Curriculum Disability, Access & the Economy

Disability, Access & the Economy

How disability shapes employment, spending, and policy - and what an accessible economy actually costs and saves.

The Economics of Disability: An Overview Why disability is a mainstream economic topic, not a niche one, and how economists study it. 📄 Read-aloud
The Cost of Being Disabled (the "Disability Tax") Why disabled people often spend more money just to reach the same starting point as everyone else. 📄 Read-aloud
Employment Gaps and the Business Case for Inclusive Hiring How large the disability employment gap is, why it persists, and what makes inclusive hiring pay off for employers. 📄 Read-aloud
The ADA and Its Economic Impact How the Americans with Disabilities Act reshaped US labor markets, buildings, and business costs. 📄 Read-aloud
Universal Design: Why Accessible Often Means Better for Everyone How designing for disabled users tends to produce products and spaces that work better for all users. 📄 Read-aloud
The Hidden Costs of Inaccessible Cities How inaccessible urban infrastructure imposes real, often invisible economic costs on cities and their residents. 📄 Read-aloud
Disability Benefits Programs: How They Work How disability benefit systems are structured, funded, and the trade-offs built into their design. 📄 Read-aloud
The Economics of Assistive Technology Pricing Why assistive technology is often priced so high, and how markets and policy are starting to change that. 📄 Read-aloud
Remote Work and Disability Employment How the shift toward remote work has changed employment access and outcomes for disabled workers. 📄 Read-aloud
Blindness, Low Vision, and the Job Market The specific labor market challenges and strengths of blind and low-vision workers, and what changes outcomes. 📄 Read-aloud
The Care Economy and Family Caregivers How unpaid family caregiving for disabled relatives functions as real, uncounted economic activity. 📄 Read-aloud
Insurance and Pre-Existing Conditions How insurance markets historically treated disability as a risk to price out, and how that has changed. 📄 Read-aloud
Accessible Banking and Financial Independence How banking accessibility shapes disabled people's ability to manage money and build financial independence. 📄 Read-aloud
The Digital Divide and Screen Reader Access How unequal access to accessible technology creates a distinct digital divide for disabled internet users. 📄 Read-aloud
Global Disparities in Disability Support How disability support and economic outcomes vary dramatically between high-income and low-income countries. 📄 Read-aloud
The Economics of Supported Employment Programs How job coaching and workplace support programs help people with disabilities enter competitive employment, and what they cost. 📄 Read-aloud
Disability and Entrepreneurship: Self-Employment as an Alternative Path Why self-employment appeals to many people with disabilities facing barriers in traditional employment, and its real tradeoffs. 📄 Read-aloud
The ABLE Act and Saving Without Losing Benefits How a specific type of savings account lets people with disabilities build savings without losing means-tested benefits. 📄 Read-aloud
Reservation of Government Jobs for Disabled People How India reserves a share of government jobs for people with disabilities, how the system works, and debates over implementation. 📄 Read-aloud
Measuring the Disability Employment Gap How researchers measure the gap in employment between disabled and non-disabled people, why it exists, and how it varies across countries. 📄 Read-aloud
Job Carving and Customised Employment How tailoring jobs to a person's strengths, rather than fitting people to fixed job descriptions, can open employment to people with significant disabilities. 📄 Read-aloud
Neurodiversity at Work Why many autistic, ADHD and dyslexic people are unemployed or underemployed, and how employers benefit from neuro-inclusive hiring. 📄 Read-aloud