City hopes to adopt inclusion plan for transgender people

Jul 8 2016, 10:58 pm

A report aiming to adopt a strategy to make spaces and policies more inclusive for trans and gender-variant people will be voted on by Vancouver City Council next Wednesday.

Among the top priorities are creating non-gendered, universal signage for single-use washrooms and developing a checklist for trans inclusion in city events. If the plan is adopted by council, the city aims to have those strategies implemented by December of 2017.

Mayor Gregor Robertson has issued a statement expressing support for the plan.

“Over the years Vancouver has shown incredible leadership in our commitment to equality, acceptance and inclusion, and we are a stronger and more vibrant City for it,” he says. “I’m proud to support this progressive TGV2S Inclusion policy that brings us even further in achieving equal rights and access to services for all residents.”

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TransFocus Consulting, a group that specializes in providing transgender resources and inclusive policies to employers, was tasked by the City to provide recommendations across five pillars:

  1. Public spaces, facilities and signage
  2. Programs and services
  3. Human resources
  4. Communications and data
  5. Community consultation and public partnerships

The consultant report by TransFocus provides a total of 14 recommendations and 31 sub-recommendations for making city infrastructure and programs and services more inclusive to trans and gender-variant people.

“The recommendations in this report are intended to position the City in a pivotal role to make the changes and accommodations necessary for the inclusion of trans*, gender variant and two-spirit residents,” reads the report. “With an interdepartmental implementation team, a practical, timely set of actions will be developed with measurable outcomes.”

Lauren SundstromLauren Sundstrom

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