2025 Program - Thursday, October 23 at KPMG
All events will take place on the 46th floor, with the exception of Vendor Alley and the Evening Event, which will be held on the 10th floor.
| Time | Event | Speaker (s) |
| 8:30 - 9:45 a.m. | Registration opens + breakfast | - |
| 9:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Vendor Alley open | - |
| 10:00 - 10:20 a.m. | Indigenous Blessing | Jimmy Dick, Elder and Knowledge Keeper |
| 10:20 - 10:25 a.m. | Welcome address | Jade Ondrik |
| 10:25 - 10:45 a.m. | Opening remarks |
Jane Savidant, CNIB Board Chair |
| 10:45 - 11:15 a.m. | Return, Redefine, Reimagine: The Next Chapter of Work |
Paul Hamilton, Director of National Talent Strategy & Operations at KPMG Canada |
| 11:15 - 11:30 a.m. | Morning break | - |
| 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Leading Change: A Minister's Journey to Reimagine Employment |
Mia de Freitas |
| 12:00 -12:15 p.m. | One Community, One Standard: The Future of Education in Canada |
Suzanne Decary, Senior VP of Programs at CNIB |
| 12:15 - 12:30 p.m. | Touch, Tech, and Access: Designing with the Deafblind Community in Mind | Kim Setzer, Manager of Learning Innovation and Technology at Deafblind Community Services |
| 12:30 - 1:15 p.m. | Lunch break + Vendor Alley activities | - |
| 1:15 - 2:15 p.m. | KEYNOTE PRESENTATION Advancing Vision Rehabilitation for Blindness and Low Vision |
Dr. JR Rizzo, MD, MSCI, FACRM, Health System Director of Disability Inclusion; Endowed Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine, and Vice Chair of Innovation & Equity in the Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine |
| 2:15 - 2:30 p.m. | Wellness break - Brought to you by Sekond Skin Society | Lee-Anne Reuber, Founder & CEO of Sekond Skin Society |
| 2:30 - 2:45 p.m. | The Power of Collaboration: Advancing Support for Individuals Living with Neurological Based Vision Loss | Sue Marsh Woods, Regional Manager of Client Services & Operations at Vision Loss Rehabilitation Canada |
| 2:45 - 3:00 p.m. | Afternoon break | - |
| 3:00 - 3:15 p.m. | Beyond the Beep: The Future of APS and Inclusive Urban/Rural Living | Sarah Savery, North East Regional Sales Manager of Intersections at Synapse ITS |
| 3:15 - 3:30 p.m. | Seeing Employment Differently: The BME4W Launch | Joe Weber, Manager of Accessibility Solutions at Be My Eyes |
| 3:30 - 3:45 p.m. | Soaring Toward Access: Partnering for Workforce Development |
Ruba al-Nazer, Associate Director, Social Impact at the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) |
| 3:45 - 4:00 p.m. | How the Government Buys What You Sell: Navigating Canada Buys & IDEaS Program | Stella Woo, Policy Advisor - Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) – Procurement Assistance Canada – Ontario Region |
| 4:00 - 4:15 p.m. | Your AI Copilot: Navigating the Future of Work | Hector Minto, Senior Technology Evangelist for Accessibility at Microsoft |
| 4:15 - 4:30 p.m. | Afternoon break refreshments / Vendor Alley closes | - |
| 4:30 - 4:45 p.m. | Breaking Barriers: Addressing Accessibility Challenges in Ridesharing | Yanique Williams, Public Policy Manager, Western Canada at Uber Larissa Proctor, Executive Director, CNIB Voice |
| 4:45 - 5:00 p.m. | Centre[4] Arts: Leading with Creativity, Building with Community | Yvonne Felix, Executive Director at Centre[4] (Centre[4] for Artistic and Social Practice) |
| 5:00 - 5:20 p.m. | Closing remarks & prizes | Jade Ondrik Angela Bonfanti, CEO and President of CNIB & DBCS |
Evening Event - Invitation Only
5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Registration opens
5:45 - 6:00 p.m.: Welcome & opening remarks
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.: Networking reception