Expert Advice for Traveling Abroad With a Disability
travelpulse.com
Traveling abroad is possible for people with disabilities: here are some tips for both travelers and travel advisors to know.
Global wheelchair market forecast to hit £4.7bn by 2026 as focus turns to smart technologies
thiis.co.uk
A report has predicted the global wheelchair market will be worth $6.3bn (£4.7bn) in the next six years, driven by several key demographic and technological factors across different markets.
'Bespoke Bodies: The Design & Craft of Prosthetics' Explores the Impact of Accessible Design
interiordesign.net
Approximately 2.1 million people in the U.S. live with limb loss. A new book from Design Museum Press,
Why People With Disabilities Are Powerful Drivers of Innovation
musebycl.io
More companies should embrace lead user design.
Break The Story Volume IV: Disability Visibility
popcollab.org
Break The Story Volume IV: Disability Visibility is a snapshot of current disability culture. Throughout this issue, disability is framed as a generative cultural force, a source of innovation, transformation, creativity, and joy. Each piece is either written by or features a BIPOC disabled or d/Deaf leader and covers some of the most exciting and groundbreaking work by disabled people in fashion, art, performance, entertainment, and activism.
Access—Ability
daneden.me
People tend to conflate “accessibility” with “disability”; but designing for accessibility is principally a question of “access”. Framed in this light, the challenges and opportunities of accessible design become more vividly obvious.
Designing for humanity — going beyond accessibility
uxplanet.org
In early 2005, Wayne Westerman, founder of Fingerworks, wanted to find a convenient solution to use a computer without stressing the hands. The objective was to help people like him who suffered from carpal tunnel syndrome or other such issues to comfortably work on a computer. He and his team invented a way to replace the keyboard with a touchpad. The invention was initially marketed to people with hand disabilities, but over time popularity of the solution grew among a larger group of customers. Fingerworks later sold its invention to Apple inc., which built its first gesture-controlled multitouch interface — the iPhone. The use of button-free gesture control in the iPhone kickstarted the ‘focus on user’ revolution and fundamentally changed the principles of UX design. This is what Designing for Inclusivity is all about. It requires starting from identifying and finding solutions for specific pain points which can lead to exclusion of a certain group of users, then designing experiences that can benefit a diverse group.
Siri can now answer your calls ... but can't hang up | AbilityNet
abilitynet.org.uk
Apple discriminates against disabled customers, says complaint
9to5mac.com
The UK’s Financial Ombudsman has opened an investigation into whether Apple discriminates against severely disabled customers through its iPhone Upgrade Program conditions.
Why The Mobile Industry Is So Central To Inclusion Worldwide
forbes.com
With the global mobile ecosystem gathering for Mobile World Congress 2021 next month we must encourage mobile providers to truly realise the benefits of design with inclusion and accessibility at its heart – those that do will see the benefit of appealing to a market so often overlooked.
IBM's latest app helps visually impaired users stand in socially distanced lines
tech.hindustantimes.com
An IBM researcher said that participants in the trial gave the system a high usability score, while reporting higher confidence and comfortableness when they were standing in line.
How Xbox is getting accessibility right - and what other brands could learn
creativereview.co.uk
From releasing its adaptive controller to tackling loneliness in older people, Xbox has shown the creative scope for brands that commit to accessibility.
Accessibility Maze
de.ryerson.ca
A fun way to learn about web accessibility challenges and solutions.
Microsoft is testing Xbox party chat accessibility features
engadget.com
Microsoft has announced that speech transcription and text-to-speech synthesis is coming to Xbox Party Chat, starting today for Xbox Insiders..
McDonald’s and National Federation of the Blind Collaborate on Self-service Kiosks
nfb.org
The National Federation of the Blind, America’s civil rights organization of the blind, and McDonald’s USA announce a collaboration to make McDonald’s self-service kiosks in company-owned, U.S. restaurants even more accessible to customers who are blind.
BrightSign – A handy way to communicate!
ablemagazine.co.uk
BrightSign allows you to teach it any sign language that you can think of, even one that you have made up yourself.
Accessibility isn't the same for everyone
hrmonline.com.au
What is it like to navigate the workplace as someone who is blind, Deaf or has little or no speech? And how can employers improve accessibility and support the millions of Australians who have one of these disabilities?
How Spatial Audio Can Help People Who Are Blind
highfidelity.com
At some point in our lives, we'll all likely experience some sort of accessibility needs, whether it be permanent, temporary, or momentary. If you do not consider yourself someone with a disability, think about situations where you would benefit from accessible design. For instance, using speech-to-text or Siri on your phone when it would be difficult to type — this technology benefits people who are blind, and also is generally useful for everyone.
Talk: Turning Accessibility Into Your Advantage, Margot Gable from Build in Amsterdam
awwwards.com
Discover research on accessible typography, navigation and more, Margot Gable, lead designer at Build in Amsterdam, discusses website accessibility, the web content accessibility guidelines, building a fully accessible design system, and how to apply it when making multi-sensory ecommerce experiences for brands.
Make Accessibility Great Again (Joe Clark, Toronto)
joeclark.org
Videos: Inclusive Design 24 #id24
youtube.com
Inclusive Design 24 (#id24) is a free 24-hour online event for the global community. It celebrates inclusive design and shares knowledge and ideas from analogue to digital, from design to development, from planners to practitioners, and everything and everyone in between.
Color contrast checker
coolors.co
Calculate the contrast ratio of text and background colors.
Flipping the Script on Audio Description
reidmymind.com
With so much more to Audio Description than what we hear, it’s past time to go beyond the “experts” and “Flip the script” to hear from another side.
Neural Interface Lets Man Type On Computer By Imagining Handwriting
npr.org
By decoding the brain signals involved in handwriting, researchers have allowed a man who is paralyzed to transform his thoughts into words on a computer screen.
Webinar: A dose of Google Goodness from Sight and Sound Technology!
audioboom.com
For well over the last 10 years Google have been leaders in cloud computing applications. Their suite of offerings including Google Mail, Drive, Calendar, Docs and Sheets are used the world over in education, business and at home.
The Disabled Peoples Channel
disabledpeopleschannel.org
A new non profit interactive quality channel produced by disabled people, and including our viewers contributions and live feedback.
Video: Signing Black in America
youtu.be
Just like spoken languages, sign languages have dialects. Black ASL is the unique dialect of American Sign Language (ASL) that developed within historically segregated African American Deaf communities. Largely unknown to outsiders, Black ASL has become a symbol of solidarity and a vital part of identity within the Black Deaf community.
How Ableism in Philosophy Has Destroyed Me
biopoliticalphilosophy.com
About ten years ago, I wrote an email to Eva Kittay requesting a letter of reference for a job application. I wasn’t really expecting a response. In the last email I had received from Kittay …
Elon Musk SNL: His Asperger’s announcement doesn’t change who Elon Musk is.
slate.com
Elon Musk has Asperger’s. So what?
“You’re an inspiration” - The conflict of the compliment
myblurredworld.com
Let's talk about the concept of being an 'inspiration' and how I feel about receiving the 'compliment' as a disabled person.
What Toxic Positivity Is (and How You Can Respond Instead)
themighty.com
"Saying 'just think positive' never fixed anything."
Let's Stop Pretending That We Can't Do Better Than Segregated Special Education Classrooms
weeklyish.substack.com
The burden to make inclusive schools should be on state and district administrators, not teachers and families.
9 Ways Your School Might Be Doing Inclusion Wrong
thinkinclusive.us
Even though many schools have the best intentions of including students with disabilities in the school community, there is a misunderstanding of what makes inclusive education actually inclusive. Here are some examples of ways your school might be doing inclusion wrong and what to do to make it right.
Book: We Move Together
akpress.org
A bold and colorful exploration of all the ways that people navigate through the spaces around them and a celebration of the relationships we build along the way. We Move Together follows a mixed-ability group of kids as they creatively negotiate everyday barriers and find joy and connection in disability culture and community. A perfect tool for families, schools, and libraries to facilitate conversations about disability, accessibility, social justice and community building. Includes a kid-friendly glossary (for ages 6–9).
Explaining disability isn't a child's job
hollandbloorview.ca
'Disabled kids shouldn't be expected to be educators when they're just figuring out their place in the world.'
Evacuating During a Fire Alarm as a Wheelchair User
themighty.com
"The elevators have been shut down. Please go to the stairways."
The Long Revolution
redcanarycollective.org
With the Americans With Disabilities Act entering its fourth decade, it’s time to consider the law’s civil-rights legacy and the ongoing fight for disability rights and justice.
Amanda Morris Named Reporting Fellow Focused on Disability Issues
nytco.com
Amanda will join the National desk as The Times’s first reporting fellow focused on disability issues. The fellowship is in partnership with the National Center on Disability and Journalism at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. Read more in this note from Ted Kim, Carla Correa and Sharon Chan.
Guided meditation apps aren't doing enough to include disabled people
metro.co.uk
Have you ever noticed that many guided meditations start off with an instruction such as ‘you are walking through a forest...’? But what if you can't walk?
The Chromecast With Google TV Makes Watching Television More Accessible In More Ways Than One
forbes.com
Priced at $50, it is ostensibly competing with Amazon’s Fire Stick line and Roku sticks; you could buy four Google TVs for the cost of one Apple TV.
Why Audio Description is Never a Bad Idea
imcgrupo.com
As a company wants to get as much brand exposure as possible, it’s only natural to want to make their business appear more accessible and relatable. After all, one of the best ways to appeal to the internet masses is to appear as relatable as possible — which many companies use to their advantage through the use of video marketing.
7 Game-Changing Beauty Products You Can Use With One Hand
thezoereport.com
When major brands begin creating and stocking beauty products for one-handed accessibility, they aren’t just adding a new hair care product or makeup collection to their shelves — they’re creating space for all beauty fans. “I’ve been a beauty fanatic my whole life, so when my arms became paralyzed at 22, I needed to find accessible beauty products,” Christina Mallon, Head of Inclusive Design at Wunderman Thompson, tells TZR. And sometimes, those products just don’t exist yet: “I couldn’t find an accessible deodorant, which is why my team helped create Degree Inclusive,” Mallon continues, referencing Degree’s upcoming deodorant launch created for consumers with visual impairments, upper limb disabilities, and/or limited arm mobility.
BBC Glow Up Celebrates Disability and Diversity
disabilityhorizons.com
BBC make-up show Glow Up celebrates disability and diversity by including two autistic contestants and a young girl with a visible birthmark.
Final Fantasy director’s Paralympics RPG is launching next month
theverge.com
The first ever Paralympics video game.
Representation Of Disability In Popular Culture In 2020
disabilityhorizons.com
Emma West, who worked at the BBC for more than a decade, looks at the representation of disability in popular culture in 2020, and what change is still needed.
‘A Million Little Things’: Network TV’s Tragedy Model of Disability
indiewire.com
The portrayal of disability in primetime is all too rare — and ABC is doing a disservice by sticking to an offensive trope.
Ableism In The Media
medium.com
Poor representation leads to misinformation, stigma, stereotypes, and societal exclusion.
BBC commissions 12 works by disabled creatives
posabilitymagazine.co.uk
The BBC has commissioned 12 new works by D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent creatives reflecting on disabled people's experiences of the pandemic.
SAG-AFTRA Panel: “Disability Consistently Overlooked” In D&I Discussions
deadline.com
The casting of performers with disabilities should be part of Hollywood’s ongoing efforts to be more inclusive, but it’s often not, even though the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 makes it just as illegal to discriminate against the disabled as it is any other protected group.
Commentary: Hollywood has a long road to disability inclusion. My experience shows it’s possible
latimes.com
Pioneering "Everything's Gonna Be Okay" star Kayla Cromer explains why neurodiversity also needs representation in pop culture — and how to do it.
Meet the manager opening doors for Hollywood's disabled
latimes.com
A group of creatives and executives with disabilities in Hollywood is pushing employers to start including accessibility as part of inclusion initiatives.
Diversability Unplugged: Deconstructing Ableism and Inspiration
youtube.com
For anyone living with a disability (visible or not), ableism is a fact of life. And there are many daily things all of us do that perpetuate a culture of ableism. From direct discrimination and harmful action, to the more subtle micraggressions from well-meaning people and internalized narratives we tell ourselves, we as disabled people face a myriad of messages that being disabled is a “bad” thing. And with the dawn of “Inspiration Porn”, a term coined by the late Stella Young, ableism hidden behind the guise of showcasing our resilience and strength, we are faced with the growing question: how do we live and thrive in an ableist culture? And how do we change it?
Netflix's Coming-of-Age Tale 'Audible' Follows Deaf Football Team
variety.com
Netflix’s coming-of-age documentary “Audible,” which world premiered this week at Hot Docs Film Festival, follows Maryland School for the Deaf high school athlete Amaree McKenstry and his close friends during their senior year. Director Matt Ogens speaks to Variety about the film, whose exec producers include actor Peter Berg, the Emmy nominated creator of “Friday Night Lights,” and deaf actor and model Nyle DiMarco, winner of “America’s Next Top Model” and “Dancing With the Stars,” and a deaf community activist.
RJ Mitte on The Oak Room, Breaking Bad + combining acting with activism
heyuguys.com
Stefan Pape interviews RJ Mitte on The Oak Room, being part of the Breaking Bad family + combining acting with activism.
Code of the Freaks highlights Hollywood’s ableism
m.chicagoreader.com
The Chicago-made documentary tells stories of disability that aren’t shown on the silver screen.
They Survived Covid. Now They Need Lung Transplants
nytimes.com
We're seeing a wave of people who will survive only with risky transplants.