David Demers

After experienceing sudden sight loss in 2010, David Demers attended the School of Community and Public Affairs and graduated in 2014 with a double-major in Community and Public Affairs and in Philosophy.

Despite coping with blindness during his studies, the SCPA and Concordia Access Centre for Students with Disabilities did everything in their capacity to ensure his equal access and participation. For these reasons, paired with dedication and hard work, David achieved high academic standing as well as being mentioned repeatedly on the Concordia Dean’s List, as a recipient of the Concordia Faculty of Arts and Science Scholar Award and was recognized as the 2014 graduation ceremony Valedictorian. 

Compelled to demystify the many misconceptions held by society with regards to the abilities of blind people, David did most of his academic research and projects on the condition of blind people in Canadian society. As such, he did his internships at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) and quickly got involved as a volunteer, spokesperson and board member. David joined the CNIB leadership team as Executive Director of the Quebec division in 2017.

His entrepreneurial background, prior to sight loss, and passion for making the world accessible to all has led him into the role of President of CNIB Frontier Accessibility, now Access Labs, a social enterprise dedicated to helping organizations of all sizes meet their accessibility, inclusion, diversity and equality goals. 

David continues to be active in the community through a variety of speaking engagements and involvement in accessibility and inclusion initiatives across the country.