Removing Barriers One Ramp at a Time
Luke Anderson is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the StopGap Foundation based in Toronto. It’s a non-profit organization committed to raising accessibility awareness and creating solutions to reduce barriers in public spaces. With their signature colourful ramps, StopGap is transforming communities across North America by fostering inclusivity and enacting change.
Started as a one-time project in 2011, StopGap began as a simple, yet impactful, idea to get temporary ramps, made of donated materials, to Toronto businesses with single step entrances. The initiative quickly resonated with a larger GTA community and in 2013 StopGap became a fully registered charity: installing 2000 ramps in various locations across Canada and the US.
Anderson's passion for accessibility stems from his own personal experience. He became disabled in a tragic bike accident, as a young adult, bringing into focus the inequalities faced by people with disabilities. He soon discovered many of the spaces he used to frequent were inaccessible. This created a daily struggle for Anderson exposing him to both physical and societal barriers.
First-hand experience gave him the resolve to make an impact. He quickly recognized that accessibility, while an issue closely linked to disability, influences society. Over the past decade Anderson has built a community he is proud of. StopGap's secret to growing is their eye-catching branding and their approachability. “We also want to build a network, build a community of people engaging in awareness raising efforts with people in different parts of Canada in the world really,” explains Anderson, emphasizing the importance of outreach.
Their branding is used to raise awareness and to create change through volunteer recruitment.
For volunteers like Maddie Bardell, it’s about more than donating her time, it's about committing to the accessibility movement. Bardell has been volunteering with StopGap since she was eight years old. In 2014, her parents introduced her to Luke Anderson and the Ramp Up school initiative, a branch of StopGap that provides educational outreach to children.
Today, Maddie Bardell’s responsibilities include leading accessibility campaigns in various neighbourhoods and painting ramps. It is because of volunteers like her that Stopgap can amplify its vision and its efforts.
While the ramps serve as a reminder that we should strive towards accessibility, they are temporary and aim to encourage the creation of permanent infrastructure; creating a society where accessibility isn't a privilege but a standard. For Luke Anderson, facilitating this push towards more permanent projects is the next step for his foundation. He hopes to install StopGap's first permanent ramp in Toronto sometime next year.
A Hero's Story
Luke Anderson was born and raised in British Columbia. He was an active child and loved the outdoors. He grew to be a gifted athlete and moved with his family to Stouffville, Ontario. Anderson was quick to make headlines in local newspapers as a championship runner and basketball star. As a young adult, he attended the University of Waterloo for Engineering and spent summers camping, mountain biking, and building homes.
Soon after graduating, Anderson was in a tragic mountain biking accident. He sustained a severe spinal cord injury, which left him permanently disabled. Forced to adapt to a new way of life, he turned his grief into passion. His journey opened his eyes to the barriers wheelchair users face.
Combining his two strengths, activism and engineering, Anderson created The StopGap Foundation. Today, he and his team are responsible for installing over 2000 temporary ramps across North America with the biggest concentration in Toronto.
Anderson is a leader in his industry. He’s called the Ramp Man and has been honoured for his commitment to activism and his country. He says that he wants to help build a world that gives everyone equal opportunity regardless of what abilities they may have.
Designing the Future of Inclusion
Lorene Casiez coordinates and manages all aspects of the accessibility practice including team operations, project delivery and client relationships at Human Space. Her goal is to maintain the highest level of accessibility in all projects and to steer the practice towards meaningful impact.
She strategically analyzes the market needs, while also contributing her technical expertise on accessibility requirements and inclusive design strategies. Human Space has successfully delivered more than 200 projects over the past decade spanning healthcare, residential, workplace, hospitality, recreation, education, transportation and the public realm.
Their consulting work is grounded in over 30 years of experience, with Casiez drawing on her inclusive design and nursing backgrounds to deliver a fully integrated and holistic approach to accessibility and inclusion.
She passionately champions the StopGap Foundation and its founder. “Luke Anderson brings a tremendous amount of value through his commitment and passion in improving accessibility; not many people can say no to Luke,” exclaims Casiez.
Meet the Team
Jonathan Innocente
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