We live in an increasingly digital world, and yet for the billion people on our planet who have a disability of some kind, this digital world isn’t always easily accessible. Simple things - like looking at a picture on a screen - isn’t possible for people with impaired vision who rely on screen reader technology to read aloud what is displayed. Without alt text on an image, these people would have no way of knowing what is being shown to them. This is just one small example. But there are countless others.
Which is why the third Thursday of May each year is Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). The aim is to get people talking and thinking about digital inclusion so that our modern world is more accessible to everyone.
We have collated a list of useful resources that help improve digital accessibility. This isn’t an exhaustive list. There are many other resources. But this is a good place to start:
Microsoft is one of the leaders when it comes to driving accessibility. It has made a commitment to fix what it calls the digital divide. There are plenty of resources on the Microsoft website, but we’ve pulled out some of them for you for ease of access depending on what help you need:
We highly recommend everyone does this free course.
A summary of Microsoft’s accessibility journey for inspiration.
For teams new to Inclusive Design and practices, Including resources and workshops.
As a web giant, Google provides a raft of resources for end users, developers, designers and publishers:
AWS offers a number of tools to help improve accessibility in Amazon services.
As an organization, we know we still have a lot to do to improve accessibility, but it all starts with awareness. This web page has useful training videos and insights into how you can make your organization more accessible.
Social media and web channels are a vital part of your organization’s communications to customers, employees, candidates and partners. You need to ensure your communications are accessible. Here are links with tips on how to improve this:
Identify accessibility, speed, compatibility and more caused by common errors and misconfigurations. webhint, the hinting engine for web best practices
These organizations provide services to improve digital accessibility.
Be My Eyes – a free app that connects blind and low-vision people with sighted volunteers and company representatives for visual assistance through a live video call.
The Eye-Able – an assistant software that enables your website visitors to freely adapt all content according to their own needs and can be easily integrated into any website.
AbilityNet – a charity that provides free online resources to help individuals with disabilities to use digital technology. It provides useful webinars and programs for organizations to improve their accessibility.
Digital inclusion is everyone’s responsibility. Creating a workplace that very intentionally includes rather than inadvertently excludes should be a priority. It’s not just the right thing to do, it’s hugely beneficial for your organization as diversity of skills drives innovation and equipping employees with the right tools empowers them to transform, which in turn transforms your business.
Don’t let 'perfect' stand in the way of getting started. Small steps can make a big difference.
One of the best ways to introduce accessibility to your employees is through our Adoption & Change Management (ACM) Service. Learn how to build accessibility into your ACM project.
One of the best ways to introduce accessibility to your employees is through our Adoption & Change Management (ACM) Service. Learn how to build accessibility into your ACM project.
