lot of the questions are the same or very similar because i think there are certain access factors that absolutely, without a doubt, need to be included. so thank you again to the RAMP project for all your hard work – couldn’t have done this without you !

and now, on to the good stuff. this audit will eventually become a PDF form that can be easily filled out with any PDF editing software (i.e. adobe reader). for now though, i give you the audit in its entirety to give you an idea of what our project is all about. if you have any questions, suggestions, or comments, please feel free to drop us a line ! we’d love to hear from you. this part of the process is all about getting feedback, so please don’t be shy, especially if there’s something you think should be added to the audit.

the audit comes with 22 sections, as follows (in order of appearance) : signage and wayfinding ; lighting ; vehicle and mobility device parking ; physical access – exterior ; transit ; doors ; lifts, elevators, and escalators ; stairs, steps, and ledges ; ramps : exterior ; ramps : interior ; hallways and floors ; assistive listening devices, sound, and interpretation ; in case of emergency ; seating ; food and beverage, transactions, and ATMs ; scent-free spaces ; smoking areas ; borrowing/renting wheelchairs/mobility devices ; service animals ; staff policies/disability awareness ; communication ; and washrooms. we’re also definitely open to adding or changing sections if that’s something that comes up along the way. not every question in every section will apply to every space we audit – for example, some are specific to venues ; some spaces may not have washrooms, etc.

so here we go ! enjoy, and again, we welcome any and all feedback on this form. accessibletoronto audit form v1.0

quinto @ accessibletoronto

dreadhead geoff joins the accessibletoronto team !

hey all,

sorry for the long silence. i wanted to introduce the newest member of the accessibletoronto team – dreadhead geoff ! geoff is a queer disability studies student and activist at the university of toronto. he’s also an active blogger – his work can be found at living not existing. geoff’s work is centred around the intersections of madness, addictions and drug use, and disability studies. geoff is a strong ally to the community and has graciously offered to get involved in this project. we couldn’t be more happy to have him on board ! i encourage you to take the time to check out his blog – it’s pretty fantastic.

over the coming weeks and months geoff and i will be going full steam ahead on the accessibletoronto project, working on both accessibility audits in the city, organizing the project and getting more support for our work, and securing financial donations in order to maximize the potential of the project. if you’re interested in donating to the project, please check back soon – we will be setting up a site for online donations, as well as a mailing address to send in donations by cash or cheque. our first goal is to purchase an ipad mini to use for the accessibility audits, and a piece of software to fill out PDF forms to increase the accessibility of the audits. our fundraising goal for the ipad, case, and software is 400$. if you or anyone else you know may be able to make a donation, please check back here soon for more information on that ! thank you in advance for your support.

– geoff and quinto at accessibletoronto

welcome to accessibletoronto !

hey all, and welcome to accessibletoronto, focused on raising awareness and acting as a one-stop resource for detailed and accurate information regarding accessibility all around the city of toronto ! currently the blog is being managed and authored by myself, quinto, but i’m hoping that more folks will join up in the near future. if you’re interested in volunteering as an author or as part of the access evaluation crew, please send me a note with your name and contact information and we can get you involved in the project.

accessibletoronto is committed to providing as much information on each venue as possible. i know from countless past experiences that incorrect or incomplete access information can make or break a trip to a store, pub, theatre, doctor’s office, etc., and that situations like those could easily have been prevented if i were able to get the information i needed before figuring it out the hard way. furthermore, i’m not the only one who’s been in this situation before – there are many of us – both in toronto and throughout the province, the country, and the world – who encounter access issues every day of our lives.

there will most definitely be more coming soon ! stay tuned and check back often for updates.

all the best,

accessibletoronto