The Value of the "Purple Pound" For Accessible Tourism in England - Great Research, Great Infographic, Great Work Visit England!

PRESS RELEASE: Destination for All World Summit Montréal October 19-22, 2014

SOMMET MONDIAL MONTRÉAL 19-22 OCTOBRE 2014

WORLD SUMMIT MONTRÉAL OCTOBER 19-22, 2014

SECRÉTARIAT DU SOMMET / SUMMIT SECRETARIAT : 1555, rue Peel, Bureau 500, Montréal (Québec) Canada H3A 3L8

T +1 514 287-9898 # 222 F +1 514 287-1248 destinations2014@jpdl.com www.destinationsforall2014.com

PRESS RELEASE

Tourisme & Handicaps to unveil the "Destination for All" seal at the first-ever Destinations for All World Summit

Montréal, June 27th 2014 – Tourisme & Handicaps, the association that administers the "Tourisme & Handicap" seal signalling France's accessible tourist establishments, will be presenting the new "Destination for All" seal at the Destinations for All World Summit in Montréal this October 19 to 22.

A "Destination for All" is a place (town, tourist region) where handicap individuals and their families can be accommodated for days at a time. Beyond accessible hotels, restaurants and attractions, these locales also have accessible businesses for everyday needs (grocery stores, malls, post offices, etc.), pedestrian routes and local transportation services.

Annette Masson, President of Tourisme & Handicaps, will unveil the process for introducing the seal, and the locations that have applied for it. With this project, France is innovating by recognizing its accessible destinations and has inspired Kéroul, which would like to imple-ment a similar label in Québec.

The aim of the Destinations for All World Summit is to exchange best practices for inclusive tourism, collectively develop international standards for accessible tourism for all, and establish a global partnership to create accessible destinations.

The event is organized by Kéroul in collaboration with the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT), Tourisme & Handicaps, Tourisme Québec, JPdL International and others.

In response to the call for speakers, close to 150 abstracts from 34 countries were submit-ted and reviewed by the Summit's program committee. In addition to Ms. Masson, confirmed speakers include:

 Daniela Bas, Director, Division for Social Policy and Development, United Nations

 Marina Diotallevi, Head of the UNWTO's Ethics and Social Responsibility Programme

 Ivor Ambrose, Managing Director, European Network for Accessible Tourism

 Jay Cardinali, Worldwide Accessibility Manager, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts

 Ann Frye, Expert on international transportation for handicapped and elderly persons, and Co-Chair of the International Activities Subcommittee of the US Transportation Research Board's Accessible Transportation and Mobility Committee

 Scott Rains, Independent tourism and travel accessibility consultant

 Martin Heng, Accessible Travel Manager, Lonely Planet

 Magnus Berglund, Scandic Hotels

 Marcus Weisen, European Centre for Cultural Accessibility

Accessibility is a matter of the law, demographics and markets. Be prepared to make way for the future: a world for all!

The World Summit Destinations for all 2014 is organized by Kéroul, a key consultant for Tourisme Québec regarding accessibility, Kéroul is a non-profit organization which, through information and lobbying, promotes and develops accessible tourism and culture and by JPdL, a leading team of conference and event professionals for over 30 years.

For more information about the World Summit Destinations for All and its supporting or-ganizations, visit: www.destinationsforall2014.com 

Source: Michel Trudel, Kéroul

Information : Marie-Hélène Paradis

mhparadis@keroul.qc.ca

514 252-3104 #3575

514 531-6797

New Research Article: Sources of tourist information used by Deaf people. Case study: the Polish Deaf community

Very little research has been carried out on accessible tourism and people who are Deaf. People reading the blog entry may be wondering why I am using Deaf capital D? The reason is that people who are Deaf do not regard themselves as having a disability but as being part of a cultural group that is bound together by their language, sign language (Corker & French, 1999). Photo 1 shows an Auslan (Australian sign language) interpreted tour of the NSW Art Gallery in Sydney, Australia as identified on the Sydney for All website.

Photo 1: Auslan (Australian sign language) interpreted tour of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney Australia. (Photo courtesy of Art Gallery of New South Wales)

A new article by Alina Zajadacz from Poland has sought to redress this gap through examining the sources of tourist information used by Deaf people. This study was longitudinal from 2004 to 2010 and surveyed 292 Deaf people comparing them to 1780 people with hearing. The findings present a breakdown of the information sources used with the discussion focusing on the need for involvement by Deaf people in the development of tourist information. An abstract of the study can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13683500.2012.725713

References

Corker, M., & French, S. (Eds.). (1999). Disability Discourse. Buckingham: Open University Press.

Zajadacz, A. (2012). Sources of tourist information used by Deaf people. Case study: the Polish Deaf community. Current Issues in Tourism, 1-21. doi: 10.1080/13683500.2012.725713  http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13683500.2012.725713