Professor Mary Ann Devine, Ph.D., was part of a keynote panel at the 2nd International Symposium on the Inclusive Leisure Experience. The two-day conference, presented by the International Association of Disability Studies, was held recently at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières in Quebec, Canada.
In many societies, people who are marginalized by living with a disability and being a member of a minority group experience multiple inequities for inclusion in society," said Devine, who also serves as the coordinator of the Cultural Foundations program. "People with disabilities are often viewed as having one-dimensional identities, yet live with multiple identities. In this keynote panel discussion, I presented a framework for addressing barriers to creating inclusive communities, and how it can be applied in inclusive leisure environments to be responsive to the unique leisure needs of people who have intersecting identities."
The symposium, which partnered with the Conseil Québécois du loisir (CQL), the support of the Participation sociale et villes inclusive team and Inclusive Society, defines the inclusive leisure experience as the possibility for a person to access places and facilities and have opportunities for meaningful leisure activities that enable them to actualize their potential according to their aspirations, while forging meaningful relationships with other participants. This experience is conceived from individual, community and territorial perspectives.
Also included on the keynote panel is Alexandra Arelleno, Ph.D., University of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada; and Lila H. Ratsinfa, Ph.D., University of Stuttgart in Germany.