Create an Inclusive Culture by Having Accessible Digital Properties

Description

Most of the digital properties we use every day don’t work well for those with auditory, physical, and visual disabilities. In fact, many do not work at all for them. Most websites, apps, forms, documents, and company intranets have unintended blockers in the code that make it impossible for many people to access. In this session, you will experience a demo of how a blind person experiences a website and you will see and hear a few examples of what makes something accessible or inaccessible.

Having an accessible website helps organizations in many ways; one is to ensure equal opportunity for employment and thus be able to hire individuals with a disability. For example, could someone who has a visual or physical disability fill out an employment application at your organization?

In this session, we will talk through, at a high level, what the legal requirements and standards are for digital accessibility. You will also learn how to start creating a culture and practice of inclusiveness around providing equitable access to the digital properties at your organization.

Please bring your smart phone as we will have an interactive component where you will be able to try accessibility features on your phone.

Learning Outcomes:

• A working understanding that technology has the ability to increase access, but also has the ability to introduce barriers
• Strategy to implement accessible design and a culture of digital inclusion
• An immersion exercise to experience how a visually impaired individual accesses digital content