Accessibility in the News—10/20/17

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National News (U.S.)

University or Iowa startup hopes to make therapy more accessible for kids with autism

October 12, 2017 | Source: KCRG TV | Higher Education, Accessible Design, Cognitive | Iowa

A biomedical engineering student and a computer science student at the University of Iowa have a way to easily support kids with autism. The medium is something many kids on the spectrum love to engage with – smart screens like phones or tablets. Shamus Roeder knows the social challenges people with autism often face. He has cousins who live with the disorder. “I’m hoping that finances, location, and luck no longer factor in to whether or not someone affected with autism can go out and have the best opportunity for success,” said Roeder, a co-founder of ABAL Therapeutics…

Disabled Students Discuss Navigating Campus Spaces

October 13, 2017 | Source: The Student Life | Education, Inclusion, Building/Facilities Access

“On bad days, stairs are very challenging, and the 5Cs seem to have embraced the stairs,” Christina Tricou SC ’17 said. Tricou lives with chronic joint pain, and said the layout of the 5Cs makes life difficult. Many buildings at the 5CS were constructed before accessiblity became a significant factor in design. “There are definitely alternate routes that allow you to avoid steps or stairs anywhere you want to go outside, but they often require doubling walking distance or time, which can be a challenge in itself,” Tricou said. In 2013, Jennifer Seitel, a patron of Pomona’s Bridges Auditorium who came to see her daughters perform in a dance recital, sued Pomona College for discrimination against her disability…

Are Your Comms Apps ADA Compliant?

October 13, 2017 | Source: No Jitter | ADA, Digital Accessibility, Blindness/Visual Impairment | Florida

Based on a Florida case, businesses can expect any virtual presence to come under the same legal requirements for providing access as physical locations. Complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act may not be top of mind related to unified communications, contact center, and real-time communications capabilities, but a Florida case suggests that perhaps they ought to be. The issue at the heart of this case is the ability to use screen reader software to allow blind or visually impaired individuals to read text displayed on computer screens using speech synthesizers or braille displays. The plaintiff claims he can’t use his software to obtain coupons, refill prescriptions, and know what’s on sale — and is suing more than 60 companies as a result…

University of Buffalo, NFTA are working to make public transportation more accessible

October 13, 2017 | Source: UB News Center & University at Buffalo Reporter | Higher Education, Transit/Transportation, Accessible Design | New York

For many people who have a disability, taking public transportation is a necessity. But it can also be a nightmare. The barriers abound. It can be extremely difficult to get up and down the stairs on the bus. Riders who use a wheelchair often feel undue attention drawn upon them as passengers sit and wait impatiently while the bus operator secures the wheelchair in place. But a research partnership between the University at Buffalo and the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA) is working to dramatically improve the public transit experience for the region’s many riders who have some type of disability. They’re taking what they’ve learned through lab simulations on the South Campus and applying the findings to the NFTA’s fleet of buses…

A Global Untapped Talent Pool: Employees with Disabilities

October 12, 2017 | Source: USBLN | Workforce/Employment, Discrimination, Awareness

A first-of-its-kind study published by the Center for Talent Innovation (CTI) in partnership with US Business Leadership Network (USBLN) finds that far more people than expected have a disability: In the U.S., 30 percent of college-educated employees working full-time in white-collar professions. CTI’s report Disabilities and Inclusion has uncovered that employees with disabilities make up an enormous global talent pool that employers overlook far too often- to their own detriment. The study also uncovered reasons that employees with disabilities have remained under the radar. Sixty-two percent of employees with disabilities have “invisible disabilities”—people can’t tell they have a disability upon meeting them. Millennials make up 44% of employees with mental health conditions…

Can Lawyers Be Advocates and Peacemakers?

October 12, 2017 | Source: Law Practice Today | Advocacy, Lawsuits/Litigation, Inclusion

What do you say when someone asks what kind of lawyer you are? Maybe you start simple—“I’m a plaintiffs’ lawyer,” you answer, or “I’m a general practitioner.” Details may follow: a bankruptcy lawyer, environmental law specialist, a patent, personal injury, technology, or health care lawyer. Maybe you talk about the size or geographic scope of your firm—“I have a mid-size firm with a global reach;” “I’m a solo attorney with a focus on my local business community.” These are the “what” answers about our law practices. They are critically important to our identity as lawyers: the elevator speeches about who we are and what we do. For 25 years, my “what” answers have been disability civil rights lawyer and sole practitioner…

How to buy the last house you’ll ever buy

October 16, 2017 | Source: PhillyVoice.com | Housing, Aging, Accessible Design

My husband and I bought what we thought was a starter home 20 years ago. Now we think of it as our “forever” home, where we plan to retire and live out the rest of our days. We got lucky, because most of the features that make our place good for “aging in place” — the single-story layout, open design, wide doorways — weren’t on our must-have list when we were newlyweds. We’re not the only people who didn’t think far enough into our future. The vast majority of homebuyers and remodelers don’t consider what it might be like to grow old in their homes, says Richard Duncan, executive director of the Ronald L. Mace Universal Design Institute, a nonprofit in Asheville, North Carolina, that promotes accessible design for housing, public buildings and parks…

UTA students with disabilities story is told through exhibit

October 16, 2017 | Source: UT The Daily Texan | Higher Education, Advocacy, Accessible Design | Texas

Before the 1970s, K-12 grade schools and colleges had no legal obligation to admit or serve students with disabilities. In the early ‘60s, UT-Arlington students took it upon themselves to advocate for a more accessible campus. The Building a Barrier-Free Campus exhibit, which started last Wednesday, highlights UT-Arlington’s path to becoming a model accessible campus for students with disabilities through quotes and images. The exhibit will be available to visit in the Perry-Castañeda Library until Oct. 23. “They asked me to do this back in 2014, and I very willingly said, ‘Let me see what we can find,’” exhibit co-curator Sarah Rose said at an opening round table last Wednesday…

Experience and Join the Conversation with Disability Awareness Week

October 16, 2017 | Source: Iowa State Daily | Awareness, Inclusion, Advocacy | Iowa

This week is Disability Awareness Week, and Iowa State will be hosting events to celebrate all week. The events will take place Tuesday through Friday. Laura Wiederholt, president of the Alliance for Disability Awareness on campus, is looking forward to all of the events with high hopes since bringing the organization back to campus her sophomore year. “The events have now been under my watch,” said Wiederholt about her role in the organization. Even with the organization disappearing for a short while in 2013, Iowa State has hosted similar events since the 1980s. Disability coordinator Wendy Stevenson has access to older flyers and schedules of past disability events held on campus that showcase the universities past involvement…

Wheelchair-bound lawyer sues NYC for $1M over accessibility

October 16, 2017 | Source: New York Post | Mobility, Lawsuits/Litigation, Discrimination | New York

A wheelchair-bound lawyer has filed a $1 million suit against the city, claiming they’ve failed miserably in making a Brooklyn courthouse accessible to him and others with limited mobility. Personal injury lawyer Caner Demirayak, who has muscular dystrophy, told The Post he has trouble maneuvering around Brooklyn Civil Court – where he spends most of his work days. “You can’t get around,” said the 29-year-old, who’s been using his wheelchair for 11 years. “You try to conference a case with the judge, you can’t get up to the conference room. The judge says, ‘It’s OK, you don’t have to come up,’ or, ‘You’re not included.’”. Demirayak, 29, said his anger started boiling over in August, when he wanted to sit in on a trial at the courthouse, located in downtown Brooklyn at 360 Adams St…

Making hearing aids more accessible and affordable in community

October 16, 2017 | Source: ABC2 News | Deaf/Hearing Impairment, Accessible Design, Inclusion

Brian McBride was born with hearing loss. “I had trouble hearing. My mom would call my name when I was in kindergarten like I couldn’t hear the teacher, and because of that I had speech problems,” says McBride. But life completely changed at the age of five when he came to the Hearing and Speech Agency of Baltimore, for his first hearing aid. When asked what it was like to hear clearly for the first time he responded, “It was wonderful.” Many kids and adults are in need of hearing aids, but cost can be a huge financial burden for a family. Erin Stauder, the Executive Director of HASA says, “Hearing aids are often the third most expensive thing that an individual buys in a lifetime besides a house and a car.” That’s why new legislation passed in August could change everything…

Trial set in LA disabled students’ suit alleging community college blocked their education

October 16, 2017 | Source: KPCC | Higher Education, Lawsuits/Litigation, Discrimination | California

West Los Angeles College and the Los Angeles Community College District are defendants in a trial set to start on Tuesday that alleges the college and the district blocked three students’ access to an education. The lead plaintiff, Charles Guerra, is a 65-year-old Army veteran who suffered a major spinal injury nine years ago and depended on a campus shuttle service that was canceled last year. “I lost the use of my left leg because my nerve had been severed. They had to do an operation to keep me from being paralyzed,” he said. He went from a wheelchair, to a walker, to a cane. To rebuild his life, he enrolled in a certificate program two years ago at West Los Angeles College, a campus built on hillsides in Culver City. A six-person tram shuttled him up and down the steep walkways…

Project Sidewalk, the crowd-sourced map of DC’s least accessible sidewalks, is nearly complete

October 17, 2017 | Source: Curbed DC | Architecture, Accessible Design, Higher Education

In Washington, D.C., it’s not uncommon to hear complaints about potholes in the road, making it difficult for drivers to go from one place to the next, but it can be even more arduous for those who try to navigate the city by walking, especially if they have mobility impairments. In February 2017, Curbed DC reported that the University of Maryland introduced a brand new Walk Score-inspired map, called Project Sidewalk. This map allows the public to catalog and rate the accessibility of sidewalks and curb ramps and any obstacles like fire hydrants or crumbling pavement…

Tips for Traveling with a Disability or Illness

October 17, 2017 | Source: Travel Pulse | Travel, Awareness, Inclusion

If you suffer from a chronic illness or have a disability, you may think that traveling isn’t in your future. Not true! With a little planning and research, you can enjoy navigating the globe world too. Make sure you find a travel agent you feel comfortable with and who understands your special conditions and disabilities. Penny Gellatly asks every traveler if they have any health concerns. “I will suggest things, such as recent back or knee surgery and, once I’ve opened that door, every single client has come forward with information regarding their health,” said Gellatly with Escape by Travel in Cloquet, Minnesota. This allows her to make sure that such items as wheelchair access are available at the airport…

How to make your business accessible to people with disabilities

October 18, 2017 | Source: The Business Journals | ADA, Accessible Design, Awareness

When was the last time you measured the slope of the curb ramp leading from your parking lot to your facility? Do you have the International Symbol of Access on your storefront and restroom door? Does it include Braille? Have you recently measured the access aisles of your parking spaces? If you have not checked your facility for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility guidelines, essentially a Congressionally mandated building code; a “professional” plaintiff may do it for you. Accessibility lawsuits are rapidly growing: In 2016, 6,601 ADA Title III lawsuits were filed in federal court — 1,812 more than in 2015 — a 37 percent increase…

Learning to design virtual reality for accessibility

October 18, 2017 | Source: VentureBeat | Innovation, Gaming, Digital Accessibility

Virtual reality is pushing further into the mainstream, and we’re really excited about that at Runaway. It brings with it a lot of challenges but also, a host of possibilities for us as developers and designers. Not least of which is the constant drive to make VR experiences more seamlessly enjoyable and accessible to as wide an audience as possible. Our as-yet untitled VR team’s release for Daydream by Google is due for launch in December, and accessibility has been a major part of our development process. Our experience with previous titles probably gave us a leg-up when it came to accessibility. They provided us a strong backlog of feedback from players about the positive effects of these games for those living with physical disabilities or mental ill-health…

Meet the librarian advocating for Assistive Technology

October 18, 2017 | Source: Technical.ly DC | Advocacy, Assistive Technology, Digital Accessibility

On a recent Tuesday night, I arrived at the Library Express for a meeting no one was likely to attend. Called Tech Talk Tuesday, the meeting helps people with low vision or low hearing learn how to text, use Excel or learn tech skills. Unfortunately, just getting to the library requires more assistance than most members can regularly access. Organizer James Patrick Timony hopes to change that. Timony has worked as an adaptive tech (AT) librarian at the D.C. Public Library for the last 13 years. For the last nine years, he’s organized Tech Talk Tuesday meetings and led outgrowth projects like the 2011 Accessibility Hackathon. Now he sees a need for a permanent restructuring…

Telephone Access Might Be Valid Alternative to Accessible Website, But Court Needs More

October 18, 2017 | Source: Lexology | Digital Accessibility, Mobile Accessibility, ADA

In denying Dave & Buster’s motion to dismiss and for summary judgment, a federal judge said that telephonic access might be an alternative to having an accessible website, but cannot decide until the record is much more developed. No court has yet decided whether a public accommodation can comply with Title III of the ADA’s equal access mandate by providing telephonic access to the information and services on a website blind people cannot use with a screen reader. However, last week federal Judge Philip Gutierrez of the Central District of California recognized it as a possibility, while allowing a website accessibility lawsuit against Dave & Buster’s to move forward to discovery…

Film screening keeps out some with disabilities

October 18, 2017 | Source: Hudson Valley 360 | Performing Arts/Entertainment, Mobility, Discrimination

A short documentary starring several Coarc members is set to be shown at the FilmColumbia Film Festival next week but many featured in the film may not be able to see it because it is set to be screened at a venue without American Disabilities Act accessibility. In a letter dated Oct. 11 and addressed to FilmColumbia Executive Director Peter Biskind, Coarc Board of Directors President Dorothy Weaver and Chatham Mayor Thomas A. Curran requested an alternate venue for the screening. In a one-page letter obtained by the Register-Star, Coarc staff said one of the film’s main participants is wheelchair-bound and would be unable to attend. “Our excitement at being accepted into the Film Festival was quickly dampened when one of the individuals in our film said…

Raising awareness of accessibility in public spaces

October 18, 2017 | Source: Fox 7 (Video) | Mobility, Awareness, Advocacy | Texas

Imagine having to get around Austin in a wheelchair. That’s the purpose of Archer’s Challenge which is a city wide challenge aimed at celebrating and promoting accessibility in public spaces. Founder Archer Hadley has the details: ARCHER’S CHALLENGE

Parc, other Philly eateries settle disability access cases

October 18, 2017 | Source: Metro & Philadelphia Business Journal | ADA, Food Service, Building/Facilities Access | Pennsylvania

Twelve Philly eateries that were found out of compliance with the federal Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) have settled their cases with the feds, authorities announced Wednesday. Settlements were made with Garces’ Amada, Tinto, and Village Whiskey, Starr’s Buddakan, Butcher & Singer, Dandelion, El Vez, Morimoto, Parc, and Talula’s Garden, Restaurant 13’s Barbuzzo and the South Philadelphia Tap Room owned by John Longacre. All of these have now agreed to upgrade their facilities to come into compliance with the ADA…

Accessibility in Computing: One student’s commitment to success

October 18, 2017 | Source: Texas A&M Engineering | Digital Accessibility, Blindness/Visual Impairment, Assistive Technology | Texas

Cameron Cassidy, a senior in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University, does not let his visual impairment slow him down as he pursues a degree in computer science.Image of Cameron Cassidy. He uses several adaptive technologies to help him in class, such as a camera to help see text on the board and a closed-circuit television, which is a digital magnifier that enlarges text on paper versus text at a distance. Each new course provides a new set of challenges. So every semester he has to find new solutions to mediate the unique challenges that he faces. This has led to becoming a skilled problem solver. “Each semester everything is new, you don’t know how the professor teaches, etc.,” Cassidy said…

ADA lawsuits shouldn’t be the first solution

October 19, 2017 | Source: Scotsman Guide News | ADA, Lawsuits/Litigation, Awareness

Among other things, the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, is designed to ensure people with disabilities have access to buildings alongside everyone else. It’s an important mission that Realtors support. To that end, when a building owner or commercial business discovers that it’s out of compliance with the ADA, the National Association of Realtors supports the notion that businesses should have the opportunity to fix the problem before a lawsuit is filed. Unfortunately, well-intentioned businesses face costly and time-consuming legal battles in an attempt to rectify ADA compliance issues, which serves as an additional hurdle to detecting and resolving ADA compliance…

Will Trump DOJ side with disabled plaintiffs in ADA website suits?

October 19, 2017 | Source: Reuters | Lawsuits/Litigation, Government, Discrimination

Businesses are not at all happy about a boom in suits by disabled consumers who claim corporate websites are insufficiently accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act. These cases have mushroomed since 2015. Disabled plaintiffs, many of them represented by the same handful of firms, filed 240 suits in 2015 and 2016, according to a Wall Street Journal report on the trend last November. This year, the number of new ADA website accessibility cases has already topped 400, according to the Florida Justice Reform Institute. The Florida group, which bills itself as a coalition of “concerned citizens, small business owners and business leaders,” is urging the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to squelch these cases now…

How one tech startup is using cameras to help blind people ‘see’

October 19, 2017 | Source: 512 Tech | Innovation, Digital Accessibility, Blindness/Visual Impairment

Belinda Lane slipped on a Google Glass headset, put her white cane in her right hand and started walking. Lane, who is blind, was testing an app called Aira that uses the Glass headset to help blind people navigate their surroundings. While Lane walked the grounds of an Austin festival called White Cane Day a woman named Connie spoke into her Aira earbud. Connie could see what Lane’s Glass camera sees through a Bluetooth connection and that allowed her to give Lane step-by-step directions as well as in-depth descriptions of the scenery. Aira is a nearly 2-year-old San Diego, Calif., tech startup that wants to change the way blind people navigate the world. They do this by syncing a camera, usually worn on a user’s face through a headset, to a smartphone app…

Disability advocate speaks about KU’s role in achieving greater accessibility

October 19, 2017 | Source: The University Daily Kansan | Advocacy, Awareness, Inclusion | Kansas

Haben Girma, Harvard Law School’s first deaf-blind graduate, gave a speech about the power of inclusion on Wednesday evening. In front of a packed auditorium of approximately 350 people in Capitol Federal Hall, Girma told her story, advocating for a change in the way universities think about disability. “As the daughter of refugees, a black woman, disabled, lots of stories suggest that my life doesn’t matter,” Girma said. “I choose to create my own stories. I choose to define what disability means.” Girma, an experienced public speaker, received feedback from the audience through her assistant, who typed the reactions of attendees into her Braille display. She navigated questions, knew when the audience laughed and dealt with a malfunctioning PowerPoint presentation…

Sight: It’s Right On The Tip of Your Tongue

October 17, 2017 | Source: Ever Widening Circles | Blindness/Visual Impairment, Innovation, Awareness

What if we told you there is an innovation that can help about 285 million people around the world living with a visual impairment move around with a little more ease? Okay, it’s easy enough to believe, but what if we told you the innovation works by using the surface of their tongues? Now here’s something the negative 24-hour news cycle is forgetting to celebrate: there’s an increasing number of sensory-substitution devices being developed that use the brain in the most remarkable way. These devices take in visual information from the environment, and translate it into forms of physical touch or sound in order to be interpreted by the user as vision. If that’s not amazing enough, The New Yorker lets us in on yet another benefit…

Clean Up in Aisle III

October 19, 2017 | Source: Inside Indiana Business | ADA, Lawsuits/Litigation, Digital Accessibility

For years companies and nonprofits with public areas—especially retailers, multi-family housing developers, and colleges and universities—have faced government investigations and lawsuits over whether their properties are accessible to persons with disabilities. Accessibility is now headed to the next frontier—websites. A recent ruling that websites available to the public must be accessible if they support a physical store could lead to a new round of accessibility investigations and lawsuits. On June 13, Judge Robert N. Scola, Jr. of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Florida released a Verdict and Order in a case about website accessibility as it relates to the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) and visually impaired users…

Jack Fact — According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 1 in 5 Americans lives with some kind of disability, whether it’s vision or hearing impairment, difficulty moving or grasping, or a cognitive, emotional, or neurological disability. This includes: 8 million Americans with vision impairment, more than 7 million Americans with hearing impairment, and nearly 20 million Americans who have difficulty lifting or grasping objects.

International News

It’s An Accessible Life: My 24-Hour Journey

October 13, 2017 | Source: HuffPost- Canada | Paralympics, Awareness, Inclusion | Canada

Oh, Canada! This trip represented my second visit to the eastern part of Canada, Toronto, specifically. It is memorable for so many reasons, not least of which was the purpose of my visit: to present on wayfinding at the 2017 VISTA Conference which is a key annual event held by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Notable, too, is the fact that this was my second time at VISTA and it was genuinely heartwarming to be recognized and remembered this time around. Ah, another week, another conference. Sometimes as I settle into my usual window seat, long flight with connections ahead of me, I wonder what is of importance to me. I reflect on what seems to make a difference in my life and give me direction…

Accessibility Queen’s hosts event to raise awareness against using ‘R-word’

October 13, 2017 | Source: Queen’s Journal- UK | Awareness, Advocacy, Discrimination | United Kingdom

Accessibility Queen’s tackled the use of the “R-word” in an event titled “Spread the Word to End the Word” held in the ARC on Wednesday. The event included an informational poster board and an opportunity for students to speak with Accessibility Queen’s club members about the negative impact of using the word “retard” in everyday conversation. As a symbolic gesture, students were also able to pledge against using the word to signify allyship with individuals with disabilities. Accessibility Queen’s aims to raise awareness about issues surrounding people with disabilities. This event is one of many events they host, including the annual Sexuality and Disability Summit…

Record number of disability complaints over the past year

October 13, 2017 | Source: Times of Malta | Awareness, Discrimination, Disability Rights

The number of new complaints filed last year with the Commission for the Rights of People with Disability doubled over the previous 12 months. According to CRPD’s Equal Opportunities report, during the year 2015/2016 the commission worked on 424 complaints – 248 of which were new. During the previous year, 124 new complaints were filed, tallying with the annual average of 118 complaints a year during the past 16 years, since the introduction of the Equal Opportunities Act. Before this past year, the highest number of new complaints investigated was that of 172 in 2008/2009. For Commissioner Oliver Scicluna, the substantial increase in the number of complaints was a result of increasing public awareness on rights…

Resilience, not weakness- For a better world for visually-impaired people

October 14, 2017 | Source: Dhaka Tribune- Bangladesh | Blindness/Visual Impairment, Inclusion, Awareness | Bangladesh

The white cane was once considered a mere stick to help visually impaired people detect obstacles in their way. Today, that very cane has become a symbol of independence, self-reliance, confidence. As such, ever since 1964, people all around the world celebrate October 15 as White Cane Safety Day. While there has been progress in this field, numbers suggest that there’s still plenty of room for improvement all around the world. The World Health Organisation, following a survey in 2014, pointed out that 285 million people in the world suffer from visual impairment. Of them, 39 million are blind, while the rest have low vision. What’s worse is that 90% of them live in low-income settings. As expected, they face difficulties in almost every stage of their life…

Accommodating the disabled an ‘untapped’ market: tourism experts

October 15, 2017 | Source: Stuff- New Zealand | Travel, Accessible Design, Inclusion | New Zealand

Kiwi businesses have embraced accessible tourism, adding features for the disabled to accommodate New Zealand’s increasingly diverse tourists. Tourism is one of the country’s largest export industries, with total tourism expenditure last year of $34 billion. Sudima Hotel and Resorts director of operations Les Morgan said it would benefit everyone if tourist destinations became more accessible through any number of means, including better wheelchair access, making information more accessible online or catering for the hearing or sight impaired. “It makes commercial sense, but it is also the right thing to do. The disabled population in tourism is enormous and the baby boomer market is also aging and growing,” Morgan said…

World’s largest accessible library reaches out to visually impaired in UAE-

October 15, 2017 | Source: The National- UAE | Blindness/Visual Impairment, Inclusion, Education | United Arab Emirates

People with visual impairments could soon have access to the world’s largest online library which allows them to download and print braille. Silicon Valley company Benetech has begun working with Dubai Police and individual members to join its Bookshare library in a bid to give people who are visually impaired access to literature with the help of private and government organisations, schools and colleges. “Students are left behind when they don’t have the material to study. If we are talking inclusive education of able bodied with people with determination, let’s bring them together. A biology book of a sighted reader should be the same biology book made accessible for a person with a print disability and then they are inclusively together as one society,” said Teresa Jenna…

Disabled-friendly India plan in limbo

October 15, 2917 | Source: The Asian Age- India | Building/Facilities Access, Government, Accessible Design | India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream initiative to make at least 50 per cent of all government buildings in the national capital and all state capitals “fully accessible” for the disabled or physically challenged by July 2018 seems to be going nowhere. With the much hyped ‘Accessible India’ campaign limping, the Prime Minister has expressed concern over it’s progress. Sensing that only nine months were left for the deadline to end and the initiative was nowhere near being accomplished, the Prime Minister decided to crack the whip and in a high level meeting asked top government officials to ensure that the scheme is completed in campaign mode…

Make Bengaluru disabled friendly: A para-athlete’s passionate plea at city’s Beku Beda Santhe

October 15, 2017 | Source: The News Minute- India | Paralympics, Inclusion, Awareness | India

For many Bengalureans, October 15 was just another Sunday. But hundreds including students and children ventured out of their homes to participate in the Beku Beda Santhe— a citizen’s meet focussed on making the country’s IT capital more liveable. The four-hour event, as the name suggests, went on to make a list of wants (beku) and don’t wants (beda) by a varied group of people of different age groups. There were panel discussions and short speeches on various civic issues. For many Bengalureans, October 15 was just another Sunday. But hundreds including students and children ventured out of their homes to participate in the Beku Beda Santhe— a citizen’s meet focussed on making the country’s IT capital more liveable…

Legislation to improve accessibility for those with disabilities planned for spring

October 15, 2017 | Source: Lethbridge Herald- Canada & CTV News & Huffington Post | Legislation, Government, Inclusion | Canada

The federal minister responsible for crafting Canada’s first national accessibility legislation says the law should be ready by next spring and should benefit not only people with disabilities, but their caregivers. Kent Hehr says the timeline for the new law has shifted slightly since he took over the portfolio for sport and persons with disabilities in a recent cabinet shuffle. The legislation, which is highly anticipated by Canada’s disabled community, was originally set to be unveiled either late this year or early 2018. Hehr says he is up-to-speed on past consultation efforts and is moving ahead with future ones. He hopes to table the legislation before the House of Commons by next spring…

Make budget accessible to visually impaired – YBF, OSIWA advocate

October 15, 2017 | Source: Myjoyonline.com- Ghana | Blindness/Visual Impairment, Inclusion, Advocacy | Ghana

The Youth Bridge Foundation (YBF) has implored the government as well as Metropolitans, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to make national and composite budgets accessible to persons who are visually impaired. Executive Director of the Foundation, Seth Oteng said the achievement of this will ensure that persons with disabilities will not be alienated in the governance of the country at both the local and national levels. At the opening of YBF project in Akwapim North, he said: “It is time we made vision count.” His call re-echoes the theme for this year’s World Vision Day…

TPS moves for unrestricted number of accessible taxis

October 15, 2017 | Source: Timmins Press- Canada | Transit/Transportation, Accessible Design, Inclusion | Canada

The Timmins Police Services Board has approved a series of amendments to the taxi bylaw that includes allowing for an unrestricted number of accessible taxicabs licences. The draft bylaw was approved this week and will be forwarded to Timmins city council for approval. The amended bylaw was presented to the board by Deputy Police Chief Des Walsh. “We know there is a need in the community for this type of service,” said Walsh. He also commented on the fact that the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) is expected to mandate wheelchair accessible taxi service by 2025…

Top 10 amazing female disabled celebrities

October 16, 2017 | Source: Disability Horizons- UK | Awareness, Inclusion, Advocacy | United Kingdom

There is a great deal of ongoing discussion and debate around the inclusion and representation of disabled people within the media. Put simply, there is not enough diversity. Still, in 2017, the vast majority of British ‘celebrities’ are able-bodied. However, we are seeing the emergence of more and more disabled people on our television screens and in the public eye. But, how many can you name? When contemplating this very question, I realised that most of those who immediately came to mind were male – Stephen Hawking, Warwick Davies, Alex Brooker, Adam Hills, Ade Adepitan and Jonnie Peacock, to name a few. So what about the ladies? Time to pick the top 10…

Rego Costs For Drivers With Disabilities Cut, But Transport Access Issues Remain

October 16, 2017 | Source: Pro Bono- Australia | Transit/Transportation, Discrimination, Awareness | Australia

Around 2,500 Victorians own vehicles modified to suit a wheelchair user, and they will be able to apply for a 100 per cent concession on their vehicle registration fee under the scheme, resulting in a saving of almost $300 a year. Eligible vehicles must be fitted with hand controls for accelerating and braking, and need to have undergone a Vehicle Assessment Signatory Scheme report asserting the vehicle has been significantly modified. The Andrews Labor government announced the initiative last Thursday, and Roads and Road Safety Minister Luke Donnellan said the change was “long overdue” and would make a “positive impact on the lives of thousands of Victorians living with a disability”…

Inclusive design: Accessible toilets today

October 16, 2017 | Source: Planning & Building Control Today- UK | Inclusion, Accessible Design, Building/Facilities Access | United Kingdom

Accessible toilets are a fundamental component of our lives – their availability can affect our ability to travel, go to work, undertake everyday activities and participate in a range of leisure activities and interests. Many public toilets have been closed and user groups are concerned over the lack of access to suitable toilets and the impact this has on their lives; other user groups are concerned that the design of toilets no longer meets their diverse needs. The accessible WC, while possessing many features that have been designed specifically for wheelchair users, is also intended to meet the needs of people with other disabilities including many conditions that are hidden. Two examples are people who use a colostomy bag and people who have a toilet anxiety or phobia…

Walk for “Accessibility and Inclusion” flagged off at Hyderabad University

October 16, 2017 | Source: Hindu Business Line- India | Inclusion, Awareness, Advocacy | India

Did you know that the gear box of the Hero Honda motorcycles is assembled in India by visually challenged persons? It’s true and a significant achievement for the country, says Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, an MP and industrialist himself. Speaking after flagging off a “Walk for Accessibility and Inclusion” at the University of Hyderabad on Sunday, the MP from Chevella in Telangana said “Communication skills of visually challenged persons are much better in comparison to normal persons”. The MP further stated, “My aunty who was also visually challenged built the first hostel for girls who were visually challenged in Hyderabad and it was one of the first in Asia.”…

Disability Hate Crime Reports Surge, And Campaigners Think Media Portrayals Has ‘Demonised’ People

October 17, 2017 Huffington Post- UK | Discrimination, Awareness, Disability Rights | United Kingdom

The media’s portrayal of disabled people as “scroungers” who are on benefits has helped fuel the rise in reported hate crimes, campaigners have said. The number of reports of hate crimes against disabled people in 2016/17 rose by 53%, Home Office statistics released on Tuesday reveal. Yet despite the startling rise, disability campaigners said the figures are also promising as they could indicate that disabled people are feeling more confident in reporting crimes when they take place. Stephen Brookes, coordinator at the Disability Hate Crime Network and former chair of the National Union of Journalists Disabled Members’ Council, said that disabled people are portrayed in a disproportionately unfair light in the media…

Oshawa mom says it’s time to replace accessibility symbol with a more active image

October 18, 2017 | Source: Durham Region- Canada | Mobility, Awareness, Advocacy | Canada

An Oshawa mom is hoping the city will adopt a new more active accessibility symbol. Championed by the Forward Movement, the idea is to change the well known International Symbol of Access, which depicts a person sitting in a wheelchair, to a more dynamic symbol of a person leaning forward and moving their arm to propel the wheelchair. The organization has asked that the new symbol be adopted for new construction or when renovations occur. Oshawa mom Amanda Ridding said she first heard about the new symbol two or three years ago but it wasn’t yet common in Ontario…

Invisible Disability Awareness

October 18, 2017 | Source: Huffington Post- UK | Awareness, Disability Rights, Inclusion | United Kingdom

Since having my first born six years ago I noticed I was struggling to hear. Things would sound unclear, I’d struggle to hear people who weren’t right in front of me and I noticed I was more than often saying the word ‘what?’. It wasn’t until one day sitting in my mum’s conservatory my mum said, ‘Listen to that lovely Robin chirping away’ … I tried, boy did I try, but I realised I couldn’t. I couldn’t hear it, I couldn’t hear what everyone else was listening to. How many other sounds was I missing out on? It’s been a terrible process for me, mainly through embarrassment. Foolishly being embarrassed of not wanting to be seen in the hearing centre, not at 34, not where everyone knows me…

When accessibility becomes the norm and not the exception

October 19, 2017 | Source: The Globe and Mail- Canada | Awareness, Mobility, Inclusion | Canada

After years of fruitless searching, Tim and Natalie Rose, a Toronto couple in their early 30s, had all but given up finding a suitable condo in the city. Their story, however, doesn’t involve the usual litany of impediments – price, location, size. Rather, Mr. Rose, a bank compliance officer who has cerebral palsy and relies on a wheelchair, couldn’t find an apartment that met his accessibility needs. Instead, he and Ms. Rose, a graduate student in rehab science who is able-bodied, have had to settle for rental apartments that they’d fix up as best they could. “We’d kind of given up on finding an accessible property,” he said last week…

Minister says new rules coming to improve accessibility for people with disabilities

October 19, 2017 | Source: CBC- Canada | Inclusion, Awareness, Building/Facilities Access | Canada

Service NL Minister Sherry Gambin-Walsh promises her government will improve accessibility for people with disabilities in Newfoundland and Labrador. Speaking to CBC News, Gambin-Walsh said new regulations related to the province’s Buildings Accessibility Act will be adopted. However, she cautioned that more discussion is needed before some of the regulations are changed. A formal announcement is coming within the next few days, but the minister says new regulations are just the start. “We are going to follow the national codes and we are going to change anything that’s not [in] line with the national codes, and we are going to open the [Buildings Accessibility] Act,” she said…

How accessible are the arts for the disabled?

October 19, 2017 | Source: Flux Magazine- UK | Arts/Entertainment, Accessible Design, Mobility | United Kingdom

The Arts industry in the UK is booming. In 2015, over £87 billion was contributed to the UK economy by the creative industries and there are an increasing number of jobs being created each year. However, a key problem within the creative arts industry, which includes theatre, animation, film, journalism and many more categories, is the lack of diversity. In particular, people with disabilities, whether they need to use power chairs to get around or have more ‘invisible’ mental disabilities, are being excluded from the industry. So just how accessible are the arts for the disabled?…

The disabled gamer’s manual

October 19, 2017 | Source: Disability Horizons | Gaming, Awareness, Mobility

Philip Hoare, an avid gamer who has Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), runs through the best accessibility features on a whole host of consoles and games, so you too can enjoy the world of gaming. Before I start talking about the accessibility options available to disabled gamers, I’d like to tell you a bit about myself. I am a 17-year-old teenager who, yes, plays a lot of video games. I have a disability, SMA Type 1-2, which renders me unable to move my legs or arms very far. This means I reliant on a wheelchair and my reach is limited. But none of this gets in the way of my favourite hobby, video game playing. There are a lot of things in our world that are inaccessible – from a step into a restaurant to toilets that aren’t adapted…

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