Universal Access Project
The Universal Access Project (UAP) has completed three informational Forums on Universal Design of Telecommunications and Information Systems held during September and October in Sunnyvale, CA, Boston, MA, and Washington, D.C. The half-day Forums were targeted towards members of industry to inform them about what many consumers already know: Designing information systems to accommodate the broadest possible range of users, regardless of physical or sensory disability, results in products that are more user-friendly for everyone.
The UAP is a partnership of the Oakland, CA-based World Institute on Disability, the Trace Research and Development Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and the CPB/WGBH National Center for Accessible Media in Boston, MA.
The Forums featured an informational videotape, a show and tell demonstration of the latest working examples of universal design technologies, including the WGBH accessible web page (http://main.wgbh.org) and the Talking Touch Screen developed by Gregg Vanderheiden at the Trace Center (http://www.trace.wisc.edu). Also featured were a panel discussion about ways that companies can internalize universal design processes within their corporate culture and a keynote speech by a major industry luminary.
The highlight of the three Forums was the Washington, D.C. meeting in which FCC Chairman Reed Hundt delivered a rousing keynote speech outlining a host of initiatives that the FCC will undertake to ensure that people with disabilities are not excluded from the information revolution. It is crucially important that as we move to an information economy, we make sure that the world of opportunity to participate in that economy fully includes all people with disabilities, said Hundt.
The FCCs top ten list of priorities and goals for disability access includes the following: to provide alternative media and closed captioning for all FCC-sponsored public events; to ensure that personal communication systems are hearing aid compatible; and to require closed captioning on all cable TV programming. Currently only about 4% of cable programs are closed captioned.
Highlights of the Boston, Forum included a presentation of the Wiggleworks educational software by David Rose, Executive Director of the Center For Applied Special Technology (CAST), which focuses on technology solutions for disabled students in K-12 education. Wiggleworks employes a number of creative electronic curb cuts into its products to provide maximum flexibility and customization options for both students and teachers. A stellar panel of industry notables spoke about internalizing universal design into company processes, including Bill Paul, Vice President of United Technology International Operations, Bob Sproull, Vice President, Sun Microsystems Labs, Mark Zanger, chief editor, Delphi News.and J. Michael Hickey, Executive Director of Strategic Alliances at NYNEX.
The Sunnyvale Forum featured a demonstration of voice-recognition technology by Stanford Universitys Neil Scott, and a guide through the access features built in to Windows 95. In a provocative keynote speech, John Gage, Chief Scientist at Sun Microsystems Labs, urged the audience to think about computers in new ways and move beyond the desktop metaphor that is the hallmark of present day software interfaces.
For more information about the UAP or to order a copy of the "Electronic Curbcuts" videotape, contact Betsy Bayha at the World Institute on Disability at 510-251-4355.
