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A photograph of Donna Jodhan, smiling, with short hair and glasses wearing a black button-up shirt, standing indoors in a modern, softly lit space with glass doors and blurred background elements.

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Meet Donna J. Jodhan, LLB, ACSP, MBA

World-renowned blind advocate, accessibility champion, and change maker. Global leader in disability rights, digital accessibility, and inclusive policy reform.

Introduction

Donna J. Jodhan is a globally recognized blind advocate, author, entrepreneur, law graduate, coach, and accessibility strategist whose groundbreaking work has transformed the landscape for people with disabilities in Canada and beyond. She is best known for turning legal victories into practical, lasting change — a mission she sums up in her guiding philosophy: “Turning policy into progress for people with disabilities.”

Donna’s career spans decades of advocacy, legal reform, entrepreneurship, and public engagement. Through her leadership she has inspired governments, corporations, and communities to break down barriers, uphold dignity, and ensure equal access for all.

Landmark Achievements

  1. 2025: Launch: Vision Tech Academy
    On January 1, 2025, Donna announced the launch of the Vision Tech Academy Online Directory of Educators (ODE) in honor of the late John Panarese. Vision Tech Academy is a website, platform and online directory dedicated to empowering blind and low-vision individuals by connecting them with trusted assistive technology educators for free.
  2. 2024: Launch: Access Park
    On October 21, 2024, Donna announced the launch of Access Park in concert with Aaron Di Blasi. Access Park is a community-driven, fully accessible, global online marketplace. Powered by the latest in web accessibility standards, Access Park complies with ADA, WCAG 2.1 and WCAG 2.2 guidelines, to ensure that everyone, regardless of ability, can use the site with ease.
  3. 2022: Legal and Academic Excellence
    On July 14, 2022, Donna fulfilled a lifelong dream by earning her Law Degree (LLB) from the University of London, England, adding to her MBA and Apple Certified Support Professional (ACSP) credentials. Her legal training amplifies her ability to influence policy, hold institutions accountable, and champion rights through informed advocacy.
  4. 2022: Platinum Jubilee Award from Queen Elizabeth II
    On June 3, 2022, Donna was honored with the Platinum Jubilee Award from Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, in recognition of her “tireless dedication to removing barriers, advancing accessibility, and improving the lives of people with disabilities across Canada and beyond.“
  5. 2020: Apple Certified Support Professional (ACSP)
    On November 1, 2020, Donna achieved Apple Certified Support Professional status, demonstrating advanced technical proficiency in supporting and optimizing Apple products while ensuring accessibility for blind and low-vision users.
  6. 2019: Pivotal Role in the Accessible Canada Act
    On July 11, 2019, Donna co-founded and led Barrier-Free Canada, rallying over 25 national disability organizations in a coordinated campaign that resulted in the enactment of the Accessible Canada Act. This landmark legislation is designed to create a Barrier-Free Canada by addressing accessibility in employment, transportation, and the built environment.
  7. 2012: Landmark Charter Challenge Against the Canadian Government
    On May 30, 2012, in one of the most significant victories for digital accessibility in Canadian history, Donna successfully challenged the Government of Canada over inaccessible federal websites. The case, originally decided in her favour by the Federal Court of Canada in 2010 (Jodhan v. Canada (Attorney General), 2010 FC 1197), established that inaccessible government websites violated Section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This constitutional case, upheld by the Federal Court of Appeal in 2012, required the Government of Canada to bring its online services into compliance with recognized accessibility standards, setting a powerful precedent for digital inclusion in Canada.
  8. 1981: Master of Business Administration (MBA)
    In 1981 Donna earned her MBA from McGill University in Montreal, becoming one of the first blind Canadians to achieve this distinction. This advanced business training underpins her entrepreneurial ventures and ability to lead complex accessibility initiatives.

Mission: Turning Policy into Progress for People with Disabilities

For Donna, changing the law is only the first step. True equality comes when policies are transformed into everyday realities that empower people with disabilities to live, work, travel, learn, and create without barriers.

Her mission focuses on:

  • Accountability — Ensuring that institutions comply with accessibility laws in a timely and meaningful way.
  • Opportunity — Expanding education, career, and entrepreneurship pathways for people with disabilities.
  • Inclusion — Advocating for accessible environments in digital spaces, workplaces, public services, and the built world.
  • Empowerment — Equipping people with the skills, tools, and confidence to advocate for themselves.

Donna’s work blends legal expertise, lived experience, and community collaboration to deliver tangible results, ensuring that the promise of accessibility legislation becomes everyday progress.

Ongoing and Recent Projects

  • Podcasts by Donna Jodhan — A dynamic collection of advocacy-driven audio programs designed to educate, inspire, and connect communities.
  • Access Park — Founder of Access Park, a fully accessible, global online marketplace connecting buyers and sellers of assistive technology and other disability-focused products. Built to WCAG 2.1/2.2 standards, it ensures inclusive online shopping for the disability community.
  • Blindly Brilliant — Creator of the Blindly Brilliant pottery collection on Etsy, featuring handcrafted pieces designed to inspire and break down barriers for vision-impaired artists.
  • Envisioning Youth Empowerment (EYE) Retreat — Instructor for Advocacy 101 and Entrepreneurship 101, empowering blind and vision-impaired youth to build skills, confidence, and leadership capacity.
  • Air Canada Accessibility Advisory Group — Contributor to Air Canada’s Accessibility Advisory Group, working to improve travel experiences for passengers with disabilities.
  • Wellesley College AI Generation Research — Participant in groundbreaking research on Google Gemini’s potential for accessibility and creativity in the disability community.
  • Dinner Mystery Productions & Subscription Libraries — Producer of interactive “court’s in session” dinner mystery events and creator of subscription libraries in audio mysteries, recipes, and home & garden resources — all designed to fund anti-bullying campaigns and youth initiatives.

Past Advocacy Work

Awards and Recognition

  • Platinum Jubilee Award — Queen Elizabeth II (2022).
  • Person of the Year — Canadian Council of the Blind (2017).
  • Top 15 Canadians in Digital Technology — Backbone Magazine.
  • National Award for Valued Contribution to the Disability Rights Movement — Council of Canadians with Disabilities (2010).
  • Unsung Hero Award — Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians (2008).
  • Award from Elections Canada for service to the Advisory Group for Disability Issues (2018).
  • Featured in Lifestyles Magazine Winter 2024 Edition — National profile in a prestigious philanthropy and leadership publication, highlighting Donna’s life’s work in dismantling societal and technological barriers for people with disabilities, her landmark legal victories, her role in shaping the Accessible Canada Act, and her commitment to empowering youth and changing attitudes “one step at a time.”

Donna Jodhan on The Butterfly in my Logo and the Power of the Color Purple

When you see a butterfly, you’re looking at one of nature’s most determined survivors. It begins life as a caterpillar, limited in how it can move and in what it sees. Then comes the cocoon, a dark, confining space where the real work happens. It’s not easy. It takes struggle, patience, and resilience for that caterpillar to transform. But when it emerges, it’s not just changed, it’s free. It’s found its wings.

For me, the butterfly is a symbol of what every person with a disability goes through. The moment life changes, whether through birth, illness, or accident, we begin our own cocoon stage. We’re forced to relearn, to adapt, and to face barriers others may never experience. The kind of butterfly we become depends upon our journey, our challenges, and the supports we find along the way.

Some roads are long and winding, while some are steep and painful, but each holds the potential for transformation. I believe that with the right opportunities, attitudes, and accessibility, every person can emerge from their coccoon stronger, more confident, and ready to fly in their own way.

That’s why I chose the butterfly for my logo — and why it’s purple. Purple is the color of dignity, transformation, and courage. It holds the depth of struggle and the brightness of hope. It’s a color long associated with advocacy for disability rights, and with the wisdom that comes from lived experience. In my work, purple reminds me that every challenge, every cocoon, can give rise to strength, confidence, beauty and freedom.

The butterfly is my daily reminder that disability is not the end of the story, but the beginning of a transformation. And my mission, in everything I do, is to help others through that journey, so they too can emerge, spread their wings, and take flight in their own way, with all of the courage, dignity, and hope that their newfound freedom represents.

Contact & Collaboration

Donna welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with organizations, policymakers, educators, and innovators who share her commitment to accessibility and inclusion.

Donna J. Jodhan, LLB, ACSP, MBA
Global Leader In Disability Rights, Digital Accessibility, And Inclusive Policy Reform
Turning policy into progress for people with disabilities.

A photograph of Donna Jodhan, smiling, with short hair and glasses wearing a black button-up shirt, standing indoors in a modern, softly lit space with glass doors and blurred background elements.

A stylized purple butterfly with wings made of smooth, curved shapes in two shades of purple, outlined in white. Above the butterfly, in bold capital letters, is the name 'DONNA' in dark purple. Below the butterfly, also in bold capital letters, is the surname 'JODHAN' in dark purple. Under the name is the tagline in smaller purple text: 'Turning policy into progress for people with disabilities.'

Connect With Me:

🌍 Website: https://donnajodhan.com
📧 Email: donna@donnajodhan.com