Global Launch of Enabled Talent & Announcement of Enabled Africa
Enabled Talent is a global platform connecting people with disabilities to meaningful jobs, training, and inclusive workplaces. We help employers recruit, hire, upskill, and support diverse talent while making the world of work more accessible, one opportunity at a time.
This October at Brampton City Hall, we will host the global launch of Enabled Talent, an inclusive employment platform proudly built in the Brampton Innovation District.
The platform began its journey at BHive Brampton and has since grown with the support of Labs4, Schulich Startups, Treefrog Accelerator, Invest Brampton, and the broader Brampton Innovation District including the Brampton Entrepreneur Centre, BVZ by TMU, and Altitude. What started as a local vision has now positioned Brampton as the headquarters of a global initiative to close accessibility and employment gaps.
At this event, we will also unveil Enabled Africa, a bold expansion into 10 countries with a five-year roadmap to reach 24 nations across West and Central Africa, home to over 85 million people with disabilities. Backed by the UNICEF Startup Lab and a new MoU with Algoma University to co-develop Tara, a voice-first assistant for blind professionals, Enabled Talent represents a made-in-Ontario innovation scaling to global impact.
Why It Matters
Globally, 1.3 billion people live with disabilities, and their exclusion from the workforce results in an estimated $1.9 trillion in annual economic loss. In Canada alone, 741,000 working-age individuals with disabilities are ready for paid employment yet the employment rate remains nearly 20 percentage points lower than for those without disabilities. This gap holds back economic growth and innovation.
Enabled Talent’s mission is aligned with Canada’s Disability Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP), the Accessible Canada Act, and the national vision of a Barrier-Free Canada by 2040. By embedding inclusive design into hiring and workplace practices, the platform is not only advancing policy goals but also positioning Brampton as a global hub for inclusive innovation.
Distinguished Guests & Honoured Supporters
Hon. Patrick Brown – Mayor of Brampton
Hon. Harkirat Singh – Deputy Mayor of Brampton
Councillor Gurpartap Singh Toor – Regional Councillor, Wards 9 & 10; Chair, Economic Development Committee
Councillor Rod Power – Regional Councillor, Wards 7 & 8; Chair, Accessibility Advisory Committee
Ms. Eve Adams – Director, Canadian Business Disability Inclusion Network (CBDIN)
Chris Carder – Director, Schulich Startups, York University
Zubair Patel – Director of Strategic Initiatives & Partnerships, BHive
Lindsey Mazza – Lawyer, Inclusive Leadership Expert, and Disability Advocate
African Diplomatic Guests (Invited)
Consulate General of Ghana
Kenya High Commission in Canada
Consulate General of Mali
Other West & Central African Consulates (invited under Enabled Africa launch)
We are honoured to welcome leaders from the startup and tech ecosystem, policymakers, accessibility and disability inclusion advocates, academic collaborators, and community partners coming together to celebrate inclusive innovation and global impact.
This event also highlights Brampton’s leadership in advancing inclusion, accessibility, and innovation on a global scale.