(She/her) 2025

Carly Fox is a queer, neurodivergent, and invisibly disabled 23-year-old passionate about raising awareness of invisible disabilities, challenging oppressive structures perpetuating ableism, and creating space for all disabled persons to feel empowered to share their truths.

As a disability advocate, Carly aims to raise awareness of her own experiences with invisible disabilities and neurodivergence, provide educational resources on the policies and legislation shaping disabled persons’ lives, and create space for disabled youth to share their own stories through blogs, public speaking, and consultations. Carly believes in collaborating with a wide variety of individuals and organizations to tackle tricky conversations, challenge mainstream misconceptions, and empower impactful policy change and attitude shifts.

As the International Chair of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities, Carly advocates for mainstreaming disability across international development commitments and human rights funding, with an emphasis on improving youth representation and funding by-and-for disabled persons organizations at home and abroad. This work includes leading on awareness-raising and access to information for Canadian civil society’s parallel report to the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, advising federal ministers and intergovernmental bodies on disability rights, and monitoring the polycrisis for its disproportionate impacts on disabled people.

As an academic, Carly is entering Carleton University’s Master’s of Political Economy (Accessibility) this Fall, where she hopes to strengthen her understanding of systemic disabling forces to better advocate for policy reform, and further study how the labour market is both disabling and exclusive of disabled workers. Graduating from uOttawa’s International Development and Globalization program this Spring, Carly leaves with a strong foundation in institutional economics, post-conflict rebuilding and restructuring, and sustainable development.

Carly joins the Network eager to connect with other emerging leaders, collaborate on impactful projects, and create empowering change for all members of the disability community!