Re: working online with blind participants
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We just had a recent consultation with a person who is blind, and he gave us the best advice around two really specific things in virtual meetings. When the chat is being used, his screen reader constantly reads it and it is super distracting. He also said it is really helpful during check-in/introductions if people describe what they look like, what they are wearing, etc.
That was really fascinating for us to understand!
A few thoughts based on my experience and research. My company name "PersonaGrata" is a loose translation from Latin that means "Person Welcome" - a state we all desire, but may have difficulty achieving. - Is there any option to poll the?blind participants, in my experience, people who may appear to have the same disability,?interact with the world very differently and may even have different actual disabilities (i.e. someone with partial sight who may only need larger type v. someone who has no sight at all v. someone who can only read high contrast online).
- Consider the many ways in which blind people interact with visual mediums. In my experience there are text to voice web tools, they are not very efficient and miss quite a lot.?
- Another starting place is to consider the platform you are using and whether they are compliant - can you use an LMS that is compliant as a platform? Whatever platform you are accustomed to working with may also have special resources available.?
- My best guess at options would be to have a live transcription type service for any text being used.
- At a minimum, use alt-text for all visuals, I often build in time for me to narrate any visuals ... The visual here is an?"X"... it represent?"Y"... and then go on to the content for the slide
- Most of the softwares now have built-in accessibility checkers, but if you don't have expertise in resolving the issues the accessibility checkers find, this may or may not be helpful.
- Here is more about experiences for the widest margins of inclusion.
A thought regarding what I know about critical disability theory and the disability communities I have been exposed to, the term special needs can be a loaded term. The principle is that people are not disabled, the communities in which we live and work present unnecessary dis-abling barriers. That is to say, the folks with disabilities only have needs that are exceptional or "special" because "we all" do not live and work in environments designed to be inclusive of all people.?
Hope this is helpful. I am excited to learn more from others on this topic.
Deborah Miller, Ph.D. (candidate), M.Ed., PCC, CCDP pronouns (she/her/hers)
CEO and Founder,
PersonaGrata Consulting 647.388.8387
  
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On Mon, Jan 3, 2022 at 8:14 AM gerardo de luzenberger < xdeluz@...> wrote: Dear all. First of all let me wish you all a happy new year.
I have been requested to facilitate online a strategic planning process for a community in which there are several blind people. Starting to reflect on how to organise the process, I have realised that all of my work online relies on visuals and sight. Any experience of working with participants with special needs?
Any advice to offer on inclusive tools and software? all the best ge
Office: Via A. Volta 6 - 20121 Milano ¨C Italy
Phone: +39 3293281343 -Fax: +39 02 87151318 - Skype: gerardodeluz
xge@... - ?- 
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