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DRPI Canada Fact Sheet, 2007 / 2008

What is DRPI Canada?

DRPI Canada, funded by the Social Science and Humanities Research Council, is a collaborative effort between universities and human rights and disability organizations, and works to establish a sustainable and comprehensive monitoring system to address disability discrimination in Canada. DRPI Canada is grounded in a human rights approach to disability which focuses attention on the way that systemic discrimination and social exclusion increase vulnerability to abuse, chronic poverty, unemployment, other forms of discrimination and inequitable social conditions.

How does DRPI Canada work?

The project’s holistic approach integrates 4 areas of monitoring:

  • Monitoring Individual Experiences – For the first time in Canada, people with a spectrum of disabilities are involved in monitoring and have their personal experiences of human rights violations monitored.
  • Monitoring Media – Stories in Canada’s major print and broadcast media that focus on people with disabilities and disability issues are examined through the lens of human rights. Experts with knowledge and expertise in both the media and disability issues are consulted throughout the project.
  • Monitoring Policy and Law – Laws, policies, case law, programs and services are examined to assess the systemic protections for people with disabilities.
  • Monitoring Survey Datasets – Statistical datasets and surveys are assessed in order to determine how information with respect to the situation of people with disabilities is collected and how methods should differ with a rights approach.

Who is involved with DRPI Canada?

DRPI Canada brings together: 14 disability rights, legal, media monitoring and policy experts from different provinces, 12 disability and human rights organizations, 3 universities and 3 university-based research institutes, 4 government agencies, and 1 private media research company. It is the mandate of DRPI Canada that people with a spectrum of disabilities be involved in all aspects of project governance and implementation. Being equipped with the appropriate knowledge and skills on disability rights and disability rights monitoring, the disability community will be enabled to develop priorities and strategies for bringing about social change and improving the quality of life of its people.

The following is a listing of people involved with DRPI Canada's initiatives:

Monitoring Individual Experiences

  • Normand Boucher, Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherche en Réadaptation et Intégration Sociale (CIRRIS), Laval University
  • Steven Estey, Council of Canadians with Disabilities (CCD)
  • Sandra Carpenter, Centre for Independent Living in Toronto (CILT)
  • Isabel Killoran, York University

Monitoring Media

  • Daniel Drache, York University
  • Ray Cohen, Canadian Abilities Foundation (CAF)
  • Andrew Laing, Cormex Research
  • Geoffrey Reaume, York University

Monitoring Policy and Law

  • Roxanne Mykitiuk, Osgoode Hall Law School
  • Yvonne Peters, Disability rights legal expert
  • Michael Prince, University of Victoria

Monitoring Survey Datasets

  • Cameron Crawford, Canadian Association for Community Living
  • Patrick Fougeyrollas, L'Institut de Réadaptation en Déficience Physique de Québec (I.R.D.P.Q.), Laval University

DRPI Canada Organizational Partners