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Month: December 2017

W3C releases video introducing Web Accessibility and W3C Standards

Screenshot-2017-12-12 Video Introduction to Web Accessibility and W3C Standards

The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) has released a video introducing Web Accessibility and W3C Standards. The four-minute video highlights why accessibility is the right thing to do, how it is essential for people with disabilities and useful for all. It was published as part of an accessibility project the Internet Society (ISOC) is working on to realize their vision: “The Internet is for Everyone”. It is also timed in recognition of the United Nation’s annual International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December. For more videos and information on specific accessibility topics, see Web Accessibility Perspectives Videos: Explore the Impact and Benefits for Everyone. For a general introduction, see Accessibility – W3C.

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Accessibility awareness remains low as deadline approaches

Accessibility awareness remains low as deadline approaches

Beginning Jan. 18, 2018, government agencies across the U.S. will be required by law to make their websites accessible to the more than 60 million Americans with visual, hearing or other disabilities. Yet more than 87 percent of 430+ local government respondents to Vision’s 2017 What’s Next Survey said they have moderate, weak or no knowledge of federal web accessibility requirements.

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Accessible Technology: It Starts with Procurement by @jeffkline2 | @PEATWorks

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This article was contributed by Jeff Kline, the author of Strategic IT Accessibility: Enabling the Organization. Kline is the current Statewide Electronic and Information Resources (EIR) Accessibility Coordinator at the Texas Department of Information Resources and previous EIR Accessibility Coordinator at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Before entering public service, he spent 26 years at IBM, during which he managed its Worldwide Accessibility Consulting and Business Transformation initiatives and several other efforts related to product development, industrial design, software development and system usability.

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People-Centered Smart City Planning

georgia tech center for innovation

The term “smart city” has become common parlance in city planning circles in recent years. While there is no universally agreed upon definition, descriptions of smart cities typically refer to integrated and interoperable networks of digital infrastructure and information and communication technologies (ICT) that collect and share data and improve the quality of urban life (Allwinkle and Cruickshank 2011; Batty et al. 2012). However unlike related concepts such as the digital city, the intelligent city and the ubiquitous city, the smart city is not limited to the diffusion of ICT, but also commonly includes people (Albino, Beradi, and Dangelico 2015)….

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Incorporating Accessibility into Procurement with Bonus Samples

procurement strategy

Creating Web accessibility policy has become a common approach taken by education institutions and others (e.g., local, state, and federal government agencies, and businesses). These organizations want to ensure accessibility for all their constituents (e.g., clients, users and staffs) including those with disabilities. Often this is because organizations see the value in accessibility for (1) ethical, (2) business, or (3) legal reasons. Policy then becomes a mechanism to realize the commitment or obligation the organization has to an accessible Web presence.

Establishing policy provides recognition that system reform does not occur in a vacuum. Moreover, policy assures that access is to be equal across the entire system, rather than at the discretion of individuals within the system. Finally, policy helps align organizational resources to accomplish newly defined priorities. In the case of Web accessibility, it can be a complex issue in part because of the shear size of the problem. Moreover, the presence of a policy can act as a demonstration of a good faith effort to comply with applicable statues (e.g., Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and state laws)….

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3 Principles To Create A More “People Centered” Smart City

Chicago Downtown aerial view

When it comes to dealing with the government, it’s rare that you find someone excited about the concept. City departments are notorious for mountains of paperwork, confusing rules and inefficiency.  But according to a presentation titled “Reimagining the User Experience of Government” led by Brenna Berman and Mike Duffy, much of that is beginning to change.

Berman and Duffy are experts on the topic. Berman serves as Executive Director of City Digital, at UI Labs and was most recently the Chief Information Officer for the City of Chicago after spending more than a decade with IBM. Duffy is the Founder and CEO at CityBase, which is a company that “creates technology that makes government more personal and responsive.”

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Smart city experts on importance of digital and cultural inclusivity in cities

Screenshot-2017-12-10 Transcript Transformers – Cities

Beth Blauer, Founder of GovEx at Johns Hopkins University, Kate Garman, Smart City Coordinator for the City of Seattle, and Erie Meyer, Senior Director of National Network at Code for America, describe the importance of digital and cultural inclusivity for the future of smart cities.

On November 14, The Washington Post brought together city officials, urban strategists, innovators and technologists to discuss and debate the advancements that are shaping the future of cities across the country.

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10 Things to Improve Smart City Accessibility and Inclusion

10 Things to Improve Smart City Accessibility and Inclusion

Medellín, Colombia used to be notorious for the dangers of homicide and drugs and used street art as part of its revitalization strategies. Photo © Juancho Torres (Source: theguardian.com)

Citizens are the life of a city. We drive the growth, and we have the right and responsibility to take care of our natural and built-up environments.

We are faced with everyday challenges in our cities, from hours of traffic to parking spaces, lining up for the MRT or the shuttle vans, inhaling all the air pollution, and finding safe places to walk on so we get from one point to another. So how do we improve our situation?

Here are 10 things everyone can do to improve city life….

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Google Crowdsources Wheelchair-Friendly Maps – CityLab

Screenshot-2017-12-10 Google Gets Serious About Mapping Wheelchair Accessibility

The tech giant is tapping into its global army of users to make its Maps app more useful for people with disabilities.
If there’s one thing Google’s got at its disposal, it’s a global army of avid map users. Now the company is leveraging that power to make its Maps feature more useful for people with mobility challenges—a group that often gets overlooked in the world of transit and urban innovation.

Google Maps already indicates if a location is wheelchair accessible—a result of a personal project by one of its employees—but its latest campaign will crowdsource data from its 30 million Local Guides worldwide, who contribute tips and photos about neighborhood establishments in exchange for points and small prizes like extra digital storage space. The company is calling on them to answer five simple questions—like whether a building has accessible entrances or bathrooms—when they submit a review for a location. In the coming weeks, Google will host workshops and “geowalks” specifically focused on mobility across seven cities, from New York City and London to Tokyo and Surabaya, Indonesia….

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Using Technology To Build Inclusive Smart Cities

Using technology to build an inclusive smart city and digital society at the Enable Makeathon

Engineers, innovators, students and people with disabilities came together as
part of Enable Makeathon 2.0, to discuss the use of technology to build a
more inclusive society.

This is an initiative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
and its partners, and this year’s focus is on crowd-sourcing prototype
products and solutions to address the challenges regarding accessibility and
employability of people with different disabilities, ranging from vision,
hearing and mobility….

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Despite its promise technology often fails to help disabled users

Despite its promise, modern technology often fails to help disabled users – TechRepublic

Advances in speech recognition, wearable technology, and mobile apps have offered welcome improvements for many people who are disabled. Yet while new technology is often praised for aiding communication for those who are blind and deaf, innovations can sometimes have unintended effects, hindering communication and access to information for those with disabilities.

In a talk at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard titled Disability, Technology, and Inclusion, Elizabeth Ellcessor, assistant professor in the Media School at Indiana University, Bloomington, and Meryl Alper, faculty associate with the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, discussed some of the hidden downsides of tech for the disabled.

Ellcessor began by questioning what is meant by “accessibility…”

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All Ireland Smart Cities Forum

All Ireland Smart Cities Forum | Seán Kyne TD

My address to the first All Ireland Smart Cities forum which took place in Croke Park Conference Centre on Wednesday, 13th September.

“Good morning, I’m delighted to be here today. It gives me great pleasure to open, along with Dr. McCormick, the first All Ireland Smart Cities Forum.

As Minister with responsibility for Digital Development, I welcome the opportunity to be part of the sharing of information that is taking place here today.

The increasing use of digital technologies is impacting on every aspect of our lives: from transport, to education, to leisure and entertainment, to health services and beyond. And this trend is going to continue and will likely intensify. The increasing use of digital technologies is impacting on everyone – on individuals, on families, on businesses, on community and sports organisation, on Government itself.

Government is committed to transparent, collaborative engagement both with citizens and businesses, and use of digitisation and technology to continuously improve public services. The new eGovernment Strategy published this year sets out a vision to improve the delivery of whole-of-Government projects, expand shared services to increase efficiencies, and share data.

We need to continue to enhance the competitiveness of our cities, and build on existing smart projects. We also need to go beyond our cities and recognise the benefits that the smart agenda can bring to our regions because this is not and cannot solely be about cities such as Dublin and Belfast…

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Smart Cities for the Blind

Screenshot-2017-12-9 Smart Cities for the Blind

Smart Cities for the Blind Posted by Lena Jukna on Nov 16, 2017 categories: Smart City tags: Accessibility, Blind, Inclusivity, smart city, Smart Technology, Urban Mobilty, Visual Impaired Would you be able to find your way across a big city at rush hour if you were visually impaired? 285 million visually impaired people worldwide are facing this challenge every day,…

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UNDG | Delivering Together For Development

UNDG | Delivering Together For Development

We at the UN in Costa Rica are designing our next UN common plan for 2018-2022 to support the Government in its efforts to achieve the Global Goals by 2030. To do that, we are following the crowdsourcing spirit of the new development agenda. We are trying to adapt our decision making so that our new UN Development Assistance Framework is developed with the full wisdom of the crowd.

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EU agrees on access to products and services for disabled people

EU agrees on access to products and services for disabled people

he EU Council signalled its readiness Thursday to start talks with the European Parliament on the accessibility directive, to make everyday products and services more accessible to people with a disability.

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Fostering Digital Inclusion in Smart Cities

Fostering digital inclusion in smart cities | | Parameters

Cities capture people’s imaginations because they are a whirlwind of change, adaptation, and challenge. Cities change on almost a daily basis, with the influx and exit of commuters. To survive over time, cities have to adapt to economic change, migration patterns, and citizens’ needs. Cities also have to face society’s toughest problems—poverty, crime, homelessness, and more—all while delivering the public services that help make a city hum.

In the early part of the twenty-first century, information and communications technologies (ICTs) have come to be seen as a way to help cities thrive. With the right deployment of technology, cities can become “smart” so that they can better deliver public services. Running parallel to the “smart city” discussion is the notion of inclusion; that is, a city is better off if a wide range of people participate in how it grows and evolves. In this context, inclusion has a lot to do with diversity—in the economy, civic life, and urban design. The upshot can be greater equity, as opportunities for economic and social growth open up to a wide range of a city’s population. ICTs may be among the tools deployed to enhance inclusion.

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WEBINAR: Livestream | LinkedIn Speaker Series with @HabenGirma

Screenshot-2017-12-9 Livestream LinkedIn Speaker Series

Upcoming Speaker Series: Haben Girma
Tuesday, December 12 at 10:30AM PT

As the the first Deafblind person to graduate from Harvard Law School, Haben Girma advocates for equal opportunities for people with disabilities. Haben travels the world consulting and public speaking, teaching clients the benefits of fully accessible products and services. Haben has been working with LinkedIn to make our workplace and products more inclusive, and we are so excited to introduce her to the rest of the company – and the world! Come listen to Haben’s inspiring story, and learn how disability is driving innovation….

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Smart communities need smart governance – The Globe and Mail

Smart communities need smart governance – The Globe and Mail

The nascent plans for a smart neighbourhood on Toronto’s eastern waterfront may sound exciting from an urban-planning perspective, but the high-tech project poses fundamental governance problems that we need to solve now.

Smart cities are largely an invention of the private sector – an effort to create a market within government. They offer tech companies opportunities to generate profits by assuming functions traditionally carried out by the public sector and by selling cities technologies they may or may not need. The business opportunities are clear. The risks inherent to residents, less so….

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A Comprehensive Approach to Equitable Procurement in Smart City Government

A Comprehensive Approach to Equitable Procurement in Government

Continuous improvement in the delivery of government services requires not just new approaches from existing players but new participants as well. One way to stimulate that change in government processes is through equitability initiatives, and the work of the Minnesota Office of State Procurement to promote greater access to public procurement processes represents an innovative effort toward inclusive government…..

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Infrastructure Advancement of the Year | @LinkNYC

Infrastructure Advancement of the Year: LinkNYC | Smart Cities Dive

The “digital divide” — economic or social inequality in regards to technology — is a stubborn challenge in today’s smartest cities. Offering all citizens affordable access to broadband and other common connective infrastructure is not a simple feat, and will often create hostility between governments and their constituents.

CityBridge, a group of tech and connectivity companies including Intersection, Qualcomm and CIVIQ Smartscapes, is working to bridge this digital divide in the nation’s largest city with an advanced, scalable and aesthetically appealing Wi-Fi kiosk network: LinkNYC.

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