Dynamic Coalition on Accessibility and Disability

 

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) established a Dynamic Coalition on Accessibility and Disability. The initial terms of references for the group are detailed below. Andrea Saks (ITU/TDI Telecommunications for the Deaf Inc.) welcomed the proposal and volunteered to coordinate this effort.

{tab Introduction}
Users of telecommunications and information technology have a varied capability of handling information and the controls of their presentation. The source of this variation lies in cultural and educational backgrounds, as well as on age-related functional limitations, in disabilities, and in other natural causes.

{tab Action Plan}
The Dynamic Coalition on Accessibility and Disability will facilitate interaction between relevant bodies, and ensure that ICT accessibility is included in the key debates around Internet Governance in order to build a future where all sectors of the global community have equal access to the Information Society. We are convinced that the entire community can benefit from an “accessible ICT world," as people can be permanently or temporarily disabled due to personal, environmental (e.g., a phone call in a noisy environment) or cultural (e.g., spoken language diversity) conditions. Moreover, we will all grow old and lose abilities that we take for granted now, thus enlarging the part of the population that would benefit from accessible communication. We cannot allow isolation of a part of the population due to lack of appropriate functionality that prevents the use of ICT resources by everybody to the fullest possible degree.

1st Deliverable:

Hyderabad Declaration on IGF Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities (approved at the DCAD 1st Meeting, 6 December 2008)

 

{tab Mailing List}
A mailing list [[email protected]] has been set up to facilitate discussions among DC partners; please note that subscription is mandatory in order to be able to send/receive information to/from this list. To subscribe to the list, please send your request to [email protected], indicating name, affiliation and the email address to be subscribed.

{tab Stakeholders}
The coalition is open to any organization entity or individual working on the field, including Standard Developing Organizations (SDOs).

Coordinator
Andrea Saks (TDI Telecommunications for the Deaf Inc.)

Partners: Organizations and Institutions
Current coalition partners include individual representatives and affiliates representing the following organizations and institutions:


Individuals

 

{tab Community}

IGF Community Group: Dynamic Coalition on Accessibility and Disability

 

 

{tab Reports}

  • DCAD overall meeting Report (IGF meeting in Vilnius, 14-17 September 2010) [doc]
  • Workshop "Global Internet Access for Persons with Disabilities" [doc]
  • Workshop "Best practices for an accessible web" [doc]
  • Second meeting Report (Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, 16 November 2009) [doc]
  • Activity Report - 30 June 2008 [doc]
  • Paper on Accessibility and Disability in IGF Meetings[doc]

  • First meeting Report (Hyderabad, India, 6 December 2008) [doc]

 

{tab Contacts}

Official Web site: Dynamic Coalition on Accessibility and Disability

{/tabs}