Join us in celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2021

Post by Jonathan Milam and Eudora Struble, members of the Accessible Content Working Group

May 20th, 2021 is the 10th annual celebration of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). GAAD is an online global event to raise awareness about digital access and inclusion that highlights how accessibility impacts the more than one billion people worldwide who experience disabilities. Join your colleagues at Wake and people across the globe in spreading awareness and learning more about digital accessibility and inclusion.

Here are 10 ways you can celebrate GAAD:

• Learn more about GAAD on social media using the hashtags #GAAD and #A11Y, and share how you’re working to make the world a more accessible place for everyone.
• If you normally use a mouse or trackpad to navigate, consider taking the #NoMouse Challenge for part of your day to experience the challenges that inaccessible web components create for those who navigate with only a keyboard. Learn more about keyboard navigation by visiting Keyboard Accessibility from WebAIM.
• Join us for the NC Higher Ed Digital Accessibility Collaborative’s free inaugural accessibility conference on June 10th, focusing on the basics of digital accessibility. This free conference is open to staff, faculty, and students. The schedule and registration information are available on the conference website.
• Some people engage with the web by using a type of assistive technology called screen readers to get audio and/or braille feedback. Consider testing out a screen reader’s output to better understand how this particular type of assistive technology works and is impacted by inaccessible web features. (Windows and Mac computers have built-in screen readers you can try. Turn on Windows Narrator by using Win+CTRL+Enter. Or Enable Mac’s VoiceOver using ⌘+F5.)

Sign up for our “Introduction to Captioning class: make your videos more accessible and get your audience more engaged with captions.” You can learn more about the captioning class and register in Workday Learning.

• Try out this Accessibility Maze from Ryerson University for a fun way to learn about web accessibility barriers and how to make websites more accessible for everyone.
• Make your virtual events accessible so that everyone can participate equally. Check out the resource for Improving Accessibility and Inclusion in Virtual Spaces.
• Learn more about the impacts, importance, and benefits of technology accessibility for people in a variety of situations by checking out the videos on Web Accessibility Perspectives from the Web Accessibility Initiative.
• Google Docs are a secure and dynamic way to deliver your document. See the Creating Accessible Basic Google Docs resource to be sure your documents have good accessibility structure for your entire audience.
• Encourage others in our campus community to get involved and learn more about Technology Accessibility at Wake!

Thanks for joining in the 2021 celebration of Global Accessibility Awareness Day! Please reach out to us for more conversation on technology accessibility.