Innovation Mindset
Making Digital Services Accessible- Why Inclusive Design Matters for Everyone
Led by: Joe Oakhart
Many of us assume others experience the digital world just like we do—but that’s rarely the case. This workshop introduces the diverse ways people interact with digital services, including visual, auditory, motor, and cognitive differences. Participants will explore tools like screen readers, keyboard navigation, and browser extensions that simulate impairments and flag accessibility barriers. Through relatable examples—such as recovering from surgery, aging, or using broken devices—we’ll highlight how accessibility isn’t just for others: it’s for all of us. You’ll leave with easy, practical strategies to test and improve accessibility in your digital services—no prior experience with accessibility required. This session is ideal for web developers, designers, IT liaisons, content strategists, digital service managers, and all persons interested in building more inclusive, equitable public services.
- Explain why accessibility is essential for digital equity and user experience
- Identify how different impairments affect how people navigate websites
- Use basic tools like Funkify and WAVE to simulate and test accessibility
- Recognize common accessibility issues and describe how they impact users
- Apply simple techniques to make websites more inclusive for all users
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