People-first

Fostering Inclusion in Technology: Ten Tips for a Better Sense of Belonging

Nikki Flores (she/her)

Those of us who work in technology know how to work with multifaceted and diverse teams to solve complex issues for our end users. Becoming stronger, more empathetic communicators who foster diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) across the organization is a continuous goal and many would say we are all a work-in-progress. In this talk, we ask “How do we better foster a sense of inclusion and allow for different types of people, with varied abilities and skills, to work together to solve problems for the future?” We'll present ten tips for fostering more inclusion in technology, based on a compilation of tips presented through a previously-published blog series.

Read more about Fostering Inclusion in Technology: Ten Tips for a Better Sense of Belonging


Shattering Assumptions About Deafness

Meryl Evans (she/her/deaf)

Do all deaf people know how to read lips? Know sign language? Can they drive? There are many misconceptions about deaf and hard of hearing people. Meryl will set the record straight on common misconceptions. Come to this A11yTalks session to get the facts about deaf and HoH people to enrich your accessibility and inclusion efforts.

Read more about Shattering Assumptions About Deafness


Bridging the A11y Gap: Mental Health & the Next Generation

Albert Kim (he/him)

Two of the biggest gaps in digital accessibility include lack of accessibility guidelines around mental health and how to bridge the knowledge divide between advocacy and professional. Albert Kim, the founder of Accessibility NextGen and a W3C invited expert on mental health, will be discussing his digital accessibility journey and the role Accessibility NextGen is playing to help people in the early stages of their accessibility journeys learn and grow together.

Read more about Bridging the A11y Gap: Mental Health & the Next Generation


'Father Hen's House' Project

Anderexis Bates

Father Hen's House is a newly started Youtube series project where Father Hen addresses topics through the lens of disability, sexuality, & gender mainly. The videos are broken into small 3-part series that cover a topic through the different lenses, often with the help of guest speakers. The goal of the project is to provide a digital resource to answer questions that people may be afraid to ask. Father Hen will go over the project's inspiration and where the project is going.

Read more about 'Father Hen's House' Project


The Fatal Flaw of Overlays

SHELL LITTLE

Overlays are technologies implemented on websites with the aim of increasing accessibility. Even if these overlays could do as they claim, they would still have a fundamental flaw. You can never out code bad design. During this talk let's discuss how overlays will never be the answer and the importance of accessible, inclusive, and usable designs.

Read more about The Fatal Flaw of Overlays