I will start off by saying how amazed I was with this academic and professional conference. When I first entered the conference I was slightly nervous because of how many people there were so advanced in their fields of practice. However, I quickly got over that nervousness when I remembered how we were there for the same reason, advancing research and knowledge about Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. While walking around the area of the conference I was not shocked about how accessible the venue was. They have elevators in order to go upstairs, they had plenty of accessible bathrooms for people who need them and they had ramps that went to the main keynote speakers. Although, this is a wonderful piece of information to have it’s not the only area where people with disabilities have accommodations. While we were staying at the Cairncross House in Glasgow, I noticed while in the bathroom there was Braille on the trash cans so this way people who are blind are able to tell the difference between the sanitary garbage and the normal trash.

Two other areas I noticed that were accessible throughout Glasgow were some restaurants and the Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum. In a few of the restaurants I passed I saw how even though the only way to get up to the actual restaurant was by stairs they added a lift to the side of the way. This way, anyone who may have walking difficulties or for those who can’t walk at all are able to still access the restaurants. Lastly, was the Kelvingrove Museum, where I was able to see a plaque that truly gives hope to those who have disabilities and the plaque said “Not every disability is visible. Accessible Toilet”. I have noticed since being here in Scotland that America needs to step it up a notch and do some of the things that Scotland has been doing otherwise we’ll get left behind. Obviously, these are not the only aspects of accessibility in Scotland but they are the only ones I saw and thought they would be good to share.