In May, the eighth annual Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) was celebrated to bring about awareness and activities that support access and inclusion for people with all types of disabilities. The primary audience of GAAD is the “design, development, usability, and related communities who build, shape, fund, and influence technology and its use.” As a result, many companies launch accessibility initiatives on GAAD. This year saw access and inclusion news from Procter and Gamble’s Herbal Essences, Lloyds Banking Group, Google, Microsoft, Be My Eyes, Verizon, and Apple, among others.

In June, U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), and U.S. Representatives Jim Langevin (D-RI-2) and Chris Smith (R-NJ-4) introduced the Real Emergency Access for Aging and Disability Inclusion (REAADI) for Disasters Act [S. 1755 and HR. 3208] in the Senate and House, respectively. Extensive support for the legislation came from, among others, the collaboration of twenty-eight associations, the American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR), who composed letters to the House and Senate in support of the REAADI for Disasters Act.

Nathan Moon presents on accessible ‘Smart Home’ Technologies at the 2019 M-Enabling Summit

CACP Voting Security Corporate White Paper developed for National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) Summer Conference

"Revisioning the U.S. Elections Process: Voting Security and Election Integrity," a Smartmatic Corporate white paper, was developed by CACP researcher Paul M.A. Baker for the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) Summer Conference, June 30 through July 3, 2019 in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Click here to see the published white paper on the NASS website

July 2019 marked the 29th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Local celebrations were held around the United States, and national access and inclusion initiatives were highlighted, as well. For example, at the local level, to kick off the 29th Anniversary of the ADA, Rapid City, South Dakota an official proclamation for the city was signed to recognize July 26th as ADA Awareness Day, emphasizing inclusion.

CACP Senior Director Paul M.A. Baker presented a paper at the 2019 APPAM (Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management) International Conference held in Barcelona, Spain July 28-31. The paper, "Regional Policy and Networks of Innovation: Implications for Workforce Development and the Future(s) of Work," (Paul M.A. Baker, CACP, and Helaina Gaspard, University of Ottawa), was part of the "Emergent Technologies and their Societal Impact" panel, and explored the Future of Work, and innovation networks in the U.S. and Canada related to energy and software development. 

In August, Colorado passed Modifications to the Uniform Election Code (HB19-1278) and Voting Access for People with Disabilities (SB19-202) Acts to expand access to voting for all eligible Coloradans. SB19-202 gives Coloradans with disabilities the ability to vote independently and privately using nonvisual or low vision access technologies.

CACP was well represented at the recent Georgia Digital Government Summit (https://events.govtech.com/Georgia-Digital-Government-Summit.html) held in Atlanta, September 23-24. Aside from attending the many sessions, researchers made two panel presentations. CACP researchers Nathan Moon and Paul M.A. Baker delivered a presentation for the “Accessibility and the Engaged Citizen” panel, and Paul M.A. Baker was a panelist on the “Smart Communities” panel.

In September, National Preparedness Month was celebrated, and many took the opportunity to inform citizens of the importance of being prepared in the event of a local or national emergency. For example, ReadyDC’s campaign objective was to provide information that was both accessible and readily available. Their website contains information and resources on how to create emergency kits, communications plans, and how to remain informed about various types of emergencies.

Regents' Researcher Helena Mitchell attended the 2019 Carolinas Alliance for Success in Education (CASE) Summit, November 14-15, 2019, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Mitchell was a facilitator for the November 14th "Critical Conversations" session, and a luncheon panelist for a discussion of "HBCU Telecommunications Infrastructure: Past-Present-Future," on November 15th. The CASE Summit is sponsored by Johnson C.