October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), and this year marks the 80th anniversary of this event honoring persons with disabilities in the labor force. DEC joins other New York State agencies in celebrating Disability Rights Employment Awareness Month (DREAM), which was established by Governor Kathy Hochul in 2022 to recognize the value that employees with disabilities bring to the New York State workforce.
This year’s theme, “Celebrating Value and Talent,” is a critical reminder that persons with disabilities bring unique skills and talents that contribute to the success of DEC and are encouraged to apply for open positions
Under Governor Kathy Hochul, New York continues to lead on welcoming people with disabilities to the State workforce.
On July 27, 2023, Governor Hochul signed Executive Order 31 (EO 31), Committing New York State to Becoming a Model Employer for People with Disabilities. EO 31 brings attention to the number of persons with disabilities living in NYS and emphasizes the goal to ensure these individuals are aware of and have equal access to opportunities in State service. The DEC EO31 Strategic Plan is posted on DEC’s Diversity and Inclusion webpage.
On Sept. 30, 2024, Governor Hochul signed into legislation Executive Order 40 (EO 40), Committing New York to Be an Employment First State to Increase Competitive Integrated Employment for New Yorkers with Disabilities. EO 40 speaks to the importance of persons with disabilities having access to the resources needed to obtain self-sufficiency within NYS.
These two executive orders expand upon the long-standing Governor’s Program to Hire Individuals and Veterans with Disabilities (commonly referred to as the 55b/c Program) which is codified into NYS Civil Service Law. The 55b/c Program is a coordinated effort to place qualified individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities in entry-level state jobs.
DEC strongly supports individuals with disabilities and encourages people with disabilities to apply for employment at our agency.
For information on promoting an inclusive workforce for persons with disabilities through the Office of the Chief Disability Officer, visit: Promoting an Inclusive NYS Workforce.
Additional resources for persons with disabilities in the workforce is available through the Adult Career and Continuing Education Services-Vocational Rehabilitation (ACCES-VR), which assists individuals with disabilities in achieving and maintaining employment and supporting independent living through training, education, rehabilitation, and career development.
For ways to advance and recognize employees with disabilities year-round, visit: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/odep/initiatives/ndeam/year-round.
Recommended Reading Resources:
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Abdullah, Marina, Sreetheran Maruthaveeran, Mohd Fabian Hasna, and Tomomi Sudo. 2025. “Exploration of Outdoor Learning Space Towards ASD Children: A Systematic Literature Review.” Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal 10 (31): 251–56. https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v10i31.6494.
Ali, Muhammad Ubaid, Muhammad Zeeshan Gulzar, Bisma Sattar, et al. 2025. “Silent Threats of Lead-Based Paints in Toys and Households to Children’s Health and Development.” Journal of Hazardous Materials 486 (March): 136984. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.136984.
Babuji, Preethi, Subramani Thirumalaisamy, Karunanidhi Duraisamy, and Gopinathan Periyasamy. 2023. “Human Health Risks Due to Exposure to Water Pollution: A Review.” Water 15 (14): 2532. https://doi.org/10.3390/w15142532.
Bandukda, Maryam, Catherine Holloway, Aneesha Singh, and Nadia Berthouze. 2020. “Places: A Framework for Supporting Blind and Partially Sighted People in Outdoor Leisure Activities.” Proceedings of the 22nd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (New York, NY, USA), ASSETS ’20, October 29, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1145/3373625.3417001.
Barak, Sharon, and Ayelet Dunsky. 2023. “Long-Term Outdoor Recreation Program for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities: Feasibility and Effects.” Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities 36 (5): 1113–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.13130.
Chakraborty, Jayajit. 2022. “Disparities in Exposure to Fine Particulate Air Pollution for People with Disabilities in the US.” Science of The Total Environment 842 (October): 156791. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156791.
Dement, John M., Marianne Cloeren, Knut Ringen, et al. 2021. “COPD Risk among Older Construction Workers—Updated Analyses 2020.” American Journal of Industrial Medicine 64 (6): 462–75. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajim.23244.
Fields, Sierra, and Kailah Prince. 2024. “The Barriers to Natural Outdoor Spaces: Perspectives from People with Mobility Disabilities.” Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations, May 1. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd/1966.
Fraser, Scott. 2024. Climate Change and Eye Disease: Eye Health and Blindness in a Hostile Environment. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003512608.
Galán-Madruga, David, Jafet Cárdenas-Escudero, and J. O. Cáceres. 2025. “Relationship Between Disabilities and Air Quality.” In The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Disability. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40858-8_353-1.
Gao, Jiaqi. 2024. “The Associations of Long-Term Ambient Air Pollution, Physical Disability, and Accelerated Aging in Later Life.” University of Michigan. https://doi.org/10.7302/23894.
Herlambang, Satria Winekas, Fabiano Abbey K S, Ahda Akmalul I, Favian Dewanta, and Retno Hendryanti. 2025. “DST: GPS Tracker for Outdoor Activities of Children with Down Syndrome Based on Internet of Things.” 2025 International Conference on Computer Sciences, Engineering, and Technology Innovation (ICoCSETI), January, 443–48. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICoCSETI63724.2025.11019559.
Hobart, Rebecca. 2024. “Positioning Disability in Wilderness Space.” Geography ETDs, April 5. https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/geog_etds/73.
King, Molly M., and Maria A. Gregg. 2022. “Disability and Climate Change: A Critical Realist Model of Climate Justice.” Sociology Compass 16 (1): e12954. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12954.
Kosanic, Aleksandra, Jan Petzold, Berta Martín-López, and Mialy Razanajatovo. 2022. “An Inclusive Future: Disabled Populations in the Context of Climate and Environmental Change.” Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 55 (April): 101159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2022.101159.
Lanphear, Bruce, Ana Navas-Acien, and David C. Bellinger. 2024. “Lead Poisoning.” New England Journal of Medicine 391 (17): 1621–31. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMra2402527.
Lantto, Jussi, Hille Suojalehto, Kirsi Karvala, et al. 2022. “Clinical Characteristics of Irritant-Induced Occupational Asthma.” The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice 10 (6): 1554-1561.e7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaip.2022.02.021.
Menhas, Rashid, Lili Yang, Zulkaif Ahmed Saqib, Muhammad Younas, and Muhammad Muddasar Saeed. 2024. “Does Nature-Based Social Prescription Improve Mental Health Outcomes? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Frontiers in Public Health 12 (March). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1228271.
Mannella, Staci, Delphine Labbé, Andrea Bundon, et al. 2023. “Access at Elevation: Strategies Used to Support Participation for People with Disabilities in Adaptive Snowsports.” Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism 43 (September): 100685. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jort.2023.100685.
Normile, Dennis. 2025. “The Fog of War.” Science 388 (6745): 350–53. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.ady4158.
Rhim, Nakyung, Seohyun Lee, and Kyung-Hwa Choi. 2024. “Adverse Health Effects of Climate Change and Air Pollution in People with Disabilities: A Systematic Review.” Epidemiology and Health 46 (September): e2024080. https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2024080.
Salonen, L, E Hartikainen, K Undem, and S. Solovieva. 2024. “Systematic Review of Reviews: Occupational Exposures and Work Disability.” European Journal of Public Health 34 (Supplement_3): ckae144.1690. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckae144.1690.
Sarmadi, Mohammad, Sajjad Rahimi, Mohammad Reza Rezaiemanesh, and Sama Yektay. 2021. “Association between Water and Sanitation, Air and Emission Pollution and Climate Change and Neurological Disease Distribution: A Study Based on GBD Data.” Chemosphere 285 (December): 131522. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.131522.
Weaver, Frances M, Lishan Cao, Kevin T Stroupe, Alessandra Pratt, Caroline M Tanner, and Samuel M Goldman. 2024. “Disability Claims for Female Veterans Exposed to Contaminated Water at Marine Base Camp Lejeune.” Military Medicine 189 (9–10): e2127–33. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usae237.
Xiao, Lili, Hong Cheng, Haiqing Cai, et al. 2022. “Associations of Heavy Metals with Activities of Daily Living Disability: An Epigenome-Wide View of DNA Methylation and Mediation Analysis.” Environmental Health Perspectives 130 (8): 087009. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP10602.
