May is internationally recognized as Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Awareness Month, with May 12 recognized globally as Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Awareness Day.

This observance is specific to MCS and reflects long-standing international efforts to advance recognition, accommodation, and inclusion for people living with this disability.

This is the time for municipalities to include multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) in accessibility and inclusion efforts. MCS is recognized as a disability and health condition under Canadian human-rights law. Municipal action is now required to align with the Accessible Canada Act (2019) and Canada’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD), including through the implementation of fragrance-free and lowest-emission environments as essential accessibility measures.

Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is a recognized disability in Canada that can substantially limit major life activities, including breathing, mobility, access to housing, employment, healthcare, education, and public services.

People living with MCS experience adverse health effects when exposed to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) found in perfumes, fragranced products, cleaning agents, pesticides, building materials, and other chemical emissions commonly present in indoor and outdoor environments.

Accommodation for this disability is well established and includes the implementation of fragrance-free policies; the use of lowest-VOC-emission, least-toxic products for all uses and purposes; and preventive, non-chemical approaches to building and land management that reduce the need for chemical interventions.

These measures support accessibility, dignity, and equality.

Statistics Canada has collected population-level data on MCS since 2000. Over a 20-year period, prevalence more than doubled to over 1.13 million Canadians (1 in 34) diagnosed with MCS, confirming its public-health significance.

Recognition of MCS Awareness Month and Day is not symbolic. It helps ensure that public spaces, services, and programs are accessible and inclusive for people whose health and participation depend on reduced chemical exposures.

Scent-free and lowest-emission environments are widely recognized as essential accommodation measures for people living with MCS.

• The Canadian Human Rights Commission recognizes MCS as a disability and affirms scent-free and low-toxicity environments as required accommodations.
• The American Medical Association recognizes fragrance sensitivity including MCS as a condition that may limit major life activities and supports fragrance-free policies, ingredient transparency, and clinical awareness.
• Under the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Canada has been directed to eliminate discrimination against persons with MCS and ensure equality and inclusion across all levels of government.
• Statistics Canada has collected national data on MCS since 2000, with current analyses indicating that over 1.13 million Canadians (1 in 34) have been diagnosed with MCS.
• The Accessible Canada Act (2019) establishes a proactive duty to identify, remove, and prevent barriers to accessibility for all persons with disabilities.

Fragrance-free policies are therefore accessibility measures, not preferences.

Municipal recognition of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Awareness Month (May) and Awareness Day (May 12) supports:

• Accessibility and inclusion
• Alignment with human-rights obligations
• Healthier public environments
• Informed policy and public awareness

Please align your municipality with existing law, evidence, and international recognition by supporting MCS-specific awareness and accommodation measures.

To ensure clear, accurate, and consistent messaging, we are coordinating outreach centrally.

What we are asking from members

• Share the name of your municipality and mayor’s office
• Let us know if your city has previously issued proclamations or lit landmarks
• Identify any existing municipal accessibility or fragrance-free initiatives

If you have personal or professional contacts within a municipality or mayor’s office, please send a brief introduction or referral to office@ehac-asec.ca.

May is MCS Awareness Month, and May 12 is MCS Awareness Day. This is your month.

To help make MCS more visible across Canada, we’re launching our Yellow & Green Initiative — and we invite you, your family, and your friends to take part.

Here are a few simple ways you can participate:

• Put up yellow and green lights outside your home
• Wear yellow and green on May 12
• Ask friends or family to hang a string of yellow and green lights
• Decorate a window, porch, workspace, or community space
• Organize a small awareness moment in your circle

Then — take a photo and send it to us!

By sharing your photo, you are giving us permission to feature it on our website, in our newsletters, and on social media as part of our awareness efforts. We may highlight selected photos to help amplify visibility and showcase the strength of our community across the country.

Let’s make the month of May and May 12 a visible Yellow & Green Event across the country 💛💚

Thank you for being part of this community — we can’t wait to see what you’ll share!

• 📄 Download: Why Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and May Matter
• 📚 View References and Evidence Base