Accessibility Camp is an unconference focusing on the topic of digital accessibility. Events like this have been held throughout the country, as well as other countries including Canada, England and Japan. The Seattle Public Library will be hosting Accessibility Camp Seattle 2012 at the Central Library, on Level 4, all day Saturday, June 2 & Sunday, June 3.
What is an “unconference?”
An unconference is an inversion of a traditional conference. Traditional conferences, which generally cost a lot of money to attend, usually involve attendees who sit quietly listening to pre-arranged lectures. An unconference, which is generally cheap or free to attend, has the attendees become participants themselves, where they actively decide the topics, take part in the discussion, and collaborate to create real solutions to the problems that are brought forward.
What is “digital accessibility?”
More and more of information in our society is appearing in a digital format. For instance, The Seattle Public Library gives you the ability to download eBooks and eAudiobooks through OverDrive, DRM-free music from Freegal, access resources to learn a new language through Mango Languages, get help with job searching from the Adult Learning Center, or even read the local newspaper from over a century ago from the Seattle Times Historical Archives.
With an increasing amount of material appearing in a digital format, it is important for us as a community to make sure that all digital material is accessible to everyone. Do video and podcasting have captioning or transcripts for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing? Can a person with blindness or low-vision browse the internet on a smart phone, let alone use the phone at all? Is the website designed in a way that is intuitive and usable for the vast majority of users, regardless of ability, language, or computer skill level? These are the questions we now regularly face.
What is an “Accessibility Camp?”
Accessibility Camp brings together designers and programmers, policy makers and planners, students and teachers, advocates and activists, and most importantly, the people who use the technology themselves. These participants, from an enormous variety of backgrounds, will come together as a community to discuss the topic of digital accessibility, identify points that need improvement, and strategize a way of increasing access to the virtual world for all people.
How will Accessibility Camp Seattle 2012 work?
The event will be held at the Central Library on Level 4 on Saturday, June 2 from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. and on Sunday, June 3 from 12 p.m. – 6 p.m. The various topics will be divided into different rooms and time slots. The complete schedule is available online on the Accessibilty Camp Seattle 2012 schedule page. You can come for as much or as little of the event as you like! The event is free and open to everyone. You do not have to be a technical genius of any sort to participate! The only thing we ask of you is to bring along your knowledge and interests and be prepared to discuss new ideas with a lot of new people.
We encourage you to fill out the registration form for the event so we can get an idea of the number of people who may show up, and so we can print a name badge for you. Please request sign language interpreters through the above registration form, and please direct all other accommodation requests and any other questions to the Library Equal Access Program at 206-615-1380 or leap@spl.org
Tim S., Library Equal Access Program
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