Web accessibility isn't a niche issue. In Canada, roughly 22% of people over 15 have some form of disability. In Alberta, that's over 700,000 people. For nonprofits and small businesses trying to serve their communities, an inaccessible website is a door left locked.
The legal landscape
The Accessible Canada Act (2019) applies primarily to federally regulated organizations, but it's moving the national conversation. Alberta has the Accessibility Act (2020), which is still developing its standards through regulations. Organizations receiving federal contracts or grants already have obligations.
More practically: if you're receiving provincial grants, accessibility standards are increasingly showing up as eligibility requirements. This isn't a distant future concern.
What WCAG 2.1 AA actually means
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 Level AA is the most commonly cited standard. The practical checklist includes:
- All images have descriptive alt text
- Sufficient color contrast ratios (4.5:1 for body text)
- Keyboard-navigable interface — no mouse required
- Form fields have visible labels, not just placeholder text
- Videos have captions or transcripts
- The page makes sense when read by a screen reader
Where Edmonton nonprofits typically fall short
The most common issues we see: low-contrast text on colored backgrounds, images with missing or generic alt text, PDFs that aren't tagged for screen readers, and forms built with placeholder text instead of proper labels.
The good news
Modern web tooling makes this easier than ever. Semantic HTML is accessible by default. Tools like axe DevTools and Google Lighthouse provide free automated checks. And accessible sites tend to be better sites overall — clearer structure, faster load times, easier to navigate for everyone.
If you're not sure where your site stands, an accessibility audit is a good place to start. Get in touch and we can take a look.