Paralyzed, Sean Kramp was included in the 2022 list of Calgary’s top 40 under 40 by Avenue Calgary for making the city more inclusive by uniting people with disabilities and certified accessible businesses. Sean founded Included By Design, a company that addresses systemic gaps in the inclusion process by consulting and training businesses on how to make their spaces more inclusive. More about his journey can be found on calgaryski.net.
How the Idea Came About
Sean became paralyzed at 19. In 2004, he went hiking with friends and jumped into a lake to swim. When he submerged just a little, like a dolphin, he hit a sandbar and broke his neck. Since then, Sean has been confined to a wheelchair.
He faced a choice: to get angry at the world and focus on his loss, or to be grateful for what he has. Choosing the latter, he dedicated much of his professional career to improving the lives of people with disabilities. His goal is to create communities where everyone feels comfortable performing everyday tasks, participating in social events, and contributing to their economic well-being—spaces that accommodate all individuals, regardless of their physical abilities.
The Inspiration
Visiting various businesses, Sean continuously saw accessibility issues for people with disabilities. This led him to develop internationally recognized accessibility certification for commercial and residential buildings worldwide.
In 2021, Kramp founded Included By Design, which helps organizations meet globally recognized accessibility standards, which he integrated into a single process. These standards include automatic doors, ramps, and software for dictation or screen reading.
Included By Design eliminates systemic gaps in accessibility for people with disabilities by consulting and training businesses and their employees on how to make their spaces more inclusive. The company also shows businesses how inclusively designed work methods can increase the diversity of employees and customers who can access their space. People with disabilities gain employment, while employers benefit from new staff, visitors, and, in turn, greater revenue.
Alberta is one of the last provinces to implement provincial legislation to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. The results of Kramp’s efforts can be seen throughout Calgary. Included By Design’s clients include large organizations such as Glenbow, WinSport, as well as companies like Dandy Brewing Company.
Krooshl Platform
At the end of 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Included By Design saw a significant reduction in clients, the company developed Krooshl—a virtual map of certified accessible and inclusive businesses in the city. A few months after the beta version was launched, 50 businesses—ranging from restaurants and cafes to conference centers—had joined the map.
Krooshl identifies all accessible businesses, restaurants, and other venues so that people with disabilities can easily check availability, reserve tables, register for events, and more.
Thanks to the map, people with disabilities can ensure that the company they plan to visit meets their needs and those of their loved ones, and that it has taken all necessary steps to create a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere.
At the same time, Krooshl helps businesses identify what they need to do to become inclusive—whether it’s training staff, installing necessary equipment, and more.