This section of my portfolio is dedicated to celebrating accessibility & inclusive design with the hopes of inspiring others to celebrate it with me.
If you have any examples of accessibility & inclusive design worth celebrating that are not yet on this page please donât hesitate to reach out!
SEPTEMBER 2020
Waymo Self Driving Taxi Service
With feedback from the Foundation for Blind Children (FBC) and The Lighthouse for the Blind in San Francisco, Waymo has been committed to accessibility in the development of self-driving taxis.
There are three key players in helping Waymoâs journey towards a highly accessible, self-driving ride:
Clement Wright - Waymo Product Manager responsible for UX & Accessibility
Wright focuses on the experiences of all riders, including those with disabilities
Mark Ashton - CEO of the Foundation for Blind Children
Marc heads the Phoenix-based foundation leading the way in education of blind children.
Bryan Bashin - CEO of The Lighthouse for the Blind in San Francisco
Having been blind since college, Bashin has dedicated his career to advocating for âequality, access, training and mentorship for individuals who are blind or low visionâ - TechCrunch article by @neddesmond
By getting feedback from adult members of the FBC, the Waymo team is able to improve the mobile app and its features to better serve members of this community. For example, to summon a Waymo taxi riders could use the honking feature. While the feature was built to help a specific group of people it has actually turned out to be helpful to the general rider base as well, proving that focusing on inclusive design leads to better solutions for all users.
âAutonomous vehicles have the potential to help people with disabilities, including the 1.3 million Americans who are legally blind, get where they need to go safely and efficiently.â - TechCrunch article by @neddesmond
Join me at this yearâs Sight Tech Global conference to learn more about Wyamoâs work and about the other organizations shaping inclusive experiences for people with blindness and visual impairments.
Registration is FREE and the conference is on December 2 - 3 2020.
AUGUST 2020
Amazon Fire TV
This month, Amazon Fire TV added a new accessibility tool to help users with visual impairments, such as glaucoma and macular degeneration. With the new Text Banner feature, text is consolidated into a written banner that appears on a fixed location of the screen that works with every app available on Fire TV.
Amazon has previously implemented other accessibility features such as Screen Magnifier and VoiceView, which can be found in Settings, under Accessibility, alongside the new Text Banner tool.
JULY 2020
Hampton Inn Buffalo-Amherst
In addition to celebrating inclusive advancements in digital design, it is important to call out those doing this awesome work in the physical world as well. This month, The Buffalo News, which is owned by Lee Enterprises, a leading provider of local news, celebrated the Hampton Inn Buffalo Amherst for being:
Carpet transitions to help ease the room entryways
âthe first hotel in the country certified as universally designed, a standard that incorporates inclusive elements throughout the venueâ
There are no standard rooms in the hotel. Seven out of 107 rooms are fully accessible, this means the bathrooms include seats in the shower and window shades operated with a button, for example. The rest of the rooms are semi- accessible and include features such as a low placed thermostat, floating shelves by the bed to leave room for a CPAP machine or other devices, knee clearance at the sink and room signs with a black and white picture and braille writing.