Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) is a yearly event that aims to raise awareness about the importance of digital inclusion and accessibility for people with disabilities. It is also a way for people to get involved in conversations about this issue. 

Despite the increasing number of people using digital platforms, there are still many barriers that can prevent folks from fully utilizing them. It is common for people with disabilities to experience issues when navigating through a website, a learning management system, an application, a document, and more. 

Disability challenges affect 20% of the world’s population, manifesting as visual, hearing, motor, and/or cognitive issues. According to GAAD, the most common digital accessibility failures are caused by low contrast text, missing alt-text, empty hyperlinks, missing form labels, empty buttons, and missing document language. 

To make the world more inclusive, we need to raise awareness about the importance of digital accessibility and education, making it easier for people with disabilities to consume digital information. 

Before you start a project, make sure that you thoroughly consider the various aspects of your project to ensure that it’s designed to meet the needs of people with disabilities. One of the essential factors you should consider when implementing an accessible strategy is ensuring that you have an inclusive approach. 

All of us can play a vital role in increasing awareness about the importance of digital accessibility. A simple change in the design of a document can help you stand out from the crowd and help support digital accessibility. 

At Chapman University, we have access to various resources to support digital accessibility. Click on the links below to learn more: 

To explore more about digital accessibility tools at Chapman University, visit our Accessibility page.

 

Thank you, 

Chapman University Information Systems & Technology 

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