Al Etmanski is an author, community organizer and social
entrepreneur. Since the birth of his daughter, he has been an activist in
the family arm of the disability movement. He co-foundered Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network (PLAN),
assisting families to address the financial and social well-being of their
relatives with disabilities, particularly after their parents die. PLAN has
spread to more than 40 locations around the world. He proposed and led the
successful campaign to establish the world’s first savings plan for people with
disabilities (Registered Disability Savings Plan). Al is currently involved in a campaign to establish the world’s first Basic Income for disabled people, The Canada Disability Benefit.
In addition to his continuing work addressing the poverty
and social isolation of people with disabilities, Al is curious about the role
of culture (habits, attitudes, beliefs) in helping or hindering social,
economic and environmental justice. He is interested in what unites
us particularly the omnipresence of natural caring (for each other
and our environment) which he considers a universal that transcends ideology
and background. When he grows up he'd like to be a peacemaker.
Al was the first Canadian accepted into Ashoka’s global
fellowship of social entrepreneurs. He has been a faculty member of John
McKnight’s Asset-Based Community Development Institute since 1995.
He is the author of three best selling books. His new book, The Power of Disability: 10 Lessons for surviving, Thriving and Changing the World was published in 2020. Michael J. Fox’s front cover endorsement read: "This book reminds us of what we have in common – the power to create a good life for ourselves and for others no matter what the world has in store for us.”