Accessibility and Inclusion Committee

Adedayo, also called "Dayo", has several years of experience in the PR and communications industry. A dedicated leader and passionate advocate, she is known for building meaningful stakeholder relationships, delivering powerful messages, and creating inclusive spaces that drive impact across communities, governments, and global platforms.

Dayo is a results-driven, multilingual communications professional with over 25 years of global experience in public relations, stakeholder engagement, advocacy, and humanitarian work. She is widely respected for her strategic leadership, inclusive approach, and ability to inspire change through impactful storytelling and high-level relationship-building. Currently serving as Board Director of Communications & Advocacy at Let’s Help International and Head of Communications & Stakeholder Engagement at the African Canadian Business Chamber, Dayo champions visibility for newcomer, refugee communities and fosters opportunities raising awareness on African economic potential for African businesses in Canada. Her past roles, including her work with the Lagos State Ministry of Information, have solidified her reputation as a seasoned communicator with a sharp understanding of cultural diplomacy and public service. In her role as a Special Education Educator, Dayo worked with children and youth, focusing on promoting their overall well-being. She developed strong research skills and understanding of the challenges and barriers faced by children with disabilities. A passionate community builder, Dayo has volunteered with numerous organizations advocating for youth, disability rights, and cultural heritage. She holds a Bachelor’s in Mass Communication, and certifications in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Special Education, and Accessibility. As a current Advisory Member for Accessibility and Inclusion at Destination BC, Dayo is committed to identifying and removing barriers, advising on inclusive strategies, and supporting Destination BC’s vision to embed diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility into every facet of its work and culture. Her lived experience with disability has led her to serve as an advisory member, advocating for inclusivity and accessibility.

Don, born in New York, has lived in Victoria for 50 years with his wife, Gail. They have two daughters, four grandkids and a great-grandson. Despite living with a condition known as Ehlers-Danlos, which limits his mobility, he feels fortunate to be active at 85, far exceeding the typical life expectancy of 50 for those with this condition.

A passionate traveler, Don has visited over 120 countries. Drawing from personal experience, he knows travel can be a challenge for people with disabilities. One of his driving goals is to help make British Columbia more accessible to attract people with physical challenges. With five decades in hospitality and tourism, Don has thrived as an entrepreneur and employee, holding roles in sales, hotel management, consultancy, Executive Chef, restaurant management and ownership, human resources, and hospitality services. Don currently serves on more than 20 boards and in addition to his support for Destination BC, is currently Chair of the Accessibility Transportation Advisory Committee, a group that advises the Victoria Regional Transit Commission and BC Transit on matters related to accessible transit for persons with disabilities. His extensive community involvement has included work as a Founder, Member, President, Chair, Vice President and Treasurer with groups such as:

• Camosun College Hotel & Restaurant Administration Program
• Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) (now Destination Canada)
• Council of Tourism Associations of BC (COTA) (now Tourism Industry Association of British Columbia)
• CRD Diversion Council
• BC Cuisine & Tourism Society
• BC Food Safe Advisory Board
• BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association
• BC Schizophrenia Society
• Downtown Task Force on Safety - City of Victoria
• The Crystal Meth Drug Prevention Society
• Victoria Christmas Bureau and Santa's Anonymous
• Victoria Christmas Festival - Food and Beverage
• Victoria Hospitality Group, Professional Cook Advisory, Culinary Team Victoria Board Commonwealth Games Victoria,=
• Victoria Read Society
• Victoria Silver Threads

Karin is an Accessibility and Universal Design Consultant, RHFAC Professional, and passionate traveler. She specializes in helping communities create inclusive spaces and experiences. As a parent and accessibility advocate, she brings both professional insight and lived experience to her work.

Karin is an RHFAC Professional and Accessibility & Universal Design Consultant with over a decade of experience supporting municipalities, corporations, and community spaces in creating more inclusive environments. She brings a unique blend of technical knowledge and lived experience to her work, grounded in both professional expertise and her role as a parent and partner to her husband, who happens to be a wheelchair user. With a deep love of travel and a firm belief that British Columbia’s natural beauty and cultural spaces should be accessible to all, Karin works collaboratively with clients to remove barriers and enhance experiences for people of all ages and abilities. She often describes herself as “part engineer, part occupational therapist,” combining analytical problem-solving with empathy and creativity. Through her consultancy, Meaningful Access Consulting, Karin has led accessibility audits, design reviews, and policy recommendations across the country. Whether she’s reviewing trails, parks, hotels, or community spaces, she approaches each project with optimism, practicality, and a passion for creating welcoming, intuitive spaces. Karin is committed to a future where accessibility is not an afterthought but a foundation, enabling everyone to participate fully in community life and adventure.

Laura is a Certified Executive Coach and lifelong advocate for people with disabilities. Blind since her twenties and living with severe arthritis, she champions accessibility through education and leadership. She advises on disability planning, supports Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) outreach nationwide, and loves travelling the world on cruises.

Laura has continually broken barriers through education and leadership. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of British Columbia and a Graduate Certificate in Executive Coaching from Royal Roads University. Laura has spent much of her career advancing disability inclusion, with a particular focus on the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP). She has led over 150 national teleconferences and webinars for Plan Institute and serves as an advisor on their Disability Planning Helpline. Laura is also an entrepreneur who has established her business, Blind Ambition Coaching, which focusses on helping leaders with disabilities reach their full potential to achieve their professional and personal goals. Laura’s prior leadership experiences include co-chair of the persons with disabilities advisory committee with the city of Vancouver and chair of the TransLink HandyDART users advisory committee. Outside of her professional life, Laura enjoys audiobooks, cooking, and travel, with a special love for exploring the world on cruises.

Lexa is a disability activist, accessibility advisor, and coach who lives with a chronic illness and has lived experience with disability. Her lived experience is deepened through her family’s journey with disability, driving her community involvement. She is a passionate creative, who expresses through photography, activism, and consulting—advancing inclusion and accessibility via storytelling, systems change, and empowerment.

A multidisciplinary creative, Lexa blends photography, consulting, and advocacy to advance accessibility and equity. She understands there is a broad spectrum within the experience of disability, including intermittent, invisible, and lifelong, complex disabilities. In the tourism sector, Lexa leads accessibility advising and inclusive art direction for marketing campaigns. Her photographic storytelling highlights the diverse realities of disabled people as leaders, travelers, artists, and community members—capturing moments of connection, culture, and joy. Her work challenges assumptions and builds visibility and trust. Lexa knows accessibility is action. Through systems change, creative strategy, and narrative work, she helps others identify and remove barriers, foster belonging, and honours disability as part of human diversity.

Richard, a Metis individual who is blind and identifies as part of the 2sLGBTQIA+ community, has dedicated his adult life to advocating for improved accessibility and equality for people with disabilities. As a person with a disability, Richard addresses various issues through his personal experiences. Over the years, he has been actively involved in numerous accessibility projects.

Notably, in 1991, he participated in a province-wide accessibility audit of colleges and universities across British Columbia. This comprehensive audit involved visiting virtually every corner of the province and exploring the diverse communities throughout BC. Recently, Richard has played a pivotal role in enhancing the accessibility of bus stops for individuals who are blind or partially-sighted by serving as a technical advisor on the Braille used on the recently installed Tactile bus stop signs across the TransLink service area. Presently, Richard dedicates most of his time to conducting website accessibility testing for various organizations.

Ryan loves British Columbia and exploring all that it has to offer. His travels have seen him visit over 40 National parks throughout North America, camp in over 400 unique locations, and all while driving roughly 300,000 kms in the process. Ryan uses his life experience to encourage others with disabilities to do get out and explore!

In 2009, at the age of 22, Ryan sustained a spinal cord injury in a motor vehicle accident. Feeling lost and uncertain about his future, he turned to camping to fill the void. Raised in British Columbia, Ryan was determined to maintain his love for the outdoors, inspired by childhood memories of camping. After five years post-injury and many trips later, he began his career with Spinal Cord Injury BC where he works as a Peer Program Specialist at GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre and throughout Metro Vancouver. His role is to help peers with spinal cord injuries and related disabilities to adapt, adjust and thrive in their communities. Ryan hasn’t stopped exploring. Over the past 12 years, he has visited more than 40 national parks and has hitched his tent everywhere from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. He now uses his experiences to help newly injured peers regain the confidence to explore the natural beauty that this province has to offer.

Using sport and recreation as a rehabilitation process after a fall from her horse 28 years ago that left Sonja paralyzed from the bra-line down, Sonja has gone on to live a full and meaningful life as a mother, wife, athlete, accessibility specialist, and a motivational speaker.

For 14 years, Sonja competed around the world for Canada as a Paralympic athlete, winning three Paralympic Gold Medals and three World Championships in the sport of Wheelchair Curling. After retiring from competition in 2017, Canada Post created a stamp honoring her career in their “Woman in Winter Sports” stamp series.  Alongside six Olympic athletes, this brings much needed awareness to the Paralympic athletes, showcasing the Paralympic games equal to the Olympic games, and the highest level of competition for world class athletes who have accessibility requirements. Since 2018 Sonja’s has been working with the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association as an Access & Inclusion Liaison.  This role aligns with her keen interest and passion of creating and promoting accessible, inclusive and barrier free opportunities, activities and experiences for local community members and travellers to our region.

Suzan Jennings did not go to the "University of Barrier-Free Living." She did not receive a one-size-fits-all disability binder when she became paralyzed at 46. And she certainly did not receive guidance on how such a life-altering adversity would impact her marriage, her career, or her sense of identity...

Instead, Suzan had to navigate a world that wasn’t built with her in mind. She tumbled—literally and figuratively—into a new reality with daunting odds stacked against her recovery. But through determination, resilience, and grit, she began the slow, complex journey of rebuilding not only her mobility but her purpose. After over 30 years as a Hotel Sales Executive representing hotels locally and internationally, Suzan is now a passionate accessibility advocate committed to reshaping systems that too often exclude. She works to influence policy, enhance service delivery, and improve programs that affect people with disabilities. Her advocacy is grounded in lived experience and driven by the belief that accessibility isn’t an add-on—it’s a right. Her story, marked by challenge and transformation, continues to inspire those around her. And her message is clear: Nothing is impossible. Making a difference… one step at a time.

Based on the traditional, unceded territories of the Kwantlen and Katzie First Nations, Tamaka is a grateful uninvited settler who approaches her work with respect, humility, and a deep commitment to reconciliation and social justice.

Tamaka Fisher is an Accessibility and Learning Consultant with extensive experience supporting inclusive workplaces. She has worked across sectors including municipal government, higher education, private enterprise, and specialized career development. Her work focuses on building environments that support employees with diverse abilities, including individuals returning to work after injury or illness.

As a person with lived experience of chronic, invisible conditions and multiple intersectional identities, Tamaka brings deep insight and empathy to her practice. She is committed to advancing accessibility, equity, and inclusion, and works with organizations to identify and remove systemic barriers that prevent full participation—particularly for members of marginalized communities.

Tamaka holds a Master of Educational Technology (MET) from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor’s degree in Leadership from Trinity Western University. She is also a Certified Career Development Practitioner.