Presented at the Disability Innovation Summit: Inclusive Interactions conference organised by the GDI hub on 13 Sept 2023.
A short talk highlighting Inclusive Innovation at Google.
Topics highlighted in the approach taken are: AI; "nothing about us without us"; get started on one thing; this is a process.
Products briefly outlined are: automated captions; real time captions (Google Meet) in 14 languages; interlanguage translation (14 languages); on the phone, live transcribe (80 languages); the ability of the phone to inform deaf people of sounds e.g. laughter, appliances going off; and phone live captioning.
Globally, there is limited research on how deaf and hard of hearing adults experience higher education and work. The purpose of the present study is to examine hard of hearing (HH) adults’ experiences of social interactions and social relationships in higher education, the workplace and leisure time. Data were obtained from semistructured interviews with 16 individuals (aged 24–31 years) from diverse cultural backgrounds (10 males and 6 females) with severe-to-profound hearing loss. Participants were selected based on previous expressed interest in participating in further studies after having been involved in an earlier study. The interviews were subjected to a qualitative thematic data analysis. According to the results, people with a hearing loss experience communication barrier in higher education, at work and in leisure time. These communication barriers lead to difficulties achieving social inclusion, and in some circumstances to social exclusion. Assistive technology (AT) and information and communication technologies (ICT) were important facilitators of moving from social exclusion towards social inclusion.
This report documents the human-centred design process used in a project conducted in 2020 in Nairobi, Kenya. It includes research tools that can be used in other contexts, as well as the adaptations that were made to research tools to ensure they were inclusive. These tools are followed by the main lessons learned, and recommendations for others who want to implement a similar process.
The goal of this project was to better understand how people living with disabilities in humanitarian contexts use mobile technology, the barriers they face in accessing mobile services, and the opportunities that mobile might present to increase access to basic services in their daily lives. The target population for this project was urban refugees living with visual or hearing impairments in Nairobi, Kenya.
The human-centred design tools used included: Location Mapping, User Journeys, Communication Mapping, Future Me and Daily Diaries.
This research focuses on disability, using human-centred design methods to better understand how refugees and Kenyans with visual and hearing impairments in Nairobi use mobile technology and potential opportunities that it could provide.
The target populations for the project were urban refugees and host communities with visual or hearing impairments in Nairobi, Kenya.
This report is divided into four main sections, following an introduction, the second section focuses on insights learned from the hearing impaired, the third on the visually impaired and the fourth highlighting issues that were cross-cutting insights across both groups. Sections two and three include insights related to mobile, health and financial services. The fourth section includes insights related to humanitarian and disability support services
The purpose of this document is for United Nations staff and partners to make their video conferences as inclusive as possible for all persons with disabilities. The Stakeholder Group of Persons with Disabilities gathered the following information from representative organizations of persons with disabilities, in particular from the International Disability Alliance and its members, and from additional research. This list is by no means exhaustive, but rather attempts to provide an accessibility overview.
AbilityNet’s Factsheets are free to download and provide advice and information about how computers and other digital technologies can help people with a range of conditions and impairments.
Written by the AbilityNet specialist team of assessors and accessibility consultants they give detailed information on a wide range of assistive technology, services and related organisations. Many give a step by step guide to help you set up your computer and software (assistive technology) to meet your individual requirements.
"Languages are dynamic and change over the years. Changes in sign languages have been usually initiated to accommodate the needs of the local Deaf community. With the increase in smartphone use, sign languages are influenced not only by the local Deaf community, but also by foreign Deaf people on the other side of the screen, regardless of their location. Smartphones influence the sign language itself and the Deaf community by connecting different communities of Deaf people through messages, shared information and experiences, and news delivery. The popularity of this technology among Deaf communities is a social phenomenon emerging from Deaf people themselves. Smartphones may promote the globalization of sign language, shortening distances between Deaf communities around the world"
Three adaptive apps for mobile phones are briefly introduced. RogerVoice helps the hard of hearing to make phone calls by automatically transcribing speech. The dyslexia key can make the font easier to read and also can enable a sequential keyboard. Be My Eyes enables users to request help from volunteer readers by phone using videolinks
This is a quiz game in Kenyan Sign Language (KSL), designed to inform and educate deaf Kenyans about HIV and AIDS and reproductive health issues. The interface has been kept simple with minimal visual distractions, which makes it suitable for students with very low computer skills. The quiz would be useful for Kenyan schools, HIV and AIDS testing clinics, internet cafes, resource centres and libraries
This study and report on computer technologies for post-secondary students with disabilities explores the ways in which computers can address the barriers to learning faced by students with visual or hearing impairments, learning disabilities and mobility impairments. It would be useful for anyone with an interest in assistive computer technologies. The French version of this report follows the English version
