First ever Hello A11Y virtual event on 21 May, get the details here!

As part of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, a virtual conference called Hello A11Y will be held on 21 May. This is an effort by accessibility evangelist Raghavendra Peri to nurture an accessibility culture in India.

Building and nurturing an accessibility community in India has been a cherished dream for Raghavendra Peri, a Bengaluru-based Digital Accessibility Consultant for Deque Systems.

That dream will be realised on 21 May with the launch of the first ever Hello A11Y event. The conference is being held as part of the Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) and will run from 6 to 10 PM.

Now in India, accessibility is legal and the deadline also is set, the need for us to talk and walk a11y is the only best thing for businesses and society. The topics covered will be virtual realty and accessibility, inclusive artificial intelligence, automation tools and writing-friendly CSS. HelloA11Y will be a community to build and nurture the accessibility culture in India. – Raghavendra Peri, Accessibility Evangelist

Click this link to get details of the event as well as the list of speakers.

Larger goal of building an accessible eco-system

Hello A11Y is being supported by HasGeek, a platform for peer groups and discussions among tech practitioners. The company will provide audio and video support and also help mentor Peri as he organises and give structure to the community. Registration link for the event is the end of the article.

“Tech practitioners extend to not just software programmers, but also to ecosystems such as policy, research and allied fields”, says Zainab Bawa, CEO, HasGeek. “Peer groups and discussions require diverse voices because they bring new standpoints and perspectives. Accessibility is one such standpoint we need more often”, Bringing in people with disabilities will help build a more inclusive discussion. “Differently-abled people bring points of view that are not mainstream and yet important. This is why HasGeek advocates and is interested in accessibility – because resilient discussion spaces are typically diverse”.

At present Hello A11Y has no sponsors, a lack that Peri is actively seeking to fill. He hopes to make this an ongoing effort. “Going forward we will be running a monthly virtual meet for an hour and will invite experts to share their knowledge”, he adds.

“Raghavendra has been working on making accessibility part of mainstream tech conversations through his efforts with conferences such as JSFoo and ReactFoo”, adds Bawa. Hello A11Y is a larger, systematic effort to bring a group together to discuss accessibility. Bringing in more leaders and organisers from accessibility communities will help bring this critical conversation into the mainstream.

Do register here.

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• Aarogya Setu app essential, says Centre. What about accessibility, ask disability rights groups