BCACL Conference 2012: Moving Forward: Steadfast and Strong

BCACL will host its 2012 conference, "Moving Forward: Steadfast and Strong" in Penticton, British Columbia on May 30-June 2, 2012. 

#BCACL2012

Read the Conference Program Here

REGISTRATION

Registration Information
Registration Deadlines
Payment, Confirmation and Receipt
Cancellation, Refund and Substitution Policy
Other Registration Information
Contact

CONTENT

Keynote Speakers
Workshops
Annual General Meeting
Friday Night Dinner/Dance 
Pre-Conference Day
Exhibitor Information

SPONSORSHIP

For sponsorship opportunities, click here or contact Salima Mawji, smawji@bcacl.org.

View Conference Sponsors

ACCOMMODATION AND TRAVEL INFORMATION

Venue
Accommodation
Travel Information
Penticton Information

Conference art by Shannon Armstrong.

PAYMENT, CONFIRMATION AND RECEIPT

The registration fee category is determined by when the payment is received, and is due in Canadian dollars. For example, if your registration is received before the Early Bird date and payment is received after the Early Bird date then the Regular Rate will apply even though you registered before the Early Bird deadline.

 A confirmation email will be sent shortly after you register which serves as a receipt if you submit payment by credit card and as an invoice if you wish to pay by cheque.  If payment is made by cheque then a receipt will be sent once payment has been received.

Methods of Payment

Cheque
If you are paying by cheque, please include the name of the registrant on the cheque and make the cheque payable to "BCACL c/o Sea to Sky Meeting Management Inc." Please see the payment address at the bottom of this page. A receipt will be sent to the email address provided in this registration once payment has been received.

Credit Card - Visa and Master Card
If paying by Credit Card, "Sea to Sky Meeting Management Inc." will appear as the vendor on your credit card statement.

CANCELLATION, REFUND POLICY

Refunds will be available until Friday, April 20, 2012 and will be subject to a cancellation administration fee of $50 per person. After this date no refunds will be permitted, however participant substitutions can be made until Wednesday, May 23, 2012.  All cancellations or substitutions must be submitted in writing to Sea to Sky Meeting Management at katrina@seatoskymeetings.com.

OTHER REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Wheelchair Access and Special Assistance
All Conference venues are wheelchair accessible. If you require special assistance for any reason, please include your requirements during the registration process and confirm any details with the Registration Coordinator.

Dietary Requests
Please identify any dietary requirements during the registration process so that we can make arrangements in advance for your registered food and beverage events.

Insurance and Liability

Participants take part in the BCACL Conference 2012 at their own risk and need to make their own health and travel insurance arrangements.

CONTACT

Katrina Sutela
BCACL 2012 Registration Coordinator
c/o Sea to Sky Meeting Management Inc.
Suite 206, 201 Bewicke Ave.
Vancouver, BC, Canada, V7M 3M7
Phone:  1-604-984-6455
Email: katrina@seatoskymeetings.com.

CONTENT

Keynote Speakers

We are proud to feature incredible keynote speakers at our three plenaries - the opening session, midway session, and closing session. This year's keynote speakers include:

Ujjal Dosanjh

Ujjal Dosanjh, former Member of Parliament and Premier of British Columbia, served as the Attorney General of British Columbia from 1995 to 2000 and then as the Premier of British Columbia from February 2000 to May 2001. In June 2004, he made the leap to federal politics when he was elected Member of Parliament for Vancouver South, where he served until 2011. From July 2004 to February 2006, Ujjal served as federal Minister of Health. He has served as the Official Opposition Critic for National Defence, Foreign Affairs, Health, and Public Safety.

A long time human rights and social justice activist, he has been involved in community work with many organizations such as the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association, MOSAIC, South Vancouver Neighbourhood House, and the Vancouver Multicultural Society. In 1977, while he was Chair of the Labour Advocacy Research Association, he helped create the Farm Workers' Legal Information Service for janitorial, domestic and farm workers. This eventually facilitated the formation of the Canadian Farm Workers' Union.

He and his wife Raminder have three sons Pavel, Aseem, and Umber, as well as three grandchildren, Solaina, Alexei and Suhani.

Cathy Anthony

Cathy Anthony has been involved, both personally and professionally, in the community Living movement for almost three decades. She is a proud mom of two adult children and says her 27 year old son Joshua is her greatest teacher.

Cathy has diverse experience in the community living field, as a family advocate, a volunteer and in her career. In the early 80’s she worked in direct support roles with adults and then, using her family experience, she took her passion to join with and support other families. She has participated on many local and provincial committees supporting the rights and opportunities of people with disabilities and their families. In 2008 Cathy was honored with CLBC’s Lifetime Achievement award. Cathy was also involved in creating the Woodlands Memorial Garden.

Cathy loves to share her passion and experience through storytelling. She credits her greatest life learning’s to the many individuals and families she has shared her life journey with. Cathy is the Coordinator of the Family & Individual Support Program with the Simon Fraser Society for Community Living.

Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift

Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift have spent the last 25 years working to ensure that people with disabilities are able to take their rightful place in schools, workplaces, and communities. Although they are well known advocates within the disability rights community, they prefer to think of themselves as modern day storytellers, continuing the long held tradition of using humour and narrative to initiate self-reflection and social change.

Norman and Emma are co-directors of Broadreach Training and Resources Ltd. They provide in-service and training in the areas of inclusive education, employment equity, conflict resolution, and other disability rights issues. They travel extensively throughout North America and abroad working with school districts, human service agencies, employers and advocacy groups.

Workshops

Full workshop descriptions available by clicking here.

Annual General Meeting

The 2012 BCACL AGM will be held on Friday, June 1 and Saturday, June 2 at the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre, 257 Power Street, Penticton, BC. The AGM is free and open to all BCACL members; conference registration is not required to participate.

Friday Night Dinner/Dance

Celebrate with BCACL, its members, and the community with a Friday night dinner/dance at the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre, with live music and dancing, a cash bar, and a buffet dinner. Be a part of a warm, lively celebration of community! Tickets $35 for adults; $17.50 for children.

Pre-Conference Day

The Centre for Inclusion and Citizenship at the University of British Columbia will host a full-day pre-conference day on Wednesday, May 30, entitled "Centre for Inclusion and Citizenship - Research With Relevance," presenting CIC research and more. The Pre-Conference Day registration is $100, or $25 for students and self advocates. You may register for the Pre-Conference Day as part of overall registration.

Hosts/ Facilitators: Rachelle Hole and Tim Stainton

Research with Relevance is a one day event designed to inform, engage and inspire. The Centre for Inclusion and Citizenship invites you to join the conversation about how, together, we can create opportunities to identify, conduct, share, and apply research to promote the full inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities.

The day will include:

• An overview of why research is relevant; why we do it, ways we share it, how we use it;
• Discussions on how research can increase organizational capacity; how you can collect and analyze information; and how to ensure the meaningful engagement of people with intellectual disabilities in research;
• Presentations on our latest research findings on Individualized Funding, Home Sharing, and Health and Healthcare for Older Adults with Intellectual Disabilities;
• Highlights of the Canadian Inclusive Lives Learning Initiative; and
• Opportunities to contribute to the development of a provincial research strategy we can undertake in partnerships to move us forward, steadfast and strong.

The participation of self advocates, families, students, service providers, educators, policy makers, and others is welcomed and encouraged. 

Bios

Tim Stainton is the Director School of Social Work and Centre for Inclusion and Citizenship, at the University of British Columbia.  Tim’s main interest is in the area of disability with a particular emphasis on intellectual disability. His current research ranges from studying rights based support and service models, individualized funding, ethics and intellectual disability, disability rights and the historical construction of intellectual disability. Tim is the principal investigator on the Individualized Funding research project and co-principal investigator on the evaluation of BC’s Equipment and Assistive Technology Initiative (EATI). He is active in the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disability and sits on the Editorial Boards of Australian Social Work, The British Journal on Learning Disabilities, the Journal on Social Inclusion and is a consulting Editor for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.  

Rachelle Hole is an Assistant Professor and Co-Director of the Centre for Inclusion and Citizenship at University of British Columbia Okanagan.  Rachelle's current research is in the area of disability studies with a focus on the meaning of inclusion and citizenship for individuals with intellectual disabilities and their families.  She brings expertise in the area of critical disability studies and qualitative methodologies and mixed methods research design. Rachelle is the principal investigator of the Home Sharing research project; co-principal investigator exploring innovative employment practices supporting disabled employees with intermittent work capacity; and, co-investigator of the research project exploring services and supports of aging adults with intellectual disabilities.

Sponsorship

Multiple sponsorship opportunities are available for this conference - from coffee breaks to transportation to overall conference support. For information about sponsorship, please contact Salima Mawji, Director of Resource Development, at smawji@bcacl.org or 604-777-9100 x. 507.

Sponsors

BCACL is very pleased to thank our generous conference sponsors! Sponsors include the Community Services Benefits Trust, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, Community Living BC, Canadian Union of Public Employees - BC, Westland Insurance, Nanaimo Association for Community Living, Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, and FedEx Office in Langley.

Exhibitor Tables

Are you interested in exhibiting your services or product? With up to 600 people expected to attend over the three days, it's a great opportunity for exposure of your service, people and organization. This year's conference will also include an area for self advocate entrepreneurs to market their products. Exhibitor tables are available for BCACL members, non-profit organizations, and companies at the conference.

For more details on exhibiting at the conference in Penticton, please contact Katrina Sutela at katrina@seatoskymeetings.com.

About Us

The BC Association for Community Living is a provincial federation of individuals, families, volunteers and service providers who advocate on behalf of people with developmental disabilities and their families. For more information on BCACL, visit our website at www.bcacl.org

The Penticton and District Society for Community Living was initially established in 1958 to support local education for children with intellectual disablities. PDSCL has over the years has expanded its range of services to better meet the needs of our community and those who need our support.

Penticton & District Community Resources Society (PDCRS) is a diverse, multi-service non profit organization that offers a range of services and resources to individuals, families and communities throughout the South Okanagan/Similkameen. Our commitment to delivering accessible services throughout the rural areas, remote towns and First Nations communities is embedded within the positive relationships with our community partners.