TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

John Morris

Up Yours! Up Your Game Around Accessibility, Sustainability, and DE&I at TravelAbility’s EMERGING MARKETS SUMMIT

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TravelAbility Emerging Markets Summit logo, tagline reads Accessibility, Sustainability and DE&I.

Through our partnerships with Tourism Diversity Matters, a recognized leader in moving tourism and DE&I to the next level, Leave No Trace, dedicated champions of ecofriendly travel lessening negative impacts to our valuable shorelines and outdoor spaces, and USAE News, the premier news source for associations, hotels and CVBs, the conference will be reconstituted as TravelAbility’s Emerging Markets Summit. Learn about all three growing market segments at one insightful event.

photo of Jake Steinman
Jake Steinman

“Accessibility, Sustainability and DE&I have three things in common when it comes to travel,” said Jake Steinman, Founder of TravelAbility and organizer of EMS: “1. They are adjacent niche segments that are growing in importance but it’s not always easy to know where and how to begin. 2. Since they are all complex matters that involve a commitment, it’s important to begin with small steps and iterate from there.  For example, Visit Florida began focusing on accessibility three years ago with just a few content elements, today they have over 1000 pieces of content and aspire to be the most accessible state in America. 3. All three segments benefit humanity and unlock an intrinsic goodness in people giving them a fresh sense of pride about the organization they work for.”

Andrew Leary headshot
Andrew Leary

TravelAbility is pleased to work with three distinguished organizations that will help guide us to content that will lead to actionable takeaways and spread the word far and wide.

Andrew Leary, who is the Director of Sustainable Tourism and Partnerships, Leave No Trace, commented: “We are thrilled to be partnered with TravelAbility to help foster these crucial sustainability and stewardship conversations at this year’s Emerging Markets Summit.”

Greg DeShields headshot.
Greg DeShields

Greg DeShields, who is the Executive Director of Tourism Diversity Matters, commented: “As the leader in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, we are dedicated to providing decision makers with access, resources and tactics to develop more effective DEI strategies. The TravelAblity conference is a valuable forum to understand where DEI meets accessibility.  By creating awareness of this intersectionality, we can better acknowledge and ground our differences as DE&I is more than policies, programs, or headcounts.”

EMS sessions will focus on actionable topics designed to both raise awareness and provide ideas that stimulate travel activity.  For example, one of the DEI sessions will feature a representative from Black Restaurant Weeks, an organization that helps destinations organize dining promotions; as well as a sustainability session about how carbon offset organizations can serve as an amenity for any hotel, airline or other provider interested in helping to address climate change.

Additional news: USAE News, the premier weekly source of news for over 60,000 hotel, CVB, and meeting planner professionals, will be the official media sponsor for this year’s EMS. Ross Heller, Publisher, USAE News: “The Emerging Markets Summit is a ‘must attend’ for destinations looking to learn cutting edge strategies for capturing more of these emerging markets.”

What attendees will learn about accessibility, sustainability and DE&I.

  • Getting in the game: How to get started. 
  • How to up the game you already have.
  • How to create a business case should you need to convince the boss.
  • How to communicate and reach people most likely to respond to marketing to all three segments.

Early Bird Registration Ends on April 1st. Register Today and Save.

How We Can Help Evacuate Disabled Ukrainians to Safety

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Group of Ukrainian evacuees, including wheelchair users.

The California-based non-profit Joni & Friends International Disability Center is helping stranded Ukrainians with disabilities cross the border into Poland and other neighboring countries. They are helping those who have great physical difficulty with moving far distances on their own.

Galyna, the Joni & Friends coordinator in Ukraine, reported on the horrors facing innocent civilians caught in the center of the war: “Russian troops use kids, they use pregnant women, they use sick people or hospitals for sick children as targets for missiles. That’s terrible. And we do not want the Russian soldiers to manipulate with the people with disabilities, or to use them as shields so that our Ukrainian soldiers will not be able to protect themselves, and to defend our country.”

To protect the disabled people of Ukraine, Joni & Friends recognized that it would need to mobilize and evacuate them from cities that have been transformed into battlefields.

As of Friday, the non-profit has helped evacuate the first wave of 35 people, including 15 with disabilities including cerebral palsy and Ukrainians who use wheelchairs for their mobility.

Earlier this week, TravelAbility donated $1,000 in the name of our new foundation. To learn more about the group’s work, or to donate to their cause, visit the Joni & Friends website.

11 of the Most Accessible Advertising Campaigns in 2021

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Deaf Lowes employee with vest that reads, please tap me on the shoulder if you need assistance.

The 2022 Paralympics are fast approaching and, if history is any indication, it’s a period during which brands will fill their advertising campaigns with disabled people and athletes. In an article for Adweek, Shannon Miller asked whether brands would make a lasting commitment to disability-inclusive advertising. Some brands have been on board with that commitment for some time, and the magazine highlighted that with a look at 11 of the most accessible brand campaigns and actions of 2021.

“My consideration of a through-line [between 2021’s most accessible brand initiatives] is a deeper commitment towards the disability inclusion that isn’t just a portrayal of disability in an advertisement in a singular ad,” Josh Loebner, executive director of inclusion and accessibility at Designsensory, tells Adweek. “We did see a lot more advertising with a disability because of the Paralympics this year, but a lot of the brands are making deeper commitments that aren’t simply propped up for that specific sporting opportunity.”

To read about the top accessible advertising campaigns of 2021, check out the article in Adweek.

10 Things You Didn’t Know About the White Canes Used by Blind People

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Blind man holding a white cane.

Tap tap tap. That’s the sound of independence.

That’s the sound of people with visual impairments around the United States – and all over the world – using a white cane to confidently navigate to work, around their neighborhoods or to wherever their plans take them.

There’s no better day to celebrate the power of the white cane than October 15 – White Cane Safety Day. It’s the day set aside by the federal government to recognize the independence and skill of people who use white canes. It’s also a reminder that laws in all 50 states require drivers to yield the right of way to people with white canes, even when they’re not on a crosswalk.

In honor of White Cane Safety Day, take a look at 10 quirky facts about the white cane in the article from the Perkins School for the Blind.

How to Become a Certified Travel Companion

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Travel companion standing next to an older woman.

Companions are needed more than ever to meet the growing demand for seniors and the disabled who require assistance to make travel possible. Carol Giuliani and Jan Dougherty provide certified travel companion coaching services through their company, Certified Senior TravALZ Companions.

The duo provides detailed training to a variety of professionals to ensure travel companions have the knowledge and skills to assess, plan, and execute travel to meet the unique needs of older adult clients and those with travel challenges.

To learn more about what makes a skilled travel companion, check out the Certified Senior TravALZ Companions website.