digital inclusion: why is it important for local government?

Digital InclusionWhy is it important for local government?

Disability is the process which happens when one group of people create barriers by designing a world only for their way of living, taking no account of the impairments other people have.

Print disability(New Zealand Copyright Act 1994)

a person has a print disability if he or she— (a) Is blind; or (b) Suffers severe impairment of his or her

sight; or (c) Is unable to hold or manipulate books; or (d) Is unable to focus or move his or her eyes;

or (e) Suffers a handicap with respect to visual

perception.

Inclusion builds participation

• Social and cultural

• Education including life-long learning

• Meaningful employment and business interactions

2006 Census: median income vs highest qualification received

Inclusive communications

• Maximise audience, reduce costs• Control accuracy of information and

consistency of branding• Social responsibility – build internal and

external confidence

e-Government

• New Zealand Government Web Standards and Recommendations v1.0 http://www.e.govt.nz/

• Strong focus on inclusive design

• Linked with cross-government Digital Strategy: http://www.digitalstrategy.govt.nz

Disability Strategy

• Cross-government

• “a framework for removing barriers to disabled people's full participation in society”

• Government departments report annually on progress towards inclusion

UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

… States Parties shall take appropriate measures to ensure to persons with disabilities access, on an equal basis with others, … to information and communications, including information and communications technologies and systems …

From Article 9, Accessibility

Human Rights Act 1993

• It is unlawful to discriminate on the basis of disability in any of the prohibited areas of public life.

• Reasonable accommodation. If a person requires special services or facilities and it is not reasonable to provide these, then the provider or employer need not provide them.

Web standards

• HTML is designed for universal access

• “The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect.”- Tim Berners-Lee, director of the Word Wide Web Consortium and inventor of the World Wide Web.

Accessible = searchable

Accessible = usable

• “The results support accessible design as universal design, of benefit to all users, independent of disability.”

- The Benefit of Accessible Design for Able-Bodied Users of the World Wide Web, http://atri.misericordia.edu/Papers/Web_Accessibility.php

Accessible = flexible

Accessible = flexible

Why is digital inclusion important?

• Moral: it’s the right thing to do

• Socio-economic: it increases participation

• Professional: it allows consistent communications with a broader audience

• Legal: it’s required

• Technical: it’s a better way of doing things