* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:01] GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE, AND WELCOME TO THE COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES MEETING. TODAY'S DATE IS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24TH, 2026, AND THE CURRENT TIME IS 2:19 PM WE HAVE MET QUORUM AND I NOW CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER PRIOR TO PROCEEDING WITH ITEMS ON THE AGENDA, THERE ARE A FEW HOUSEKEEPING ANNOUNCEMENTS TO BE AWARE OF. FIRSTLY, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE JOINING US REMOTELY, WE KINDLY ASK THAT YOU KEEP YOUR CAMERAS ON AT ALL TIMES IN ORDER FOR US TO COUNT YOU PRESENT. SECOND, IF YOU WISH TO ASK A QUESTION OR MAKE A COMMENT, WE ASK THAT YOU PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND RESPECTIVE DISTRICT TO AVOID CONFUSION. AND FINALLY, WE UNDERSTAND THAT COMMISSIONERS IN THIS ROOM HAVE MANY CONCERNS THEY WOULD LIKE TO SHARE, AND MANY QUESTIONS THEY WOULD LIKE TO ASK. WE HEAR YOU. BUT AGAIN, KINDLY ADVISE YOU TO KEEP YOUR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS AS BRIEF AND CONCISE AS POSSIBLE SO THAT OTHER COMMISSIONERS IN THE ROOM MAY WISH TO ADDRESS THEIR QUESTIONS, ASK THEM THEIR QUESTIONS, AND OR VOICE THEIR CONCERNS. OUR NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS ROLL CALL, WHEN YOUR NAME IS CALLED, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND RESPECTIVE DISTRICT, STARTING WITH COMMISSIONER SELENA GLASSCOCK, DISTRICT ONE, COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK HERE. WELCOME. DISTRICT TWO IS VACANT. COMMISSIONER CANDACE WICKS, DISTRICT THREE. UM, COMMISSIONER WICKS, YOU'RE MUTED. THANK YOU. I'M SORRY. I'VE BEEN HAVING PROBLEMS GETTING INTO THIS MEETING AGAIN, SO, OKAY. NO WORRIES. WE'RE GLAD YOU'RE, WE'RE GLAD TO HAVE YOU JOIN US. AND WE'RE ALSO VERY DELIGHTED TO WELCOME COMMISSIONER MARLISA, UM, MARLISA COLLIER FROM DISTRICT FOUR. THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE DEFINITELY LOOK FORWARD TO WELCOMING YOU ON BOARD AND WELL, AND LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR SERVICE COMMISSIONER DR. ROCKWELL, DISTRICT FIVE PRESENT. OKAY. DISTRICT SIX IS VACANT. DISTRICT SEVEN IS VACANT. DISTRICT EIGHT IS VACANT. COMMISSIONER BEVERLY WHITE, DISTRICT NINE, WE KNOW SHE'S PRESENT. NOT YET. OKAY. SO COMMISSIONER WHITE WILL BE JOINING US. UM, DISTRICT 10 IS VACANT. COMMISSIONER BRYCE BANKS, DISTRICT 11 NOT PRESENT. OKAY. UH, DISTRICT 12 IS VACANT. COMMISSIONER STEVEN HUKA, DISTRICT 13 PRESENT. WONDERFUL. UM, COMMISSIONER ASHLEY LINDSAY FROM DISTRICT 14 WILL NOT BE JOINING US TODAY. WE LOOK FORWARD TO WELCOMING HER NEXT TIME. AND THIS IS CHAIRMAN JOHN CAL CONLEY, MAYOR APPOINTEE, DISTRICT 15. UM, I AM PRESENT AS WELL. I WISH TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SINCERELY APPRECIATE ALL THE COMMISSIONERS WHO WERE ABLE TO JOIN THE MEETING TODAY. WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL TO YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND DEDICATION TO THE COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES AND ITS ONGOING EFFORTS TO ADVANCE ACCESSIBILITY AND INCLUSION FOR OUR CITY. OUR NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS PUBLIC COMMENT. ARE THERE ANY, ARE, ARE THERE ANY INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY WISH TO PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT AT THIS TIME OR ARE THERE ANY INDIVIDUALS SIGNED UP TO PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT? OKAY. IN THAT CASE THEN, SINCE WE HAVE NO INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE SIGNED UP, THIS CONCLUDES THE PUBLIC COMMENT SEGMENT OF OUR AGENDA. I ONCE AGAIN ENCOURAGE ALL COMMISSIONERS TO INVITE INDIVIDUALS WITHIN THEIR CIRCLES WHO MAY WANT TO PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT ON ANY ISSUES RELATED TO THE TO DISABILITY. AS A REMINDER FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO DO SIGN UP TO PUBLIC COMMENT, THEY WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES TO SHARE THEIR TESTIMONY. AND AS I ALWAYS SAY, THE MORE VOICES WE HEAR, THE BETTER FORCE WE CAN BE IN DRIVING POSITIVE CHANGE. ITEM NUMBER FOUR ON THE AGENDA IS APPROVAL OF MINUTES. AND KINDLY BE ADVISED THAT WE ARE APPROVING THE MINUTES FOR JANUARY 29TH, 2026, WHICH WAS OUR SPECIAL CALL MEETING. ARE THERE ANY COMMISSIONERS WHO WISH TO PROVIDE EDITS TO THE MINUTES AT THIS TIME? UM, I WILL START WITH COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK, [00:05:01] DISTRICT ONE. NO, NOT AT THIS TIME. THANK YOU. UH, COMMISSIONER WICKS, DISTRICT THREE? NO SIR. THANK YOU. UH, COMMISSIONER COL. COMMISSIONER COLLIER. DISTRICT FOUR. OH, THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL. DISTRICT FIVE. NO THANKS. UM, COMMISSIONER WHITE. DISTRICT NINE. NOT ON YET. OKAY. UM, OKAY. AND THEN COMMISSIONER HUSHKA, DISTRICT FOUR. UM, DISTRICT 13. ANY EDITS? NONE. THANK YOU. MM-HMM . AND I ALSO WISH NOT TO MAKE ANY EDITS AT THIS TIME EITHER. SO ANY FINAL WARD OF DISCUSSION? ANY OTHER, ANY FINAL WORD OF DISCUSSION? THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE MINUTES WITH NO EDITS, PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. A ALL OPPOSED? APPARENTLY NONE. SO NO, NO OPPOSITIONS. SO THE MOTION PASSES AND THE MINUTES HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED AS READ. WE ARE NOW MOVING TO THE BRIEFING ITEMS ON THE AGENDA. STARTING WITH THE CHAIRMAN'S REPORT. I'LL BE PROVIDING THE OFFICER'S REPORT FOR FEBRUARY, 2026. ON JANUARY 30TH, THE COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES WAS HONORED TO PARTICIPATE IN A RIDEALONG WITH DALLAS AREA RAPID TRANSIT OR DART. THE INTENT OF THIS RIDEALONG WAS TO ADVISE THE AGENCY ON CHALLENGES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION AND WAYS DART COULD IMPROVE TO ENHANCE ACCESSIBILITY. ADDITIONALLY, IT WAS TO INFORM THE CITY'S ACCESSIBILITY IN HUMAN RIGHTS EFFORTS IN PREPARATION FOR THE 2026 FE MEN'S FIFA WORLD CUP. SOME AREAS OF CONCERN THAT WERE ADDRESSED BY THE COMMISSION, BY BY THE COMMISSION INCLUDE ACCESSIBLE SI SIGNAGE, AUDIBLE PEDESTRIAN SIGNALS, AND SIDEWALKS THAT NEED IMPROVEMENT AS IT RELATES TO COMPLYING WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT AND OTHER APPLICABLE LAWS. WE SINCERELY WISH TO APPRECIATE MR. GARY COPELAND, THE CITY'S A DA COMPLIANCE MANAGER. AND MR. CHRIS GRAVES HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICER FOR COORDINATING THIS ALONG WITH DART. I ALSO WISH TO PERSONALLY TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SINCERELY APPRECIATE COMMISSIONERS GLASSCOCK, UH, COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK, WIX AND ROCKWELL FOR TAKING TIME TO ENGAGE IN THIS VERY IMPORTANT, UM, PROCESS. AND THIS WAS A VERY RARE OPPORTUNITY FOR THE COMMISSION TO ENGAGE IN LIVELY DISCUSSIONS LIKE THIS. OCCASIONS LIKE THIS SERVE AS A REMINDER OF THE WORK STILL LEFT TO BE COMPLETED TO ACHIEVE FULL INCLUSION. THIS CONCLUDES MY REPORT FOR THE MONTH. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION. AND I WILL NOW OPEN THE FLOOR FOR COMMISSIONERS WHO MAY WISH TO PROVIDE REPORTS OF THEIR OWN. IF YOU WISH NOT TO PROVIDE A REPORT AT THIS TIME, YOU MAY INDICATE SO WHEN YOUR NAME IS CALLED STARTING WITH COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK DISTRICT ONE. UM, YES. I WANTED TO, I GUESS, SHARE THAT I ATTENDED THE DALLAS AREA RAPID TRANSIT COMMUNITY MEETING MEETING, BUT THEY HAD AN AND THIS MEETING WAS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION ON THE POTENTIAL 2026 SERVICE CHANGES. UH, THEY HAD A GOOD TURNOUT. UM, I DID, UH, LET THEM KNOW THAT ABOUT THE COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES AND THAT WE ARE THERE TO SUPPORT THEM, YOU KNOW, ADVOCATE FOR ANYBODY WHO, UM, NEEDED ASSISTANCE WITH TRANSPORTATION. UM, THIS IS A BIG CONCERN FOR A LOT OF, UM, OUR, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY THAT USE DART. UM, THEY HAD SOME GOOD NEWS FROM PLANO THE OTHER DAY. IT DOES SEEM THAT PLANO IS GONNA STAY, BUT THEY DO HAVE SOME OTHER COMMUNITY MEETINGS. UM, 'CAUSE THEY HAVE SIX CITIES, I GUESS FIVE, THAT ARE STILL GONNA GO TO VOTE. SO, UM, I HOPE TO ATTEND SOME OTHER MEETINGS AND, UH, MEET SOME MORE PEOPLE OUT THERE. THAT'S ALL. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING YOUR REPORT AND YOUR ONGOING DEDICATION TO ADVANCING ACCESSIBLE TRANSPORTATION. NEXT WE GO TO COMMISSIONER WICKS, DISTRICT THREE. THANK YOU. [00:10:01] UM, I ATTENDED THE FUTURE OF REGIONAL TRANSIT MEETING WITH THE, OUR VOICES IS OUR VOTE. CAN YOU HEAR US NOW? ORGANIZATION, UH, IN DISTRICT, THE BUILDING IS IN DISTRICT FOUR, BUT IT SERVICES THREE AMP FOUR. THAT WAS ON FEBRUARY THE 11TH AT 7:00 PM AT THE FOUR OH CLIFF OFFICE. AND THE SPEAKER WAS THE DART BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT, WHO IS RANDALL BRYANT. AND I FACILITATED THE, UH, I SERVED AS MODERATOR AND FACILITATED THE CONVERSATION. UH, IT WAS APPROXIMATELY A TWO HOUR MEETING WITH, UH, STAKEHOLDERS FROM THIS AREA TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE VOTES WOULD MEAN IF THE, UH, MEMBER, MEMBER CITIES WERE TO PULL OUT OF DART. HOW WOULD THAT AFFECT, UM, ALL, ALL POPULATIONS AND IN, IN PARTICULAR A DA. SO, UM, I JUST WANTED TO, UH, BRING THAT TO YOUR ATTENTION. THANK YOU SO MUCH, SIR. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER WICKS. WE'RE, WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR ALL THE WORK YOU DO TO PROMOTE THESE ISSUES. NEXT WE GO TO COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL, DISTRICT FIVE. UH, I WAS REALLY, UH, PRIVILEGED TO BE ABLE TO ATTEND A NUMBER OF EVENTS THIS PAST MONTH, UH, ONE WITH THE DART AND THANK YOU TO GARY AND CHRIS FOR ORGANIZING THAT ACTIVITY. UH, ALSO THE NORTH TEXAS DISABILITY CHAMBER AND THEIR DISABILITY HALL OF FAME INDUCTION, AS WELL AS VISITING WITH ENVISION DALLAS WITH THE TEXAS EPAS. UM, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT STOOD OUT MOST TO ME WAS, UH, NEEVA FAIRCHILD REMARKS AT THE, UH, HALL OF FAME INDUCTION WHERE SHE MADE THE STATEMENT, UH, MY ONE CAUSE FOR HOPE IS THE GRASSROOTS POWER THAT EXISTS AMONG PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES. WE HAVE POWER AND WE DON'T USE IT. WE HAVE THOUGHTS THAT WE DON'T SHARE, AND UNTIL WE DO, WE'RE NOT GOING TO GO FAR. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES KNOW OTHER PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND CONNECT WITH THEM AND WORK TOGETHER TO ACHIEVE WHAT IS NEEDED FOR FULL INCLUSION AND EQUITY TO LIVE IN A FREE COUNTRY AND THE GREAT STATE OF TEXAS. UM, THOSE REMARKS REALLY HIT HOME FOR ME IN TERMS OF THE EFFORTS THAT I THINK MANY OF US ARE FOCUSED ON IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE THAT, UH, EQUITY IS AT THE HEART OF PROVIDING ACCESS, UH, TO DIFFERENT EVENTS AND VENUES ACROSS THE CITY. UM, ALSO ON ANOTHER NOTE, I'M VERY HAPPY TO SAY HELLO TO OUR NEW COMMISSIONER, UH, FROM DISTRICT FOUR, UH, AND WANT TO SAY WELCOME TO YOU AS WELL. THANK YOU. MM-HMM . ARE THOSE, IS THIS, IS THIS ALL YOU HAVE TO SHARE FOR YOUR REPORT? COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL? YES. THERE WAS A WRITTEN REPORT WITH ADDITIONAL, UH, EVENTS THAT I ATTENDED, AS WELL AS UPCOMING EVENTS, UH, THAT I SHARED AS WELL, UH, WHICH I HOPE OTHER COMMISSIONERS WILL BE ABLE TO A CHANCE TO READ. OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. OKAY. UM, COMMISSIONER COLLIER, DO YOU WISH TO PROVIDE A REPORT FOR FROM DISTRICT FOUR? DO YOU WISH TO PROVIDE A REPORT FOR FEBRUARY? NOT THIS MONTH. OKAY. HOW COMMISSIONER WHITE. WE'RE GLAD YOU'RE HERE. WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE BRIEFING SEGMENT OF OUR AGENDA. WE ARE GOING OVER COMMISSIONER'S REPORTS. DO YOU WISH TO PROVIDE A REPORT AT THIS TIME? NO. THANK YOU. MM-HMM. YOU'RE WELCOME. COMMISSIONER HUSKA FROM DISTRICT 13. DO YOU WISH TO PROVIDE A REPORT? NOT AT THIS TIME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THIS CONCLUDES THE COMMISSIONER'S REPORTS. AT LEAST FOR THE FIRST SEGMENT OF THE AGENDA. WE WANT TO THANK ALL COMMISSIONERS WHO HAVE SHARED, AND FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT, WE CERTAINLY LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU. OUR NEXT BRIEFING ITEM IS INCLUSION. THIS, OUR NEXT BRIEFING ITEM IS ENTITLED INCLUSIVE DESIGN AND OPERATIONAL PLANNING FOR MEGA SPORTING EVENTS OR MEGA SPORTING EVENT VENUES. TODAY WE'RE VERY PLEASED AND EXCITED TO HAVE MARK DYER, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT. HE WILL SPEAK ABOUT HIS EXPERIENCE AS AN ACCESSIBILITY AND INCLUSIVE DESIGN CONSULTANT ON SEVERAL MEGA SPORTING EVENTS, EVENTS, PROJECTS FROM THE LONDON 2012 OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC GAMES TO THE 2022 FIFA MEN'S WORLD CUP AND QATAR, AND HOW IT CAN APPLY TO THE FIFA WORLD CUP 2026. MR. DYER, THE FLOOR IS NOW YOURS. HI. GOOD AFTERNOON TO EVERYONE, MATE. CAN YOU ALL ALL HEAR ME OKAY. UM, MR. DYER, WE ARE HAVING A HARD TIME HEARING YOU, SO YOU'RE KIND OF BREAKING UP ON US. [00:15:01] OKAY. I'LL TRY AND I'LL TRY AND SPEAK SLOWLY. I MIGHT TRY AND SHUT MY CAMERA. IT MIGHT MAKE IT EASIER TO HEAR ME. CAN YOU PICK ME UP NOW? UH, WE CAN HEAR YOU NOW. WE CAN HEAR YOU BETTER. OKAY, GREAT. THANK YOU FOR INVITING ME TODAY. UH, IT'S A REAL PRIVILEGE AND HONOR FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO JOIN YOU AND, UM, HEAR ABOUT, UH, OBVIOUSLY ALL THE WORK YOU ARE DOING AND IT'S ALWAYS INSPIRING TO, TO SPEAK TO ORGANIZATIONS AND COMMISSION SUCH AS YOURSELF THAT CAN HAVE SUCH AN INFLUENCE, UH, OVER CHANGE, UH, OVER AWARENESS AND ULTIMATELY LEGACY AS WELL. AND TODAY I JUST WANNA REALLY SPEND A FEW MINUTES TALKING THROUGH MY EXPERIENCES OF WHAT WE NEED TO CONSIDER WHEN WE PLAN THESE EVENTS. UM, AND IF WE CAN JUST GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, I'LL JUST TAKE YOU THROUGH SOME OF MY BACKGROUND, UH, AND WE'LL GO FROM THERE. SO AS YOU JUST HEARD, I'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF THIS KIND OF, UH, GAMES EVENT STUFF NOW FOR THE PAST 20 ODD YEARS. I FIRST STARTED LONDON 2012 WHEN IT WAS 2006. MY MOTIVATION INSPIRATION IS THAT I MYSELF AM A PARAPLEGIC. UH, I WAS PARALYZED WHEN I WAS 20. IT WASN'T A PATH OR DIRECTION I WAS PLANNING TO TAKE, BUT FOR ME THIS HAS BEEN ONE THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT. AND THE REASON IT'S SO IMPORTANT IS BECAUSE DOING MAJOR EVENTS SUCH AS THIS CAN BE A REAL CATALYST FOR CHANGE AND CAN MAKE A REAL DIFFERENCE FOR PEOPLE'S LIVES BECAUSE IT'S THE ONE TIME YOU HOPE TO GET PEOPLE ACROSS ALL FACETS OF A CITY WORKING TOGETHER AND IN THE SAME DIRECTION CURRENTLY. JUST EXPLAIN. I MEAN WE HAD AT THE MOMENT, UM, SOME, QUITE A FEW HOURS AHEAD OF YOU. UM, AND I WORK ON TOURISM PROJECTS OVER HERE, BUT ALSO I'M RAISING DISABILITY AWARENESS AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO I KNOW WHEN I I TALK TO YOU TODAY, A LOT OF YOU WILL KNOW, UH, A LOT OF THIS INITIAL INFORMATION, BUT WHEN I'VE WORKED ON THESE PROJECTS, WE SHOULD NEVER ASSUME THAT THIS IS KNOWLEDGE ACROSS THE WHOLE OF A PROJECT. UH, AND CERTAINLY NOT THE WHOLE OF AN EVENT. SO A COUPLE OF KEY THINGS I REALLY WANT TO KIND OF SHARE WITH YOU. AND IT'S, IT'S NOT ABOUT, UM, YOU ARE NOW JUST LITERALLY A FEW MONTHS AWAY. IT'S NOT ABOUT MAKING CHANGE, BUT IT'S CREATING AWARENESS. IT'S ABOUT MAKING PEOPLE AWARE OF WHAT THE OPPORTUNITIES ARE. IT'S ABOUT THE CHALLENGES THAT DISABLED PEOPLE FACING WHERE THEY ARE VISIT TO THE CITY, WHERE THEIR EXPECTATIONS WITHIN THE CITY WHERE MORE IMPORTANTLY ALSO HOW WE SUPPORT THOSE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO JUST DO THEIR NORMAL DAY-TO-DAY LIVES AS A DISABLED PERSON AND ARE CONCERN THEY WON'T BE SUPPORTED IN THE SAME WAY THEY WOULD BE PREVIOUSLY. SO ONCE WE LOOK AT THESE EVENTS, MAIN THINGS WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT IS WE HAVE A LOT OF VISIBLE DISABILITIES IN TERMS OF A LOT OF PEOPLE WE WILL KNOW WILL SEE THAT FROM THEIR TICKETING PROGRAM. BUT WE HAVE A HUGE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT WILL SUDDENLY FIND THE EVENT WE'RE PUTTING ON WILL BE DISABLING. AND THE REASON IT'LL BE DISABLING IS BECAUSE ONE, THEY POSSIBLY DON'T GO EVERY WEEK TO TO THE STADIUMS TO SEE THE EVENT. SO THEY MAY NOT BE A COWBOYS FAN, BUT THEY WANT TO TAKE THAT ONE-OFF OPPORTUNITY TO GO AND SEE A WORLD CUP MATCH. AND THE OTHER REFACTOR OF COURSE, IS A LOT OF PEOPLE COMING IN FROM OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD TO SEE MATCHES, TO SEE THEIR COUNTRIES AGAIN, WILL NOT HAVE AN AWARENESS AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE CITY OF HOW IT FUNCTIONS AND HOW THEY MIGHT ADAPT AND CHANGE TO THAT. AND THAT IMPACTS ACROSS ALL THINGS FROM FINDING THE RIGHT ACCOMMODATIONS TO THE TRANSPORT OBVIOUSLY. AND THEN THE FINAL ONE IS I THINK THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE THAT DAY-TO-DAY USUAL EXPERIENCE OR WEEK-TO-WEEK EXPERIENCE OF GOING TO THE STADIUM AND SUDDENLY THE ROUTINE AND REGIMES HAVE BEEN FALLING FOR LAST 10, 15, 20 YEARS HAVE CHANGED. AND THAT'S DUE TO THINGS LIKE SOCIAL SECURITY. SO WHERE YOU MAY PARK PREVIOUSLY IS MUCH FURTHER AWAY, YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PARK FOR SOME VENUES. SO IT'S ALL ABOUT HOW THAT KIND OF THING WORKS AND IT'S THINKING ABOUT HOW DO WE CREATE A SOLUTION THAT ADDRESSES INFRASTRUCTURE, OPERATION AND MANAGEMENT AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO THERE'S THINGS WE NEED TO DO AND AGAIN, YOU'LL ALL BE VERY MUCH BOUGHT INTO THIS I'M SURE BECAUSE YOU WOULDN'T IN YOUR ROLES OTHERWISE, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE CAN USE THIS AS INDEPENDENTLY AS POSSIBLE. UM, WE WANT TO GIVE PEOPLE THE CONFIDENCE THAT WHEN THEY START THAT JOURNEY, WHEN THEY START THAT PLAN EXPERIENCE, THEY CAN FOLLOW IT ALL THE WAY THROUGH. AND THEN I THINK THE ROLE OF THE CITY SHOULD BE TO LOOK AT USING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES TO NOT JUST ENSURE IT WORKS FOR DISABLED PEOPLE, BUT THE PROCESS IF IT WORKS FOR SOME OF THE DISABILITY, YOU INCREASING USABILITY FOR EVERYONE. UH, AND THAT'S A BIG FACTOR AND THAT'S A REFLECTION OF HOW OUR SOCIETY SHOULD EVOLVE AND CHANGE. WE ALL KNOW THAT WE HAVE DIFFERENT CHALLENGES WITH DISABILITY COMING FORWARD, DIFFERENT LEVELS OF AWARENESS. UM, THAT MEANS THAT THAT ENVIRONMENT NEEDS TO BE AS USABLE FOR EVERYONE . SO A WORLD CUP OR AN OLYMPIC GAME SHOULD BE A CATALYST FOR [00:20:01] CHANGE AND IT SHOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEAVE A LEGACY. AND OBVIOUSLY A FEW MONTHS OUT ALL THOSE THINGS YOU MIGHT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ADDRESS WILL ALREADY HAPPENED. WE ARE NOW AT THE POINT WHERE WE HOPEFULLY WERE SAYING THESE THINGS ARE LESSONS WE'VE LEARNED, THIS IS HOW MANAGED TO TAKES SOME OF THE PROCESSES AND PROCEDURES AND THIS MAKES A DIFFERENCE FOR US GOING FORWARD. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO THIS, SEE SIX KEY THINGS I THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT WHEN WE ARE THINKING ABOUT A, A GAMES EVENT, GAMES EXPERIENCE, WHETHER THAT'S TO DO WITH A STADIUM, WHETHER IT'S TO DO WITH A FAN ZONE, WHETHER THAT'S TO DO WITH OTHER ACTIVITIES RELATED TO THE WORLD CUP, CLEARLY WE WANT IT TO BE SAFE, WE WANT IT TO BE DIGNIFIED AND WE WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL CONFIDENT IN EACH SELECTIONS THEY'RE MAKING, WHETHER IT'S TRANSPORT OR ACCOMMODATION, UH, OR THEY'RE TICKETING CHOICES THAT THEY WILL BE SUPPORTED IN THE RIGHT AND APPROPRIATE WAYS. IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT WE TRY AND MAKE PEOPLE BE AS INDEPENDENT AS POSSIBLE. WE WANT TO OFFER THE SAME EXPERIENCES AS EVERYBODY ELSE CAN ENJOY. AND THAT'S IMPORTANT THAT WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR PROCESSES, WE LOOK AT OUR ROOTS, WE LOOK AT THE EXPERIENCES THAT YOU GET TO SHARE AND ENJOY THAT AS MUCH AS EVERYBODY ELSE. I THINK CONNECTIVITY IS CRITICAL. YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO SEE THAT END-TO-END JOURNEY. WE'LL TALK ON THAT IN A LITTLE BIT IN A MOMENT BECAUSE IF YOU CAN'T CONNECT AN END-TO-END JOURNEY AND YOU SEE AS A DISABLED PERSON, WHATEVER YOUR DECISION MIGHT BE, POTENTIAL BREAK POINTS ALONG THAT JOURNEY, ONE YOU ARE INCLINED NOT POSSIBLY NOT TO TRY IT OR SECONDLY IT'LL CAUSE YOU ANXIETY. AND THIRDLY, IT MAY EVEN CAUSE AN IMPACT UPON YOUR, YOUR HEALTH AND YOUR DECISION MAKING IN THAT PROCESS AS WELL. AND THEN THE FINAL BIT THAT REALLY COMES BACK TO WHAT WE CAN DO THAT MAKES THAT PROCESS WORK MORE EFFECTIVELY IS TO ENSURE IT'S CONSISTENT. SO WE IDENTIFY A CONSISTENT APPROACH TO WHAT DO WE MEAN BY AN ACCESSIBLE TRAIN STATION, WHAT DO WE MEAN BY AN ACCESSIBLE VEHICLE TO GET US TO OUR VENUE? WHAT DO WE MEAN BY PROVIDING ACCESSIBLE SEATING WITHIN A STADIUM? EVEN THINGS LIKE WHAT IS OUR STANDARD FOR ACCESSIBLE TOILETS? AND YOU ARE VERY FORTUNATE WITH THINGS LIKE THE A DA, YOU DO HAVE STANDARDIZATION BUT YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER A LOT OF THOSE GUESTS COMING TO VISIT YOU. AND A LOT OF THOSE SPECTATORS WILL BE COMING FROM COUNTRIES WHERE THEY WON'T BE FAMILIAR WITH A DA DIRECTLY. SO MAKING THEM AWARE OF WHAT THAT ACTUALLY LOOKS AND FEELS LIKE WILL GIVE THEM CONFIDENCE AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO JUST MENTIONED BEFORE, THIS IS ALL ABOUT THE INTERN JOURNEY AND THIS JOURNEY STARTS NOT WHEN SOMEONE ARRIVES IN DALLAS. THIS STARTS WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT I WANT TO GO AND SEE MY COUNTRY, WHICH IS AM I GONNA BE IN? WHERE CAN I FIND OPTIONS OF ACCESSIBLE TICKETS OR IF I DON'T HAVE AN ACCESSIBLE TICKET NEED, WHICH IS THE VIABILITY OF THE MOST APPROPRIATE STADIUM FOR ME TO GET TO TO SEE MY COUNTRY. YOU ARE VERY FORTUNATE THAT YOU'LL NEVER HAVE AN EXPERIENCE LIKE THIS BEFORE. AND I SPEAK FROM MY OWN PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE OF DOING LONDON OLYMPICS FOR EIGHT YEARS. THERE IS NOTHING LIKE PUTTING ON INTERNATIONAL EVENT AT THIS SCALE WITHIN YOUR OWN CITY. YOU'LL SEE HUGE LEVELS OF PRIDE. YOU'LL SEE UH, A FEELING OF BELONGING. YOU'LL SEE VOLUNTEERS COMMITTED IN YOU POSSIBLY DON'T SEE BEFORE. AND IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT I CAPTURE THOSE, THOSE BITS AND PIECES GOING FORWARD. BUT THE KEY THING IS IT'S THIS MAKING SURE THIS JOURNEY STAYS CONNECTED ALL THE WAY THROUGH THAT WE HAVE THE RIGHT LEVEL OF ACCESSIBLE ACCOMMODATION AND THAT ACCESSIBLE ACCOMMODATION WILL COME UNDER STRESS AND STRAIN BECAUSE YOU'LL HAVE MORE PEOPLE COMING IN TO THE CITY AT ONE TIME POTENTIALLY BOOKING DISABLED ROOMS WHO HAVEN'T PREVIOUSLY EVER NEEDED TO DO THAT BEFORE. SO MAKING SURE THEY HAVE THE RIGHT LO LOCATIONS TO GET TO THOSE VENUES AND THAT THEY HAVE THE RIGHT UH, SUPPORTED STANDARDS AND FACILITIES WITHIN THEIR ROOMS AS WELL IS BASICALLY IMPORTANT AS WELL. SO AS THE MORE YOU CAN SHARE BEFOREHAND, THE MORE YOU GIVE PEOPLE THAT UH, DEGREE OF CONFIDENCE AND ALSO ASSURANCE THAT THEIR NEEDS WILL BE MET. THIS RUNS ALL THE WAY THROUGH AND AS I JUST SAID BEFORE, IT ONLY TAKES ONE BREAK POINT AND THEN SOMEWHERE A DISABILITY POTENTIALLY STOPS DOING THIS AND IT'S HARD TO GO BACK AND IT'S HARD TO START AGAIN. SO WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MAKE SURE THAT PRE PLANNING PROCESS STARTS FROM THE VERY BEGINNING FROM WHEN THEY BOOK THEIR TICKETS. AND FIFA IS OBVIOUSLY A KEY PART OF THAT PROCESS AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS WE NEED TO LOOK AT? AND I APOLOGIZE FOR THE SIZE OF TEXT ON THIS SLIDE IS PARTICULARLY BIG. WE GO PRE TRAVEL, WE LOOK AT ARRIVAL PROCESSES. WE NEED TO KNOW THAT OUR AIRLINES ARE ABLE TO SUPPORT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE RIGHT WAY. THE TRANSPORT SERVICES, WHETHER IT'S PUBLIC TRANSPORT OR WHETHER IT'S ADDITIONAL TRANSPORT NEEDS TO BE PUT IN TO MEET AN EXTRA DEMAND OR TO COVER A GAP IN TERMS OF A ROUTE TO A STADIUM, WHICH WE OFTEN TALK ABOUT HAS BEEN THAT LAST MILE PIECE. AND THAT'S OFTEN A CHALLENGING FOR PIECE FOR A LOTS OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES BECAUSE EVEN IF YOU'RE USED TO GOING AS A SPECTATOR ON A NORMAL BASIS, YOU'LL FIND YOUR DISTANCE IS MUCH FURTHER AWAY. AND YOU'LL ALSO NOTICE A REALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE THERE WITH THE JOURNEY IN TO THE JOURNEY OUT WHEN PEOPLE ARRIVE BECAUSE [00:25:01] IT'S A OBVIOUSLY A MATCH IN A CERTAIN TIME OF DAY THEY WILL ARRIVE OVER A TWO OR THREE HOUR PERIOD DEPENDING HOW THEY WANT TO EXPERIENCE, ENJOY THE PRE-MATCH ACTIVITIES. YOU'LL FIND AT THE END OF A MATCH A NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDING ASSISTANCE INCREASES GREATLY BECAUSE IT'S BEEN A LONG DAY BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL LEAVING AT THE SAME TIME BECAUSE THEY CAN'T MANAGE THE DISTANCES AS EASY AS THEY COULD BEFORE. SO YOU'LL USUALLY SEE A MARKED DIFFERENCE. AND THAT MARKED DIFFERENCE IS BECAUSE IT'S NOT YOUR NINE SPECTATORS, IT WILL BE PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW THE VENUE THAT THEY'RE GOING TO. THEY WILL NOT KNOW THE STADIUM NECESSARILY, THEY WILL NOT BE AS FAMILIAR WITH THE TRANSPORT LINKS AND THE BEST ROUTES TO LEAVE A VENUE. SO SUPPORTING TEAMS, UH, SUPPORTING PEOPLE WITH TEAMS OF VOLUNTEERS WHO ARE RUNNING BUGGY SERVICES OR MINI BUSES OR OTHER ACCESSIBLE VEHICLE OPTIONS IS CRITICAL. AND MAKING SURE YOU UNDERSTAND THOSE DEMAND FLOWS. SO THAT IS THE FIRST PART OF IT. AND THE SECOND PART OF IT I THINK IS WE FOLLOW AROUND UM, TO GO BEYOND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT. AND ACTUALLY I'VE GOT TWO BUILT ENVIRONMENTS THERE. BUT THE SECOND HOW YOU GO AND LOOK AT ALL THOSE OTHER ELEMENTS WITHIN THE CITY, IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT FOOTBALL. ALL FANS LOVE TO SEE FOOTBALL BUT THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER HOURS IN THE DAY. AND I KNOW FROM SEEING SOME OF YOUR UH, ONLINE WEBSITES AND INFORMATION, YOU HAVE SOME AMAZING FACILITIES. YOU HAVE SOME AMAZING SERVICES AND PLACES TO VISIT, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT THAT YOU COMMUNICATE THAT ACROSS. YOU GIVE PEOPLE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE YOU AS A CITY AND AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPERIENCE YOU AS A CULTURE, UH, AND A CITY AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. CAN WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE? BANKING. SO THE ROLE OF FIFA IN THIS FIFA WERE OBVIOUSLY A KEY PARTNER FOR ALL YOUR CONVERSATIONS AND WOULD'VE BEEN TAKING PLACE FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS NOW. AND THIS IS VERY DIFFERENT TO A LOT OF OTHER PROJECTS IN TERMS OF UM, THIS IS MORE LIKE A WORLD CUP SIMILAR TO BRAZIL IN 2014 WHERE OBVIOUSLY DIFFERENT CITIES HAD DIFFERENT LEVEL OF MATCHES. SO IT'S VERY DIFFERENT TO A QATAR, IT'S VERY DIFFERENT TO OLYMPIC GAMES WHICH WILL BE BASED IN ONE CITY, BUT THERE WILL BE A CONSISTENT APPROACH TO THE AMOUNT OF SEATING ON ACCESSIBLE SEATING. SO YOU NEED TO KNOW THE NUMBERS THERE WITHIN YOUR STADIUM, HOW DO YOU ACHIEVE THE ACCESSIBLE NUMBERS THAT THEY'RE REQUESTING AND WHAT NUMBERS ARE AGREED. AND THAT SHOULD BE GIVING YOU A PATTERN, AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHO WILL BE COMING ON ANY GIVEN DAY. AND THE KEY BREAKDOWN YOU WANT TO KNOW FROM THAT IS WHO IS A LOCAL, WHO IS A REGULAR VALUES AND ACCESSIBLE SEATING AND WHO IS NEW FROM OVERSEAS? 'CAUSE THAT WILL GIVE AN INDICATION POTENTIALLY THEIR WAY OF TRAVEL. IT'LL GIVE AN INDICATION OF DEMAND OR PARTICULAR TRANSPORT NETWORKS. UM, AND IT'LL GIVE YOU AN INDICATION OF THE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE AS WELL. FIEF WOULD OBVIOUSLY WILL HAVE LOOKED AT YOUR FACILITIES AGREED THOSE WITH YOU NOW ALREADY. THEY WILL OBVIOUSLY LOOKED AT UM, HOW ENSURING THAT BEYOND THAT TICKETING PROCESS AS WELL, THEY'RE SUPPORTING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WHO DO NOT NECESSARILY NECESSARILY NEED SPECIFIC TICKETING LOCATIONS BUT HOW THEY'RE SUPPORTED THROUGHOUT THE STADIUM AS A WHOLE. AND YOU HAVE A GREAT ADVANTAGE COMPARED TO SOMEWHERE WHEN WE DID THE WORLD CUP , WE DIDN'T HAVE WEEKLY EXPERIENCES OF KNOWING HOW TO MANAGE LARGE CROWDS. BUT THE MIX OF PEOPLE WILL BE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT AND YOU WILL SEE A DIFFERENT AUDIENCE FOR THIS GOING FORWARD. AND THEN FINDING THE FAN ZONES. UM, AND BY FAN ZONES THERE'S OBVIOUSLY REMOTE SITES THAT YOU'LL HAVE BUT ALSO THE PRE-MATCH EXPERIENCE OUTSIDE THE STADIUM. FOOTBALL FANS LIKE NFL FANS AND OTHER SPORT FANS LOVE TO COME ALONG AND BE PART OF THE EXPERIENCE AND INTERACT WITH OPPOSING FANS AND BUILD UP AND CREATE AN ATMOSPHERE THERE. SO IT'S IMPORTANT YOU UNDERSTAND HOW THOSE SPACES ARE WORKING AND HOW YOU SUPPORT PEOPLE, WHETHER IT'S IN TERMS OF PROVIDING ADEQUATE SEATING OR ACCESSIBLE TOILET FACILITIES, UH, OR AREAS OF SHELTER SO THEY CAN FIND IT AS COMFORTABLE AS EVERYONE ELSE NEEDS TO. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO I MENTIONED A BIT ABOUT TRANSPORT. FOR ME, TRANSPORT IS PROBABLY THE BIGGEST THING BECAUSE THAT'S THE THING THAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN VERY OFTEN DO YOU HAVE A ENJOYABLE EXPERIENCE THAT MAKES YOU NOT. AND THAT'S BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT PEOPLE TO SPEND THEIR ENERGY AND EFFORT BEING ANXIOUS OR WORRIED OR TAKING A LONG TIME TO MOVE ACROSS THE TRANSPORT. YOU WANT THEIR ENERGY AND EXPERIENCE TO BE SPENT WITHIN THE STADIUM. YOU WANT THEM TO COME AWAY, TALK ABOUT THE MATCH THEY'VE SEEN. THAT'S WHAT YOU NEED TO TRY AND ACHIEVE EVERY TIME. SO ENSURING YOU HAVE A MIX OF TRANSPORT IS CRITICAL. YOU OBVIOUSLY HAVE YOUR PUBLIC TRANSPORT NETWORKS, YOU'RE REALLY STRONG, BUT WHAT YOU MAY DO IS FIND THAT DUE TO THE PATTERNS OF FANS, YOU'LL HAVE DIFFERENT COUNTRIES TRAVELING AS A GROUP OF DISABLED FANS MORE THAN YOU POTENTIALLY DO FOR YOUR STANDARD MATCHES. AND KNOWING THEIR MODES OF TRANSPORT AND HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THEM WHEN YOU HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF SPACES ON SOME OF YOUR PUBLIC TRANSPORT NETWORKS OR YOU EVEN HAVE LIMITED LIFT CAPACITIES AT CERTAIN TIMES. SO I'M SURE THAT WE'VE ALL BEEN LOOKED AT ALREADY BY UH, OBVIOUSLY THE CITY TRANSPORT TEAMS, BUT THAT'S THE KIND OF QUESTIONS YOU WANT TO [00:30:01] ASK AND UNDERSTAND HOW IT'S BEING MET. LIKEWISE, I'M SURE YOU HAVE A MOBILITY SERVICE WHICH IS OFTEN CALLED A GAMES MOBILITY SERVICE OR A TOURNAMENT SERVICE. AGAIN, ENSURING THAT THAT SERVICE IS USED BY PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT WAY. IT'S REALLY DIFFICULT FOR ALL THESE EVENTS. THERE'S AN AWFUL LOT OF PEOPLE OR WANT TO USE THOSE BOATS OF TRANSPORT BECAUSE THEY WANNA UNDERSTAND WHY IT NEEDS TO BE SO VALUED AND KEPT FOR DISABLED PEOPLE. IT NEEDS TO BE KEPT FOR PEOPLE WHO CAN'T MANAGE TO GET TO A VENUE OR A STADIUM WITHOUT THAT SUPPORT SYSTEM. AND IT'S ALSO REALLY IMPORTANT TO ENCOURAGE BEHAVIORS AND PATTERNS FROM PEOPLE THAT IF YOU'RE TRAVELING THE GROUP OF SEVEN OR EIGHT PEOPLE BUT ONLY ONE OF YOU NEEDS THAT TRANSPORT, YOU'RE NOT ALL USING THOSE TRANSPORT MODES. YOU'VE GOTTA BE STRONG. YOU'VE GOTTA MAKE SURE THAT YOU MAXIMIZE THOSE FACILITIES AND THOSE SERVICES FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES TO TRAVEL WITH JUST ONE OR TWO PEOPLE. THOSE THAT ARE ABLE TO WALK WILL WALK TO THE STADIUM IN STEP SEPARATELY IF THAT'S AT ALL POSSIBLE. OR ELSE YOU WILL STRUGGLE WITH SOME OF YOUR UM WAIT TIMES AND YOUR DELIVERY TIMES PARTICULARLY END OF MATCH. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO A JOURNEY PLAN, I DUNNO OBVIOUSLY, UH, YOUR DETAILS AROUND A JOURNEY PLAN, BUT THIS IS REALLY CRITICAL FOR US WHEN WE WERE WORKING ON PARTICULARLY LONDON 2012 AND A CATA 2022 THAT WE COULD MAKE PEOPLE UNDERSTAND HOW DOES THOSE TRANSPORT MOTOR IT TOGETHER. WE WERE REALLY KEEN AND I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT IF YOU HAVE A MODE OF TRANSPORT OR A PARTICULAR STATION THAT DOESN'T WORK FOR DISABILITY, THAT'S KNOWN BECAUSE WHAT YOU DON'T WANT THESE PEOPLE USING THAT ONE. SO YOU NEED TO BE UPFRONT AND YOU NEED TO BE HONEST WITH WHAT YOU'RE TELLING PEOPLE. IF THERE A PREPARED ROUTE, IF THERE ARE EASIER ROUTES, UM, THEN THOSE ARE THE ROUTES YOU WANT TO STILL TRY AND ENCOURAGE BECAUSE OTHERWISE PEOPLE WILL FIND IT OFFPUTTING. IF PEOPLE KNOW THE CITY, YOU MAKE IT EASIER, BUT IT'S FOR THOSE PEOPLE COMING IN AND NOT KNOWING A WAY AROUND A CITY, YOU WANT TO HELP 'EM FIND THAT EASIEST POSSIBLE ROUTE. AND THAT'S JUST AN EXAMPLE OF A SLIDE THERE. IT'S NOT ONE OF THE MOST DETAILED ROUTES, BUT IT SHOWS HOW YOU WOULD USE A DIFFERENT RA RANGE OF TRANSPORT MODES TO A JOUR TO DO A JOURNEY FROM A TO B. UM, TO GIVE PEOPLE THE ASSURANCE IS ONE THEY CAN GET INTO THE STADIUM BUT ALSO CAN GET OUT AT THE END OF THE NIGHT AS WELL. REALLY IMPORTANT ROLE PLAYED HERE PARTICULARLY BY PUBLIC TRANSPORT, PEOPLE WHO ARE VOLUNTEERS AND OBVIOUSLY THE CORE TEAMS THAT WORK THERE ALREADY BECAUSE THEY WILL KNOW THEIR ENVIRONMENT BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE AND THEIR TRAINING AND THEIR KNOWLEDGE IS CRITICAL TO PULLING THAT TOGETHER. UM, I SUSPECT YOU PROBABLY HAD SOME TESTAMENT ALREADY ACROSS THAT AREA. UH, AND A LOT OF LEARNING WILL HAVE BEEN GAINED FROM THAT ALREADY. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO WHAT'S, WHAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT? THE STAGE RIGHT NOW IS PREPARING PEOPLE AND INDIVIDUALS TO DO THIS TRAINING IS CRITICAL AND I'VE JUST PUT UP HERE YOU CLEARLY HAVE OBVIOUSLY AWARENESS TRAINING NEEDED AROUND DISABILITY NEEDED AROUND INCLUSION. BUT WE TRY TO ALSO INSTILL SOME REAL BASIC MESSAGES THAT WHAT YOU ARE DOING WHEN YOU WERE STRICT DEALING WITH SOMEONE IS JUST TO TREAT THEM HOW ANYONE ELSE WOULD WANT TO BE TREATED. YOU DON'T WANT TO DIFFERENTIATE BUT YOU WANT TO BE TREATED WITH THE SAME DIGNITY AND RESPECT THE IMPORTANCE OF LISTENING PARTICULARLY TO DISABLED PERSON BECAUSE WE'RE ALL DIFFERENT AND EVERYONE WILL HAVE DIFFERENT NEEDS, REQUIREMENTS AND EXPECTATIONS. REALLY IMPORTANT TO TRY TO BE FRIENDLY, REALLY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT, NOT TO BE OFFENDED IF SOMEONE DOESN'T WANT ASSISTANCE AS WELL, BUT NOT BE AFRAID TO KEEP ASKING AGAIN AND AGAIN BECAUSE EVERYONE AGAIN WILL HAVE A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO THAT. AND WE KNOW THAT SOME OF THE PEOPLE THAT WE WORK IN CITIES WILL NOT BE FAMILIAR WITH WORKING AND ASSISTING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES ON A REGULAR BASIS. IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO GIVE THEM THE CONFIDENCE, BE ABLE TO HAVE THAT AND GO FORWARD. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO THE OTHER ONE I WAS GONNA SAY IS, AND I THINK OBVIOUSLY YOU, YOU'VE JUST BEEN ON THIS CALL HERE, YOU HAVE A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT ALREADY UH, THROUGH THIS NETWORK OF COMMISSIONS, BUT YOU ALSO HAVE OBVIOUSLY I'M SURE A LOT OF DISTRICT ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN THIS. YOU ARE THE PEOPLE THAT CAN MAKE THE DIFFERENCE. YOU ARE THE PEOPLE THAT CAN MAKE SURE THE POSITIVE CHANGES YOU SEE DURING THESE TOURNAMENTS AND DURING THESE MATCHING CAN HAVE A VALUE GOING FORWARD. AND I THINK PARTICULARLY WE SAW IN LONDON 2012 MASSIVE CHANGES OF HOW WE DID THINGS OPERATIONALLY OF HOW WE CREATED A WIDER NET NETWORK AND STRUCTURE OF ACCESSIBLE ACCOMMODATION. I THOUGHT WE ALSO DID IT FOR TRANSPORT AS WELL BECAUSE WE RECOGNIZED THAT THERE WAS A DEMAND THERE THAT JUST NEEDED TO BE SUPPORTED. AND ACTUALLY IF YOU PROVIDED MORE ACCOMMODATION AND MORE TRANSPORT OPTIONS, DISABLED PEOPLE WILL COME AND THEY'LL COME BEYOND THE LIFETIME OF ACTUAL GAMES. THEY WILL COME BECAUSE THE FACILITY HAS GIVEN THEM CONFIDENCE TO GET THERE. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO TO TAKE YOU THROUGH REALLY QUICKLY, UM, I'M REALLY AWARE OF YOUR TIME AND IT'S TIME STICKING ON. HOW DO WE PREPARE THIS? YOUR AIRPORT NEEDS TO LOOK AT THE EQUIPMENT IT'S PROVIDING FOR ACCESSIBILITY. SO THINGS LIKE YOUR ONBOARD UH, [00:35:01] UH, EQUIPMENT YOU USE FOR GETTING SOMEONE OFF AN AIRCRAFT, AN AISLE CHAIR NEEDS TO BE APPROPRIATE FOR A WIDE RANGE OF DISABILITIES. A ONBOARD WHEELCHAIR WILL NOT ASSIST EVERYONE WITH DISABILITY. THE OPERATIONS TEAMS THEN NEED TO BE TRAINED TO DEAL WITH ANY KIND OF EQUIPMENT THAT MAY BE NEEDED FOR REGARD ANY LIFTING OR HANDLING FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES. YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO ASSIST SOMEONE THROUGH THAT PROCESS ALL THE WAY OUT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY DON'T JUST GET OFF AN AIRCRAFT BUT THEY'RE SUPPORTED TO THEIR NEXT POINT OF TRANSFER. WHETHER IT'S OUTSIDE THE AIRPORT, WHETHER THERE'S AN INTERNAL PROCESS. BUT YOU NEED TO ENSURE THAT HAPPENS. WHEN WE HAD ACCOMMODATION, WHEN WE ARE LOOKING PARTICULARLY AT AT THE KETTLE WORLD CUP, IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT TO US TO PUT TOGETHER DETAILS OF WHAT THAT ACCOMMODATION WOULD LOOK LIKE. WHAT WE WANTED TO DO WAS GIVE A RANGE OF OPTIONS THAT WERE AVAILABLE THAT HAD DIFFERENT TYPES OF LEVEL OF ACCESSIBILITY AND DIFFERENT PRICE RANGES AS WELL. BUT IT WASN'T FOR US TO TELL SOMEONE WHETHER THE ROOM WAS SUCCESSFUL OR NOT. WE PUT TOGETHER THESE ONE SLIDE CAPTION SAYING THIS IS WHAT YOUR BEDROOM LOOKS LIKE, THIS IS WHAT YOUR BATHROOM WOULD LOOK LIKE. THESE ARE THE FACILITIES AND NEW SERVICES YOU HAVE WITHIN THIS PARTICULAR HOTEL. THEN THAT PERSON CAN MAKE AN INFORMED CHOICE ABOUT WHAT WORKS FOR THEM. ASSUME BY NOW MOST PEOPLE WILL PROBABLY BOOK THEIR ACCOMMODATION BUT IT'S IMPORTANT THEY CAN STILL UNDERSTAND AND HAVE CONFIDENCE THAT THE ROOM THEY'RE BOOKED IS THE ONE THEY WILL ACTUALLY RECEIVE AT THE TIME. AND THE OTHER TRANSPORT OPTIONS I'VE MENTIONED A BIT ABOUT ALREADY ENSURING YOU'VE GOT ENOUGH AVAILABLE TRANSPORT OPTIONS AT THE RIGHT TIMES AT THAT TIME WHEN PEOPLE LEAVE AT END OF MATCH IS A REALLY CHALLENGING TIME BECAUSE THAT'S WHEN PEOPLE WILL START TO UM, BE GREATER NUMBERS, MORE RELIANCE ON CHARITABLE, MORE URGENCY TO LEAVE A VENUE AT THE END OF A MATCH AS WELL. SO YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN SUPPORT THEM IN THE MOST APPROPRIATE WAY THAT THEY KNOW THOSE MEETING LOCATIONS AND KNOW WHERE THOSE SERVICES RUN TO AND FROM. AND WHAT'S ONE OF THE GREATEST THINGS OF ANXIETY IS THAT PEOPLE WILL KNOW THERE'LL BE A LAST TRAIN LEAVE AT A CERTAIN TIME OF NIGHT THAT YOU CAN STILL GET 'EM TO THAT STATION AND YOU CAN ASSURE THEM THAT THEY'LL GET THERE. AND THAT'S WHY YOU NEED TO CONTROL AND MANAGE THE USE OF THOSE SERVICES. THE PEOPLE THAT REALLY NEED IT POTENTIALLY SPLIT UP WITH PEOPLE, THE DISABLED PEOPLE IN WITH AND SUPPORTED BY SOME MEMBERS WHO ARE FAMILIES AND FRIENDS. BUT THE WIDER GROUP THEN TAKES A DIFFERENT ROUTE OR ELSE YOU WILL FIND YOU'LL HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE DEMAND FROM THAT. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO THE MATCH DAY JOURNEY ITSELF, AGAIN TALKING ABOUT THOSE UH, PUBLIC TRANSPORT OPTIONS THAT YOU'LL BE USING TO GET THERE, KNOW WHERE THOSE DROP OFF POINTS ARE, KNOW WHERE YOUR ACCESSIBLE PARKING IS AND I THINK THIS IS REALLY CHALLENGING FOR A LOT OF, A LOT OF UM, PEOPLE WHO ARE VISITORS BECAUSE CLEARLY MOST COUNTRIES WILL HAVE THEIR OWN BADGE SYSTEM FOR ACHIEVING ACCESSIBLE TRANSPORT. UH, OR CERTAINLY ACCESSIBLE PARKING. AND ACCESSIBLE PARKING BECAUSE OF THE SECURITY REQUIREMENTS TEND TO BE DIFFERENT FOR AN OLYMPICS OR A WORLD CUP MEAN THAT YOU TEND TO BE PARKED FURTHER AWAY THAN YOU WOULD BE USUALLY, BUT ALSO A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL COME FROM OVERSEAS WILL HAVE NO ABILITY TO GET TO THAT ACCESSIBLE PARKING. YOU HAVE TO INSPECT THE FACT THAT THEY WILL BE USING PUBLIC TRANSPORT MODES AND THEREFORE THEY WILL BE GREATER NUMBERS ON THOSE PUBLIC TRANSPORT AS WELL. GOING TO THE ENTRANCE, ENSURING PEOPLE FIND ACCESSIBLE ROUTES, PROVIDING PRIORITY LANES, I'M SURE YOU DO THIS ON A TYPICAL NFL DAY WHEN YOU'VE GOT PEOPLE ATTENDING IN LARGE NUMBERS AS WELL AND IN CLEARLY MAKING THEM AWARE OF WHERE THOSE NEAREST POINTS OF ACCESSIBLE TOILETS ARE UPON THEIR ARRIVAL. I THINK THE THING THAT'S DIFFERENT AGAIN IS YOU'LL HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT DUNNO YOUR STADIUM. UM, AND THAT'S GONNA BE THE BIG DIFFERENCE AND THEY WILL COME FROM A RANGE OF DIFFERENT COUNTRIES. SOME WHICH ARE VERY DEVELOPED IN TERMS OF THE ACCESSIBLE ABILITY OFFERING FOR DISABLED PEOPLE SUCH AS WESTERN EUROPE AND THEN OTHER COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD WHERE THERE'LL BE VERY LITTLE KNOWLEDGE AND VERY LITTLE INFORMATION OR EXPECTATION AND AWARENESS. SO IT'S IMPORTANT ALL THOSE PROCESSES WORK GOING FORWARD. YOU HAVE MOBILITY ASSISTANCE I'M SURE THERE AS WELL. MAKING SURE THOSE VOLUNTEERS ARE TRAINED WITH THAT OPERATION TO ASSIST PEOPLE PROPERLY. UM, YOU MAY FIND ONE OF CHANGE WE'VE HAD AS WELL IS THAT PEOPLE'S WHEELCHAIRS, I'M SURE YOU ARE STARTING TO FIND, ARE GETTING LARGER, GETTING BIGGER. AND IF YOU'RE USING MOBILITY VEHICLE, THERE'S A REAL CHALLENGE WITH THE STEEPNESS OF THE GRADIENT. VERY OFTEN IF IT'S NOT OPERATING OFF A CURB, THERE'S A REAL CHALLENGE THAT NOT ALL WHEELCHAIRS WILL GET INTO THOSE VEHICLES AS WELL. SO YOU NEED TO HAVE A PROCESS IN PLACE TO UNDERSTAND HOW THOSE ISSUES WILL BE ADDRESSED AS WELL. HOW ARE YOU GONNA SYSTEM, ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE TO PUSH SOMEONE WHO MIGHT BE A WHEELCHAIR USER TO THE DOOR? ARE YOU GONNA HAVE TO FIND OTHER WAYS OF GETTING OTHER TRANSPORT CLOSER? UM, OR ARE YOU GONNA JUST HAVE TO PREPARE THEM FOR TAKING DIFFERENT ROUTES POTENTIALLY. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO STADIUM EXPERIENCE. ONCE INSIDE, I THINK IT'S REALLY INTERESTING THAT AGAIN, STANDARDS USE USER WHO GOES TO MAX USE A LOT WILL START TO RECOGNIZE AND UNDERSTAND THE WAY STADIUM WORKS. WHETHER THEY MAY HAVE A VISUAL IMPAIRMENT, WHETHER THEY [00:40:01] MAY HAVE A HEARING IMPAIRMENT, WHETHER THEY HAVE NEURODIVERSITY NEEDS, THEY WILL START TO BE AWARE OF THAT SIDE OF THINGS. REALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOUR TEAMS WORK IN THERE WHERE THEIR VOLUNTEERS OR WHERE THEY'RE PART OF THE STADIUM TEAM ARE RECOGNIZING DIFFERENT TYPES OF DISABILITY AND WHAT THEIR NEEDS AND REQUIREMENTS MAY BE. AND IT'S EASY WHEN YOU'VE GOT SOMEONE GOING TO AN ACCESSIBLE SEATING SITE BECAUSE CLEARLY WE'RE IN IDENTIFIED AREAS, BUT IT'S MAKING THAT TRAINING WORK TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN DIRECT INTO THE RIGHT PLACES. THEY KNOW THEIR INFORMATION POINTS, THEY KNOW WHERE THEIR TOILETS ARE GONNA BE AND THEY KNOW THE BEST ROUTES TO GET TO THEIR SEATS AS WELL. THIS KIND OF PROCESSING FOLLOWS ALL THE WAY THROUGH UP TO YOUR SEAT. NINE LIFTS I THINK YOU MIGHT FIND AS WE DO WHEN WE'VE DONE OTHER EVENTS, IS YOU ACTUALLY HAVE TO PRIORITIZE WHO USES THE VERTICAL CIRCULATION AND WHO USES THOSE ELEVATORS BECAUSE AGAIN, LOTS OF PEOPLE THINK THEY WANT TO USE IT 'CAUSE IT'S AN EASIER ROUTE. YOU WILL HAVE TO MANAGE THE DEMAND OF THAT QUITE OFTEN. AND THEN ONCE IN THE SEAT YOU'LL HAVE YOUR CATEGORIES PROVIDED BY FEVER, MAKING SURE PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT ONES, UM, THE WHEELCHAIR, USUALLY THE ONES ARE REALLY EASY, BUT THE CONFUSION SOMETIMES BETWEEN WHAT'S AN EASY AMENITY, WHAT'S AN EASY WI UH, EXTRA WIDTH ONE DOESN'T ALWAYS HAPPEN BECAUSE WE DON'T ALWAYS HAVE THE SAME PEOPLE WORKING THERE. AND AGAIN, THE PEOPLE ATTENDING THE MATCH OF DISABILITIES AREN'T ALWAYS AWARE OF THOSE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS. SO THEY'LL KNOW WHERE THEIR SEAT IS, BUT THEY WON'T BE AWARE OF THOSE CATEGORIZATIONS. AND AS A TEAM, YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF THAT. AND NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. UP HERE. LAST ONE, ACCESSIBLE TOILETS. UM, MAKING SURE THEY'RE OBVIOUSLY BEING USED APPROPRIATELY. I'M NOT SURE. SOME TOILETS OBVIOUSLY, UH, STADIUMS HAVE, UH, KEY MECHANISMS THAT MEAN YOU CAN ONLY USE IT IF YOU HAVE A DISABILITY. CLEARLY IT'S ENSURING THAT YOU'VE GOT STAFF AND TEAMS AROUND TO SUPPORT PEOPLE WHO OBVIOUSLY DRIVING FROM OTHER COUNTRIES WON'T HAVE THAT PROCESS. WE'VE USED, UH, INTRODUCED CHANGE IN PLACES, TOILETS OR ADULT CHANGING FACILITIES IN ALL THE STAGES WE DO OVER RECENT TIMES AS WELL. BUT AGAIN, ENSURING THAT THOSE SERVICES WORK AS WELL. WE DO ORDER DESCRIPTIVE COMMENTARY FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND, UH, ACROSS EVERY STATE IN FOR THE WORLD CUP IN QATAR, ENSURING IN LUCK INDUCTION SYSTEMS ARE WORKING, WHETHER THAT'S AT A CONCESSION AREA, UH, WHETHER IT'S NEEDING TO PROVIDE THINGS SUCH AS BROW OR LARGE PRINT MENUS FOR PEOPLE USING CONCESSIONS OR ARE YOU PROVIDING AN SERVICE AS WELL? SO JUST ENSURING ALL THOSE PROCESSES ARE WORKING, AND I APPRECIATE THIS ISN'T YOUR JOB AS COMMISSIONERS TO DELIVER THIS, BUT THESE ARE THE KIND OF QUESTIONS YOU NEED TO BE ASKING BACK AND MAKING SURE YOU CAN GET THAT ASSURANCES FROM THE AUTHORITIES. AND THEN FINALLY, YOU WANT KNOWLEDGE AND LEARNING AS SOON AS THAT FIRST MATCH HAS HAPPENED. YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO SEE AND UNDERSTAND THE OBSERVATIONS, WHAT WORKED WELL AND WHAT WAS A CHALLENGE, BECAUSE THERE WILL BE CHALLENGES WITH EVERY MATCH. UM, IT ONLY TAKES AN EXTRA 10, 15 MINUTE DELAY TO A MATCH THAT'S RUNS LATE AT NIGHT OR MAYBE YOU HAVE EXTRA TIME OR MAYBE GOES TO PENALTIES CAN SUDDENLY PLACE A HUGE PRESSURE ON YOUR PUBLIC TRANSPORT NETWORK. SO UNDERSTANDING THAT KIND OF PROCESS AND HOW THAT'S BEING ADDRESSED AND UNDERSTOOD BY THE STATE AUTHORITY IS REALLY IMPORTANT AS WELL. UH, I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY IT IF WE JUST GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE. I THINK THAT'S MY LAST ONE. SO I'VE RATTLED THROUGH THAT PRETTY QUICK AND UM, OBVIOUSLY I'VE DONE MOST OF THESE PROJECTS BEEN, UH, BETWEEN EIGHT AND 10 YEARS. SO YOU, YOU ARE IN THE LAST THREE OR FOUR MONTHS. NOW, THIS ISN'T ABOUT MAKING CHANGES I DON'T FEEL. I THINK YOUR PRIORITY'S MAKING SURE YOU'VE GOT YOUR SERVICE ELEMENTS, YOUR FACILITIES RIGHT, AND IT'S YOUR ROLES TO CHALLENGE BACK AND ASK THE QUESTIONS OF PARTICULAR TRANSPORT WHEN YOU'RE STATING PROVIDERS, HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THESE ISSUES? AND THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU THOSE ASSURANCES, BUT THERE'LL BE ELEMENTS AND PROCESSES, UH, ABOUT SOME SITUATIONS THEY WILL PROBABLY NOT HAVE THOUGHT OF AND NOT BE AWARE OF BECAUSE OF THAT MIX OF PEOPLE COMING IN FROM THOSE PEOPLE COMING IN FROM OTHER COUNTRIES WILL NOT HAVE THE SAME BEHAVIOR PATTERNS AS YOU WILL BE USED TO SEEING FOR STANDARD EVENTS AT THE STADIUM. SO IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU MAKE THEM AWARE THOSE POTENTIAL ISSUES THAT COULD BE THERE AND THEY CAN GIVE YOU THOSE UNDERSTANDINGS AND ASSURANCES THEY KNOW HOW TO ADDRESS THAT. I HOPE THAT'S BEEN HELPFUL. UM, I KNOW YOU'VE GOT A LOT OF STUFF ON THE AGENDA, SO I'VE TRIED TO GO THROUGH QUITE QUICKLY, BUT UM, I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS IF THERE'S ANY TIME. THANK YOU SO MUCH MR. DYER, FOR SUCH AN INFORMATIVE PRESENTATION. THE WORK THAT YOU DO AT SUCH A GLOBAL SCALE WITH THESE LARGE SCALE DEVELOPMENTS. MEGA SPORTING EVENTS TRANSLATES TO OUR FIRM BELIEF AS A COMMISSION ON DISABILITIES. THAT INCLUSIVE DESIGN IS MORE THAN JUST ACCESS. IT'S ABOUT, IT'S REALLY ABOUT, UM, FOSTERING A TRUE SENSE OF BELONGING WHERE EVERY INDIVIDUAL, REGARDLESS OF ABILITY CAN FULLY PARTICIPATE, THRIVE, AND BE SEEN AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF OUR COMMUNITY. I DO HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU. SO THE FIRST, OF COURSE, IN YOUR EXPERIENCE, [00:45:02] WHERE HAVE YOU SEEN SHORTCOMINGS IN INCLUSIVE DESIGN, ESPECIALLY IN MEETING, IN FAILING TO MEET, OR LET ME REPEAT IT THIS WAY. IN YOUR EXPERIENCE, WHERE HAVE YOU SEEN SHORTCOMINGS IN INCLUSIVE DESIGN SPECIFICALLY AS IT RELATES TO MUTING MEETING HUMAN RIGHTS STANDARDS? AND WHAT DO YOU THINK HAS TO CHANGE TO BRIDGE THIS GAP? SO I, I WORKED ALL AROUND THE WORLD DOING THESE, DOING THESE VARIOUS PROJECTS AND THAT, AND I, WHAT I WOULD SAY IS THAT I THINK EVERY COUNTRY YOU GO TO, THERE ARE DIFFERENT CHALLENGES, THERE ARE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF AWARENESS, AND EVERY COUNTRY'S A DIFFERENT POINT OF THAT JOURNEY. SO YOU'RE SOMEWHERE LIKE THE UK US THIS HAS BEEN ONGOING JOURNEY FOR THE LAST 40, 50 YEARS AND CLEARLY IT'S STILL DIFFICULT TO ACHIEVE. YOU'LL SEE PARTS OF THE COUNTRY WHERE IT'LL WORK REALLY WELL. YOU SEE PARTS OF THE COUNTRY WHERE IT'S FAR MORE CHALLENGING. I THINK THE SPECIFICS THAT I THINK WE NEED TO TRY AND GET IS FROM A, FROM A DESIGN PERSPECTIVE, IS MAKING IT USABLE FOR EVERYONE. SO EVERYONE FEELS WELCOME, THEN IT'S ALL ABOUT SERVICE AND IT'S BEING TREATED THE SAME AS EVERYBODY ELSE, WHETHER IT'S YOUR DISABILITY, WHETHER IT'S YOUR GENDER, WHETHER IT'S YOUR ETHNICITY. AND I THINK THERE'S A REAL CHALLENGE HERE THAT WE, IN A FRAGMENTED, FRAGMENTED WORLD AT THE MOMENT, WHEREVER YOU GO THAT GET THAT LEVEL OF CONSISTENCY AND MAKE PEOPLE FEEL WELCOME, WHATEVER THEIR SITUATION IS REALLY CHALLENGING, UH, THERE IS A, IT'S AN EDUCATION PROCESS. IT TAKES TIME TO CHANGE THOSE ATTITUDES. UM, BUT WHAT I THINK IS REALLY IMPORTANT IS WHEN YOU HAVE A GAMES LIKE OLYMPIC GAMES OR YOU HAVE A WORLD CUP, IT SHOULD BE THAT CATALYST FOR CHANGE BECAUSE THERE'S A DIFFERENT APPROACH AND YOU SHOULD BE SITTING IN THE CITY BY NOW THAT PEOPLE WANT TO SHOW PRIDE IN THEIR CITY. THEY WANT TO SHOW PRIDE IN THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE THERE, WHAT YOU CAN DELIVER. THEY WANT TO WELCOME VISITORS IN AND YOU HOPE THAT YOU CAN CAPTURE AND KEEP SOME OF THOSE THINGS AS PART OF A LEGACY GOING FORWARD OF HOW YOU TREAT PEOPLE EQUALLY, HOW YOU RECOGNIZE AND CELEBRATE DIVERSITY AS WELL. BUT THERE ARE, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE CHALLENGES AND I THINK ONE OF THE CHALLENGES WE HAVE AT THE MOMENT IS THAT OBVIOUSLY, UM, YOU'LL HAVE PEOPLE COMING FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD AND THOSE PEOPLE HAVE DIFFERENT BEHAVIORS. THEY MAY HAVE DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES OF HOW THEY ATTEND A MATCH. AND IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO TRY AND UNDERSTAND AND ENGAGE WITH THOSE ORGANIZATIONS AND THOSE GROUPS AS TO HOW YOU EXPECTED THEM TO BEHAVE IN YOUR ENVIRONMENT AND HOW THEY EXPECT TO BE TREATED IN YOUR ENVIRONMENT AS WELL. HOPE THAT ANSWERS IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH MR. DYER. THAT VERY MUCH ANSWERS MY QUESTION. MY SECOND ONE I HAVE FOR YOU IS REGARDING YOUR SPECIFIC POINTS OF VIEW. SO IN YOUR WORK, HOW DO YOU DEFINE ACCESSIBILITY AS A HUMAN RIGHT? AND WHAT STRATEGIES DO YOU IMPLEMENT ON A REGULAR BASIS TO ENSURE THAT ACCESSIBILITY IS NOT JUST AN ITEM TO BE CHECKED OFF A LIST, BUT RATHER A TOOL THAT IS USED TO IDENTIFY AND ADDRESS SYSTEMIC IN, IN INEQUALITIES AS IT RELATES TO MEETING THE NEEDS OF MARGINALIZED GROUPS, PARTICULARLY THOSE OF INTERSECTING IDENTITIES? YEAH, I THINK THAT'S A REALLY GOOD POINT AND I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS PARTICULARLY I'M WORKING AT THE MOMENT, UH, IN THE MIDDLE EAST, IT'S BEEN NOW FOR THE LAST 12, 14 YEARS, I GUESS, IS THAT HOW DO YOU COMBINE VERY DIFFERENT CULTURES OF, UM, OF, OF REQUIREMENTS AND THEN ACHIEVE BEST PRACTICE INTERNATIONAL EXPECTATIONS AS WELL. AND YOU TRYING TO COMBINE THE TWO OF THOSE TOGETHER, IT IS DIFFICULT TO DO AND IT MEANS THAT WHEN YOU ARE LOOKING AT CREATING OR BUILDING A STADIUM OR EVEN A RAIL STATION OR EVEN SOMETHING, UH, MUCH MORE SIMPLISTIC AS A RESTAURANT, YOU THINK ABOUT WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS WITHIN THIS THAT NEED TO PROVIDE A LEVEL OF EQUALITY THAT EVERYONE CAN FEEL COMFORTABLE IN THAT SPACE. AND SO FOR US, WHERE WE'RE WORKING IN THE MIDDLE EAST, FOR EXAMPLE, WE DON'T JUST LOOK AT, UM, UNISEX ACCESSIBLE TOILETS. WE NEED TO LOOK AT SEPARATE MALE FIELD, UH, TOILETS. PRAYER ROOMS BECOME VERY IMPORTANT, WHEREAS THEY'RE LESS CONSIDERED IN PARTS OF THE WEST MODEL, THOUGH AGAIN, OUR CULTURES ARE CHANGING ON THAT. SO THERE ARE ELEMENTS TO IT THAT WE CAN SHOW AN UNDERSTANDING BY EMBEDDING AND EMBRACING THOSE ELEMENTS AT AN EARLY STAGE OF PROPHET SAYING PROJECTS SAYING IF WE IDENTIFY THIS AS BEING BEYOND A RE A MINIMUM REQUIREMENT, AND THIS IS THE, THE CHALLENGE YOU WILL FACE WITH AN A DA OR EVERY INTERNATIONAL STANDARD IS THAT THERE'S A REAL TENDENCY FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE DESIGNING OR BUILDING BECAUSE OF PRESSURE OF BUDGETS TO BUILD A MINIMUM, WE NEED TO GET PEOPLE TO SEE BEYOND THAT. AND IT'S BACK TO THIS USABILITY AND IT'S BACK TO THIS DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION. SO WHAT MAKES IT WORK FOR EVERYONE SHOULD BE OUR STARTING POINT. NOT THE TENDENCY TO GO BACK TO SAYING THIS IS THE MINIMUM WE HAVE TO DO AND THEREFORE WE FACE THOSE CHALLENGES DOWN THE LINE THAT PEOPLE FEEL DISENFRANCHISED BY IT OR THEY FEEL MARGINALIZED BY IT AND IT DOESN'T WORK FOR THEM. AND [00:50:01] THEN IT'S VERY HARD TO GET THEIR BUY-IN. AND I THINK THE BEST EXAMPLE I HAVE OF WHERE WE INTEGRATED PEOPLE REALLY WELL WAS LONDON 2012 IN WHERE WE HAD OUR OLYMPIC PARK. WE HAD IN THE SPACE OF FIVE REGIONS THERE, 130 DIFFERENT LANGUAGES BEING SPOKEN. SO THAT GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF THE DIVERSITY, BUT THEY WERE ALL EMBEDDED AT THE START OF HOW WE LOOK TO ADDRESS ACROSS A WHOLE WIDE RANGE OF SECTORS FROM EVEN THINGS LIKE WHEN YOU LOOKED UP DOING MENU PLANNINGS THAT YOU'D CONSIDER THE DIVERSITY OF FOOD, SIMPLE THINGS LIKE THAT. SO IN TERMS OF HOW YOU RECOGNIZE DIFFERENT, UH, DISABILITIES, HOW YOU LOOKED AT DIFFERENT GENDER BELIEFS AS WELL. UM, AND THAT'S THE CRITICAL POLITICAL THING IS YOU EMBED IT AT THE START AS A PRINCIPLE AND YOU DON'T ACCEPT MINIMUM. YOU GO TO BEST PRACTICE AND YOU KEEP THAT USABILITY MESSAGE AND YOU KEEP THAT DIVERSITY MESSAGE AND HOPEFULLY DELIVER SOMETHING ABOVE A MINIMUM REQUIREMENT AND YOU MAKE YOUR ARCHITECTS AND YOUR DEVELOPERS ACCOUNTABLE AGAINST THAT. THAT DOES REALLY ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS I HAD, ALTHOUGH I DID WANT YOU TO ELABORATE A BIT MORE. UM, I'M GOING BACK TO THE FIRST PART OF MY SECOND QUESTION. HOW DO YOU DEFINE ACCESSIBILITY AS A HUMAN? RIGHT? THAT'S A REALLY GOOD POINT BECAUSE I THINK IT HAS VARIED FROM WHEN I WORKED IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WORLD, UM, BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT JOURNEY POINTS WHEN IT ACCESSIBILITY FOR ME SHOULD BE OUT CREATING ENVIRONMENTS THAT EVERYONE WANTS TO GO IN AND CAN FEEL SAFE, BE TREATED WITH DIGNITY, CAN BE INDEPENDENT, AND IS A CONNECTED SPACE. SO KIND OF THOSE SIX VALUES I PUT UP THERE EARLIER, THAT'S WHAT MAKES THE INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENT. AND IF YOU DON'T HAVE THOSE SIX ELEMENTS, YOU WILL NOT GET A DIVERSE USE OF THAT SPACE. YOU WILL NOT GET INCLUSIVE EXPERIENCES, YOU WON'T GET PEOPLE SHARING THEIR BACKGROUNDS AND DIVERSITY. YOU NEED TO CREATE THE ENVIRONMENT THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO WANT TO BE THERE. THEN YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER THROUGH EXPERIENCES, THROUGH SHARING KNOWLEDGE, THROUGH LEARNING, UNDERSTANDING AND AWARENESS. BUT IF YOU DON'T BUILD IT RIGHT IN THE FIRST PLACE, THAT'S NOT GONNA BE INCLUSIVE. SO FOR ME, THOSE SIX VALUES ARE, I THINK ARE PROBABLY MY DEFINITION OF ACCESSIBILITY. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT DESIGN, IT'S ABOUT HOW YOU BUILD THAT ENVIRONMENT IN THE FIRST PLACE. AND THAT MEANS INVOLVING THE COMMUNITY IN THE DESIGN PROCESS, IN THE BUILD PROCESS AND HOW YOU TAKE THAT JOURNEY FORWARD. THANK YOU SO MUCH MR. I THINK WE CAN ALL AGREE ON THE SIX VALUES THAT YOU JUST MENTIONED. AT THIS TIME I WOULD LIKE TO TURN THE FLOOR OVER TO COMMISSIONERS WHO MAY HAVE QUESTIONS FOR YOU STARTING WITH COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK, DISTRICT ONE. I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. I REALLY APPRECIATED ALL THE INFORMATION. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK. NEXT WE'RE MOVING ON TO COMMISSIONER WICKS, DISTRICT THREE. THANK YOU CHAIR, AND UH, HELLO TO MR. DYER. AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR VERY INTENSIVE, UH, PRESENTATION TO US. MY QUESTION IS, WHAT OTHER, UM, ORGANIZATIONS WITHIN THE DALLAS AREA OR EVEN WITHIN THE CITY OF DALLAS HAVE YOU PRESENTED THIS MATERIAL TO? UM, SO I THINK FROM MY SIDE OF THINGS, THIS IS MY FIRST INVOLVEMENT HERE. UM, COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL APPROACHED ME, WHICH IS GREAT TO HEAR FROM A BASED FROM A PAPER I'D DONE AFTER QATAR 2022. SO I'M VERY HAPPY IF PEOPLE WANT TO SHARE THIS FURTHER. REALLY HAPPY FOR THAT TO HAPPEN IF THAT'S HELPFUL AND VALUABLE TO PEOPLE. UM, AGAIN, YOU, I THINK WHEN YOU START TALKING TO EACH OTHER AND TALKING TO OTHER ORGANIZATIONS, YOU MIGHT FIND THERE'S MORE GOING ON, BUT IT'S JUST NOT SHARED AND IT'S NOT CONNECTED AND IT'S YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE'S CONNECTED, I THINK IS REALLY IMPORTANT IN YOUR ROLES THAT PEOPLE ARE TALKING TO EACH OTHER, THEY ARE UNDERSTANDING, UH, DIFFERENT VARIOUS NEEDS OF DISABILITIES. UM, AND THEY GET AN UNDERSTANDING THEN OF WHAT THAT, UH, NEW, NEW PEOPLE COME INTO THE AREA WILL BE AS WELL. YOU KNOW, THE OVERSEE VISITOR AS WELL. I WOULD, I WOULD CONCUR WITH WHAT YOU JUST SAID. UM, I THINK THAT THIS PARTICULAR PRESENTATION NEEDS TO BE GIVEN TO OUR MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL, UM, IN ALL AREAS OF LIFE WITHIN THE CITY AND BEYOND. WE NEED TO BE MORE SENSITIVE AND AWARE OF THE, UH, THE DAY-TO-DAY STRUGGLES THAT WE HAVE AS MEMBERS OF THIS PARTICULAR SPECIAL POPULATION. AND, UH, SO I'M WHOLEHEARTEDLY, UH, HOPING AND PRAYING THAT THE, THE, THE STAFF THAT'S LISTENING WILL BE ABLE TO, UH, AND I'M GONNA SHARE THIS WITH MY CITY COUNCILMAN, UH, THAT YOU CAME TO SEE US TODAY AND THAT WE'VE HEARD FROM YOU. BUT I THINK THAT, UH, THOSE OF US THAT ARE ON THIS, UH, ON THIS PARTICULAR COMMISSION UNDERSTAND IT BECAUSE WE LIVE IT EVERY DAY AS YOU DO. AND SO, UH, I'M I'M HOPING THAT THE POWERS THAT BE FOR THE CITY OF DALLAS [00:55:01] ACTUALLY GET TO HEAR FROM YOU DIRECTLY. I THINK THAT THAT WILL HELP BECAUSE WE WANT TO BE A PREMIER CITY, BUT IN ORDER FOR US TO BECOME THE PREMIER CITY THAT WE SAY WE WANT TO BE, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE EVERYBODY INCLUDED WITHIN THE DISCUSSION. SO I THANK YOU AGAIN, SIR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. UM, COMMISSIONER WICKS FOR YOUR QUESTION AND, AND MR. DYER FOR YOUR COMMENT. NEXT WE GO TO COMMISSIONER COLLIER, DISTRICT FOUR. YEAH, I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, UH, MR. DYER, BUT I DID ALSO WANNA JUST KIND OF PIGGYBACK ON COMMISSIONER WICKS AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK. UM, YOUR RESUME IS EXTENSIVE, UM, SEEING THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE AND I KNOW A LOT OF IT SEEMS INVISIBLE AND THANKLESS. UM, BUT, BUT WE APPRECIATE IT. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND I WILL ALSO BE SHARING THIS, UM, WITH MY COUNCILMAN AS WELL. THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONER COLLIER. NEXT WE GO TO COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL, DISTRICT FIVE. UH, THANK YOU, UH, MR. GUYER, I APPRECIATE YOU FOR JOINING US AND FOR STAYING UP SO LATE, UH, TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS. I KNOW IT'S QUITE LATE THERE. UM, I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS FOR YOU. UM, AND I JUST THINK ABOUT THIS IN THE CONTEXT OF YOUR POINT EARLIER THAT, YOU KNOW, WE ONLY ARE, WE ARE ONLY A FEW MONTHS AWAY FROM THE WORLD CUP, SO IT'S VERY LITTLE THAT WE CAN DO IN TERMS OF ACTUALLY CHANGING SOME OF THE BIG STUFF. UM, AND THE OTHER THING THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO US AS WELL AS THE CITY IS, AND THE UNITED STATES AT THIS POINT, IS THAT WE'RE PREPARING TO CELEBRATE OUR 250TH ANNIVERSARY AS A COUNTRY. AND SO THERE ARE EVEN MORE EVENTS HAPPENING IN THE CITY THIS YEAR FOR THOSE CELEBRATIONS IN ADDITION TO THE WORLD CUP. AND SO I WOULD JUST LOVE YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON A FEW THINGS. UM, I'LL START WITH THE FIRST QUESTION HERE. YOU KNOW, FIRST OF ALL, I THINK DATA IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF THIS AND REALLY HOW DO WE BRING DATA BACK INTO LONG-TERM PLANNING? I WAS CURIOUS, HOW WOULD YOU GO ABOUT ESTABLISHING A DATA STRATEGY TO IMPROVE EFFORTS REGARDING INTERNATIONAL TRAVELS? TRAVELERS WHO ARE UNAWARE OF WHAT A DA LOOKS LIKE AND, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T KNOW WHEN A VIOLATION OCCURS, BUT WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO COLLECT DATA WHEN THAT HAPPENS. UM, AND REALLY BEING ABLE TO BUILD THAT INTO OUR PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE. UM, AND IT, ONE THING I THINK YOU MENTIONED WAS A STRATEGY FOR A SURVEY AND MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN EXPAND ON AS WELL. SURE. SO I THINK THE FIRST POINT IS, UH, AS YOU SAY, DATA'S CRITICAL BECAUSE IT GETS TO UNDERSTAND YOUR, YOUR KNOW, THE MOST IMPORTANT DATA NEED FIRST OF ALL IS TO UNDERSTAND, I THINK PROBABLY FROM A FIFA AS TO WHAT DID THEY ASK OF THE STADIUM TO PROVIDE IN TERMS OF ACCESSIBILITY, IN TERMS OF ACCESSIBLE SEATS. 'CAUSE THAT WILL GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF WHO'S COMING IN AND WHAT TYPE OF DISABILITIES MIGHT BE THERE AND WHAT TYPE OF SPECIFIC NEEDING. SO TYPICALLY WHEN WE DO EVENTS WITH A, A WORLD CUP OR OLYMPIC GAMES, YOU WOULD HAVE 0.5% OF THE CAST CAPACITY OF A STADIUM WOULD HAVE WOULD BE WHEELCHAIR SPACES. SO IF YOU IMAGINE YOUR 80,000 SEATER STADIUM WOULD HAVE 400 WHEELCHAIR SPACES, THAT'S A LOT OF WHEELCHAIR USERS GOING TO A MATCH. BUT IT MAY BE WHAT YOU HAVE ALREADY. THE DIFFERENCE IS HOW MANY OF THOSE ARE YOUR REGULAR FANS WHO WILL GO AND WATCH AN NFL MATCH BUT DON'T NECESSARILY WATCH A FOOTBALL SOCCER. I SAY FOOTBALL, SOCCER MATCH AND THEREFORE ARE A DIFFERENT AUDIENCE WHETHER IT'S A LOCAL AUDIENCE OF DIFFERENT DISABLED PEOPLE OR HOW MUCH ARE INTERNATIONAL OVERSEAS. SO THAT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT THING. THE STADIUM SHOULD BE ABLE TO LET YOU BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THAT. WHAT ARE THE NUMBERS THEY'RE WORKING TO. AND THEN I THINK, AND I WOULD HOPE SOMEONE'S PROBABLY DONE THIS ALREADY, THEY'VE BEEN LOOKING THROUGH LIKE A TRANSPORT PROGRAM AND SAYING WE CAN DO X NUMBER OF MOVEMENTS THROUGH A LIFT AT A STATION PER HOUR. AND THINGS LIKE THAT BECOME REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT 400 WHEELCHAIR USERS ALL DISAPPEARING TO THE SAME STATION AT THE END OF A MATCH BECAUSE THE WAIT TIMES ARE HUGE. NEVERMIND ALL THE OTHER PEOPLE WHO NEED TO USE THE LIFT AS WELL. SO SOMEBODY I WOULD ASSUME HAS PROBABLY DONE THOSE KIND OF CALCULATIONS, THOSE BITS OF WORK ALREADY AND THEY'LL BE ABLE TO SAY, OH, WE'VE ALREADY TAKEN X NUMBER OF PEOPLE OUT THE EQUATION BECAUSE WE KNOW THEY'LL BE DRIVING OR WE KNOW THEY'RE DOING OTHER OPTIONS TO GET THERE. BUT THAT'S THE KIND OF THING SOMEONE SHOULD BE ABLE TO HOPEFULLY SHARE THAT WITH YOU ALREADY. UM, BUT YOU OBVIOUSLY HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE CITY TO GET THAT KIND OF INFORMATION. UM, IT WILL BE DIFFERENT TO HOW YOU TYPICALLY RUN AN NFL GAME, UM, BECAUSE IT JUST, THERE'S NOT THAT KNOWLEDGE. OTHER THINGS, WE TALKED ABOUT INCLUSION, WE TALKED ABOUT HUMAN RIGHTS, LANGUAGE BARRIERS WILL BE KEY. SO YOU KNOW, I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT SIGN LANGUAGE AND THINGS LIKE THAT NECESSARILY, BUT JUST LANGUAGE AS A WHOLE. YOU'LL HAVE LANGUAGE MORE AROUND THE WORLD THAT SLOWS THINGS DOWN. THAT MEANS THINGS CAN TAKE LONGER [01:00:01] JUST FROM GETTING PEOPLE IN AND OUTTA THE STADIUM AS THOSE CONVERSATIONS ONGOING. SO THINGS LIKE THAT ARE CONSIDERATIONS. SO I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THERE WOULD I IMAGINE BE A DOCUMENT BEING PREPARED BY THE CITY TO SAY WHEN YOU ARRIVE HERE FOR A WORLD CUP, THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW AS A DISABLED PERSON. AND I IMAGINE THERE IS SOMEONE WITHIN THE CITY PROBABLY LOOKING AT THAT AND IT'D BE REALLY INTERESTING TO KNOW FROM YOUR OTHER CITIES HOW THAT'S BEEN DONE AS WELL. SO THAT'S WHAT YOU WOULD EXPECT TO BE SEEN. YOU, I THINK YOU HAVE WHAT, FIVE OR SIX MATCHES? I CAN'T REMEMBER EXACTLY TO BE HONEST. MAYBE IT'S MORE THAN THAT. SO THERE IS TIME BETWEEN MATCHES. SO IF YOU ARE BASED AS A GROUP THERE, YOU NEED TO ENSURE THAT PEOPLE ARE AWARE THAT WHOLE PICTURE OF WHAT THEY DO BEYOND THE STADIUM AS WELL, HOW THEY GET BETWEEN A AND B. AND AGAIN I MENTIONED THE STARS OF CONVERSATION IS THAT IF I'M A PERSON LIVING THERE WITH A DISABILITY AND I HAVE A HOSPITAL APPOINTMENT ON TUESDAY MORNING, THAT'S IMPORTANT TO ME, HOW CAN I BE SURE THAT I STILL HAVE THOSE SUPPORT TRANSPORT SERVICES TO GET ME TO THAT APPOINTMENT THAT I USUALLY RELY ON? THINGS LIKE THAT ARE REALLY IMPORTANT. SO THERE SHOULD BE WITHIN THE TRANSPORT ORGANIZATIONS OF THE CITY, THAT KIND OF INFORMATION, NO, THEY SHOULD BE WITHIN THE AIRPORT AUTHORITY SHOULD BE HAVING AN INDICATION BY NOW OF FLIGHT BOOKINGS AND THEY SHOULD HAVE AN INDICATION WITHIN THE AIRLINE INDUSTRY. THERE ARE THREE LEVELS OF ASSISTANCE THAT APPLIES INTERNATIONALLY. THEY SHOULD BE STARTING TO UNDERSTAND NUMBERS FOR THEIR SPECIAL ASSISTANCE TEAMS AS TO HOW MANY PEOPLE COMING PER FLIGHT AND WHO NEEDS ASSISTANCE. SO YOU GET AN IDEA OF THAT'S COMING IN. NOW THEY'RE NOT GOING TO OBVIOUSLY SHARE NAMES WITH YOU, BUT I WOULD HOPE YOU WILL BE ABLE TO GET NUMBERS. IT MAY BE A BIT TOO EARLY TO ACTUALLY SEE THAT SIDE OF THINGS 'CAUSE WE'RE STILL A FEW MONTHS OUT. BUT THAT KIND OF INFORMATION WILL HELP INFORM YOU. AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS THAT YOUR HOTELS HAVE A TOTAL NUMBER OF ACCESSIBLE ROOMS AND IT'S UNDERSTANDING ARE THERE ENOUGH ACCESSIBLE ROOMS OR SOME PEOPLE GONNA BE STANDING IN ACCOMMODATION THAT MAY NOT BE THE BEST ACCESSIBILITY FORM, BUT THEY'RE STAYING NEEDED BECAUSE OF AVAILABILITY OR BECAUSE OF COST. SO I THINK IT'S KIND OF GOING BACK TO THE CITY AND KIND OF, IF I SUGGEST UNDER THE SIZE I'VE GOT, I'M NOT SAYING YOU GO BACK WITH THOSE NECESSARILY, BUT YOU'LL SEE THERE'S DIFFERENT CATEGORIES THERE. YOU NEED TO ASK THE QUESTIONS AROUND THAT AND HOPEFULLY SOMEONE HAD THE ANSWERS THERE FOR YOU. BUT I SUSPECT YOU MIGHT FIND PEOPLE WORKED IN SILOS AND THEY HAVEN'T JOINED IT ALL UP AS ONE PIECE. UM, YOU'LL WORK, YOU ALL KNOW HOW THE CITY OPERATES AND ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. AND THAT'S WHERE A WORLD CUP OLYMPICS IS SO USEFUL BECAUSE PEOPLE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER TO GET THIS THING DELIVERED BECAUSE IT'S DIFFERENT TO ANYTHING ELSE. AND HOPEFULLY YOU THEN RETAIN THOSE VALUES GOING FORWARD. AND CERTAINLY I THINK WITHIN LONDON YOU SAW THAT MASSIVELY, BUT YOU ALSO DID IN RIO, UH, FOR THE OLYMPICS THERE. AND YOU ALSO SAW IT WITH THE QAR AS WELL. THOSE CHANGES WOULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED WITHOUT A WORLD CUP. AND YES, IT'S STILL GOT THINGS TO DO, THERE ARE CHANGES THERE THAT HAVE MADE A PERMANENT DIFFERENCE TO THE QUALITY OF, OF PEOPLE WHO, QUALITY OF LIFE FOR PEOPLE WHO MAY NOT HAVE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES PREVIOUSLY. YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF CHEAPER TRANSPORT OPTIONS, IN TERMS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT OPTIONS, IN TERMS OF THERE IS ACCOMMODATION, THERE IS NOW COMMUNITY AREAS THAT ARE ACCESSIBLE FOR THEIR CHILDREN TO GO TO THAT WEREN'T BEFORE. SO ALL THOSE KIND OF THINGS I THINK IS TO ASK THE QUESTIONS, FIND THE PERSON WITHIN THE CITY AND HOPEFULLY THAT COULD THAT WILL GIVE THE QUESTIONS. SORRY, UM, THE, THAT WAS THE, WAS THAT THE FIRST BIT OF THE SECOND BIT I OFF TOGETHER? I'M NOT SURE NOW. I THINK YOU ANSWERED, AND I, YOU ABSOLUTE TOUCHED ON MY, UH, SECOND QUESTION THERE, WHICH WAS REALLY ABOUT THE ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR, UM, FEDERAL INFORMING HOTELS. ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT I SEE I TRAVEL, UH, QUITE A BIT, UH, HERE IN THE STATES AND ABROAD AND, UM, FOLKS THAT NEED ACCOMMODATIONS IN THE HOTELS OFTEN CAN'T GET THEM BECAUSE THOSE ROOMS HAVE BEEN SOLD OUT FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER. UM, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE ENSURE THE CONNECTIVITY, UH, TO BE ABLE TO INFORM HOTELS ACROSS THE CITY, YOU KNOW, TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE A DA ROOMS ARE HELD FOR THOSE ACTUALLY WITH DISABILITIES. UM, I I THINK THAT'S ONE OF MY BIGGEST CONCERNS. AND IF YOU WANNA ELABORATE ON THAT TOPIC TOO, I, I'D BE GLAD TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT. BUT THAT'S MY LAST QUESTION, SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME TOO, BY THE WAY. SO I THINK IN TERMS, YEAH, PARDON? I WAS JUST GONNA CONCERNED THE ACCOMMODATION REALLY QUICKLY IS THAT SOMEONE SHOULD HAVE A CENTRAL RECORD KNOWING HOW MANY ACCESSIBLE ROOMS ARE IDENTIFIED WITHIN THE CITY AS A WHOLE. SO THAT SHOULD BE THERE AND THAT SHOULD BE KNOWN BECAUSE THERE'S PERCENTAGE REQUIREMENTS WITHIN THE A DA TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN, UNDERSTANDING WHERE THEY ARE. AND ONE OF THE CHALLENGE WE HAVE, PARTICULARLY LIKE CA CASTLE WAS THAT THERE WERE LOTS OF ACCESSIBLE ROOMS THERE, BUT THEY WERE ALL FIVE STAR. SO THE CHALLENGE WAS THAT WE HAD FOOTBALL FANS COME IN FROM COUNTRIES THAT POTENTIALLY DON'T HAVE VERY MUCH MONEY OR RESOURCE, BUT THEREFORE WERE EXCLUDED [01:05:01] FROM FINDING ACCESSIBLE ROOMS BECAUSE THE COST WAS PROHIBITIVE AND OBVIOUSLY THE DEMAND FOR THOSE WAS MASSIVE AS ONE, THE PRICES GO UP EVEN MORE TO THE WORLD CUP. SO I THINK IF YOU CAN GO AND FIND OUT, THERE SHOULD BE SOMEONE I WOULD HOPE WHO HAS A KIND OF ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY FOR OVERSEEING ACCOMMODATION WITHIN THE TOURNAMENT. AND I WOULD HOPE THEY'VE DONE A PIECE AROUND THE ACCESSIBILITY AND THE NUMBER OF HOTEL ROOMS AND ALSO CRITICALLY WHERE THEY'RE ALLOCATED AS WELL. THERE SHOULD BE A MAP THERE SO YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU MIGHT NEED TO PUT IN ADDITIONAL TRANSPORT SERVICES OF MINI BUSES BECAUSE IT MAY NOT BE CLOSE TO A STATION ON HOW YOU NEED TO SUPPORT THAT AS WELL. THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL, IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, I WILL BE MOVING TO THE NEXT COMMISSIONER. OKAY. UM, NEXT WE GO TO COMMISSIONER WHITE FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS TO THE PRESENTER? AYE, UM, I HAVE MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS. UM, UH, I CAN'T GO TO BIG EVENTS. I CAN'T GO TO AIRPORTS BY MYSELF. UM, I'M TURNED DOWN ALL THE TIME. I'M SORRY, I'M TURNED DOWN ALL THE TIME WHEN I ASK FOR ACCOMMODATIONS AT AN AIRPORT. SO WHAT DO YOU DO AT YOUR EVENTS TO HELP AID PEOPLE LIKE ME WITH INVISIBLE DISABILITIES? BECAUSE THEY LOOK AT ME AND THEY GO, OTHER THAN BEING OLD, I SEE NO PROBLEM WITH YOU. I'VE BEEN DENIED WHEELCHAIR, I'VE BEEN DENIED, BUT YOU NAME IT, I'VE BEEN DENIED IT. UM, MY PERSONAL VIEW IS HOW WE OPERATE THESE THINGS IS IT'S NOT OUR PLACE TO DEFINE SOMEONE'S DISABILITY. WHAT WE TRY AND DO IN ADVANCE IS PROMOTE THE AWARENESS. I MEAN, TRAINING IS A BIG PART OF OUR VOLUNTEERS OR TRAINED STAFF. IF SOMEONE'S ASKING FOR THAT SERVICE, THEY HAVE A GENUINE NEED AND IT'S OUR JOB TO MEET THAT GENUINE NEED. SO WHEN WE ARE PROVIDING SOMETHING THAT YOU MAY NEED, PERHAPS WHEN YOU'VE GOT TO A STADIUM HELP TO GET TO A SEAT WITH A WHEELCHAIR, WE PROVIDE THAT AND THAT'S WHAT I'D EXPECT TO HAPPEN. UM, IT'S NOT, IN MY OPINION, ACCEPTABLE FOR YOU TO BE REFUSED THAT IT'S NOT MY CALL TO JUDGE YOUR DISABILITY. MY HOPE IS THAT YOU DON'T HAVE PEOPLE ABUSING AND MISUSING THE SYSTEM. BUT UNFORTUNATELY IT DOES HAPPEN SOMETIMES, WHICH IS WHY YOU GET THIS DECISION MAKING PROCESS. THAT MEANS UNLESS YOU CAN PROVE TO ME YOU HAVE A DISABILITY. SO WE WOULD TYPICALLY ASK FOR, UM, IN SOMETHING LIKE THIS, YOU PROVIDE A DISABILITY CARD OR, OR PROOF OF DISABILITY, WHICH I ASSUME WOULD STILL HAVE HAVING MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS IN THE FIRST PLACE. I WOULD HOPE THERE'S SOMETHING THERE THAT, THAT ENABLES YOU TO DO THAT. 'CAUSE YOU SHOULD HAVE TO FIGHT FOR THAT. EVERY TIME YOU GO ANYWHERE. YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO PROVIDE SOME KIND OF IDENTIFICATION THAT PROVE YOU MAY NEED THE LEVEL OF SUPPORT DEPENDING UPON THE ENVIRONMENT YOU'RE IN. AND I THINK THE OTHER THING THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT, WE HAVE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT'S DIFFERENT GOING TO A STADIUM OR AN AIRPORT TO GO INTO YOUR LOCAL SHOPS. YOU KNOW, THE SCALE IS DIFFERENT. THE DISTANCE IS A DNCE, THE NOISE IS DIFFERENT, THE QUEUING TIME IS DIFFERENT, IT'S A DIFFERENT WORLD. AND THEREFORE WE HAVE TO RECOGNIZE YOU ARE POSSIBLY ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT HAS A DISABILITY BUT ISN'T DISABLED IN THEIR DAY-TO-DAY ENVIRONMENT ALL THE TIME AND ACTUALLY COPES. BUT WHEN YOU WANT TO COME AND DO SOMETHING WITH US IS REALLY DIFFICULT. SO WE NEED TO MAKE THAT PROVISIONAL ALLOCATION WITHIN THAT AND WE NEED TO CREATE A SYSTEM THROUGH THE TRAINING THAT PEOPLE FEEL COMFORTABLE TO APPROACH US. SO WE'D OFTEN HAVE STEWARDS WHO ARE ACCESSIBILITY DISABILITY STEWARDS. SO YOU CAN GO TO WHO'S A GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF YOUR NEED, WHO'S ABLE TO GET YOU THE ALLOCATION RESOURCE YOU NEED, WHETHER IT BE A WHEELCHAIR, WHETHER IT BE A BUGGY, UH, WHETHER IT'S A CHAIR TO SIT DOWN WHERE YOU HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE NEXT POINT OF TRANSPORT. THAT'S WHAT I WOULD EXPECT TO SEE HAPPENING. I THINK WE DID IT REALLY WELL WITH LONDON 2012. I THINK WE DID IT REALLY WELL WITH QAR. IT DOESN'T WORK EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME. THAT'S WHAT I'D HOPE YOU HAVE. SO THIS IS ALL ABOUT YOU HAVING A DEGREE OF CONFIDENCE THAT YOU GO OUT THERE, THAT YOUR NEEDS WILL BE MET. BUT I KNOW HOW HARD IT IS ONCE YOU'VE ASKED FOR SOMETHING AND YOU GET TURNED DOWN AND YOU ARE STUCK, AND THAT MEANS YOU STOP DOING STUFF. AND THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO TRY AND CHANGE AS A, AS A PIECE GOING FORWARD. UM, I DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER TO MAKE IT EASY FOR YOU. I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO TRY AND KEEP ASKING, BUT I THINK IT'S AGAIN, A QUESTION TO TAKE BACK SAYING HOW DO YOU, HOW DO I GET RECOGNIZED FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS A NEED, BUT I DON'T FIT INTO THE CATEGORIES THAT YOU TYPICALLY LOOK TO SEE. YOU HAVE A GOOD UNDERSTANDING. I WORK FULL-TIME AND I'M A PRODUCING ARTIST ON TOP OF THAT AS WELL AS THIS. BUT THOSE ARE THINGS I'M USED TO. THOSE ARE THINGS I KNOW I CAN'T DRIVE TO MY GALLERY BECAUSE IT'S TOO CONFUSING. UM, SO MY SON DRIVES ME, BUT HE CAN'T TAKE ME EVERYWHERE I WANT TO GO IN THE WHOLE WORLD. UM, SO ANYWAY, I WAS JUST CURIOUS HOW Y'ALL APPROACHED IT AND SOUNDS LIKE IT'S A GOOD ONE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND, AND I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY, I THINK OBVIOUSLY FROM YOUR SITUATION THERE WERE GOOD DAYS AND THERE BAD DAYS, YOU KNOW? YES. AND YOU KNOW, [01:10:01] THERE'S, AND, AND THAT SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED AND ACKNOWLEDGED AND ACCEPTED WITH WHERE, WHEREVER YOU WANT TO GO ON THAT SIDE OF IT. SO TO ME, I THINK THERE'S A, THERE'S A, IT'S ABOUT A COMMUNICATION PIECE, BUT THERE NEEDS TO BE A PROCESS THAT ENABLES ANYONE WHO IT MIGHT BE. SO IF WE HAVE SOMEONE COME FROM OVERSEAS WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT TRAVEL WILL TAKEN A LOT OUTTA THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE, BUT THEY MAY NOT HAVE ANY IDENTIFICATION THAT GETS RECOGNIZED BY THE AUTHORITIES OVER IN THE US HOW DO WE STILL SUPPORT? WE HAVE TO ACT OUT OF GOOD FAITH AND THE BELIEF THAT PERSON HAS A GENUINE NEED. AND THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT YOU HAVE TO GO TO. SO YOU MAKE THAT ALLOWANCE OF SAYING, THERE ARE PEOPLE HERE WHO WILL FIND OUR ENVIRONMENTS DISABLING. WE THEREFORE NEED TO MAKE AN ALLOWANCE TO PROVIDE THAT ADDITIONAL SUPPORT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONER WHITE FOR YOUR QUESTION. UM, NEXT WE GO, UH, MOVE ON TO COMMISSIONER HUSHKA FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. HE IS LEFT THE MEETING. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME KNOW. UM, THEN SINCE THERE ARE NO MORE QUESTIONS, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MR, THANK YOU SO MUCH MR. DYER, FOR TAKING TIME OUT OF YOUR SCHEDULE TO MEET WITH US. IT REALLY HAS BEEN AN INFORMATIVE PRESENTATION AND MOST CERTAINLY TRANSLATES TO OUR FIRM BELIEFS AND GUIDING PRINCIPLES AS A COMMISSION. SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR EVERYTHING. THANK YOU. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AND JUST KEEP GOING. YEAH, KEEP HIDING, KEEP SHOUTING, KEEP SCREAMING, WHATEVER YOU NEED TO DO. AND IF YOU CAN GET TO SPEAK TO PEOPLE AHEAD OF THIS, TRY AND TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY BECAUSE THERE IS TIME TO STILL MAKE CHANGES AND ENHANCE THAT EXPERIENCE, NOT JUST FOR THE TOURNAMENT AND THE WORLD CUP, BUT BEYOND THAT AS WELL. SO GOOD LUCK OUT THERE. IF ANY OF YOU WANNA REACH OUT TO ME AFTERWARDS TO TALK ABOUT SOME STUFF, IF IT HELPS, I'LL SUPPORT IT ANYWAY I CAN. OKAY. OKAY. THANK, OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN, MR. DYER, FOR EVERYTHING AND WE CERTAINLY LOOK FORWARD TO WELCOMING YOU IN THE NEAR FUTURE. I HAVE TO GET FOR MY FIRST NFL GAME ONE OF THESE DAYS. I'LL GET THAT. ALRIGHT, GREAT. THIS CONCLUDES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THIS CONCLUDES THE BRIEFING SEGMENT OF OUR AGENDA. MOVING ON NOW TO ANNOUNCEMENTS. FEBRUARY IS DISABILITY RIGHTS AWARENESS MONTH. IT HIGHLIGHTS THE ONGOING STRUGGLES FOR DIGNITY, EQUAL RIGHTS, AND FULL INCLUSION IN SOCIETY AMONG MEMBERS OF THE DISABILITY COMMUNITY. WHILE IT IS NOT OBSERVED AS A NATIONAL HOLIDAY, ORGANIZATIONS AND ADVOCATES USE THIS TIME TO PROMOTE THESE ISSUES AND EMPOWER ALLIES TO TAKE PART AND BE A VOICE FOR THIS COMMUNITY OF MARGINALIZED MEMBERS, PARTICULARLY THOSE OF INTERSECTING INTERSECTING IDENTITIES. AS MENTIONED BEFORE, INTERSECTIONALITY IS A VERY IMPORTANT TOPIC AND SHOULD BE AT THE CENTER STAGE OF EACH CONVERSATION. SO TO CONCLUDE MY ANNOUNCEMENT, I EMPOWER EACH ONE OF YOU TO, UM, CONTINUE FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT, DEMAND, DIGNITY, NOT JUST ASK DEMAND, DIGNITY, AND WORK TOWARDS A MORE PEACE AND JUST SOCIETY WHERE PEOPLE OF THE MEMBERS OF THIS COMMUNITY CAN FEEL WELCOME, THEY CAN THRIVE AND FULLY PARTICIPATE AND BE SEEN AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF OUR COMMUNITY. I WOULD NOW LIKE TO TURN THE FLOOR OVER TO COMMISSIONERS WHO MAY WISH TO PROVIDE ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THEIR OWN, STARTING WITH COMMISSIONER GLASSCOCK, DISTRICT ONE, NOTHING AT THIS TIME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. NEXT WE MOVE ON TO COMMISSIONER WICKS, DISTRICT THREE. UH, THANK YOU. UH, SOME OF YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW THAT I USED TO BE, UH, THE TEACHER OF THE YEAR FOR THE, UH, DALLAS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT IN 2007, 2008. AND I'M VERY HAPPY AND PLEASED TO SHARE WITH YOU THAT I WILL BE INDUCTED INTO THE AFRICAN AMERICAN EDUCATORS HALL OF FAME ON APRIL THE 12TH, UH, 2026 AT THE RENAISSANCE HOTEL. AND, UH, I AM IN A LIST OF A WONDERFUL CLASS. AND SO I I TELL YOU, I I WILL BE BRINGING FORTH MORE INFORMATION LATER, BUT I WANTED TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU. AND MY LIFE'S WORK WILL BE DISPLAYED AT THE AFRICAN AMERICAN, UH, MUSEUM PERMANENTLY. THANK YOU, SIR. THAT'S SO WONDERFUL. THAT IS, THAT IS SO WONDERFUL TO HEAR. COMMISSIONER WICKS, WE SINCERELY CONGRATULATE YOU ON THIS OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AND COMMEND YOU FOR DEDICATING YOUR LIFE TO EDUCATION AND MAKING AN IMPACT ON THE LIVES OF FUTURE GENERATIONS. NEXT, WE MOVE ON TO COMMISSIONER COLLIER FROM DISTRICT FOUR FOR ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS. THANK YOU. UH, I DEFINITELY WANNA SAY CONGRATULATIONS, COMMISSIONER WOODS. THAT'S AN AMAZING ACCOMPLISHMENT. UM, I HAVE NO ANNOUNCEMENTS. THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK [01:15:01] YOU. THANKS SO MUCH, COMMISSIONER. NEXT WE MOVE ON TO COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL FOR ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS. I ALSO WANT TO OFFER MY CONGRATULATIONS TO COMMISSIONER WS AND LOOK FORWARD TO SUPPORTING YOU IN THAT EVENT. UM, I SHARED WITH YOU ALL A NUMBER OF ANNOUNCEMENTS IN MY REPORT. UM, I DO ALSO WANT TO JUST GIVE THAT LAST PITCH FOR THAT MAVS GAME THAT'S HAPPENING ON FRIDAY, UH, WHICH IS A DISABILITY INCLUSIVE AWARENESS EVENT AS WELL. UH, SO THOSE FOLKS WHO WERE ABLE TO ATTEND, UH, HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE. GO MASS. THANK YOU. UM, NEXT WE GO TO COMMISSIONER WHITE FOR DISTRICT DISTRICT NINE, FOR ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS. NOTHING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALSO, UM, LAST BUT NOT LEAST, COMMISSIONER HUSHKA DISTRICT 13. ACTUALLY, YEAH, COMMISSIONER HUSHKA HAS STEPPED OUT AND SO I'VE MADE MY ANNOUNCEMENTS. SO IN THIS CASE, ANY FINAL WORD PRIOR TO ADJOURNMENT? NO, NO, NO. FINAL WORDS OF DISCUSSION. NO INPUT. I MOTION TO ADJOURN. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR OF ADJOURNING THIS MEETING PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED? APPARENTLY THERE IS NONE. SO THE MEETING HAS BEEN ADJOURNED. I WOULD LIKE TO, ONCE AGAIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TODAY. IT WAS A VERY PRODUCTIVE MEETING. I WISH TO THANK YOU COMMISSIONER ROCKWELL FOR INVITING MR. DYER TO COME AND, AND GIVE US THIS INFORMATIVE PRESENTATION. THESE ARE VERY IMPORTANT TOPICS OF DISCUSSION THAT WE SHOULD BE HAVING ON A REGULAR BASIS. I VERY MUCH LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ALL BACK HERE, SAME TIME, SAME PLACE IN MARCH. UNTIL THEN, BE SAFE, BE WELL, AND ALL BLESSINGS. GOODBYE EVERYONE. AND, AND FOR THE RECORD, THIS MEETING ADJOURNED AT 3:36 PM THANKS EVERYONE FOR YOUR TIME. THANKS, GOD BLESS. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.