Augmentative communication between parents and children with autism, an updatable resource for accessible facilities in public spaces, keyword searches that are automatically adapted to accommodate a user, and a device for teaching smartphone technologies to people with disabilities were the four apps that earned first prize in the 2012 Vodafone Foundation Smart Accessibility awards, announced [...]
A combination of economic growth and aging workforce should lead to 100,000 job openings in Massachusetts’ manufacturing operations over the next decade, according to a new report. This article in the December 2 edition of the Gloucester Daily Times reports on the first meeting of a group of Massachusetts executives, experts, and officials called the [...]
Last week’s 12-12-12 concert in New York City’s Madison Square Garden was the latest effort to help recovery efforts on the eastern seaboard in the wake of Superstorm Sandy. Reuters reported that pre-show ticket sales and sponsorships had raised $32 million even before a single note was played by Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Alicia Keys, [...]
If you were offered an investment opportunity that earned more than three times the initial value, wouldn’t you consider that a good risk? According to a government official in Nevada, that’s the ROI that taxpayers in his state can expect when businesses hire people with disabilities. Actually, the exact amount is a $3.67 return for [...]
Reasons why 38 U.S. Senators, all Republicans, united to ensure the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) failed to achieve the necessary two-thirds majority required to ratify international treaties were plentiful in the wake of Tuesday’s vote. None of them, however, seemed to speak to the interests of the individuals [...]
The AllAfrica.com website provides original reporting as well as aggregated content from over 130 news organizations across the continent, making it a perfect one-stop shop resource to continue this week’s globetrotting in observation of the United Nations’ 20th International Day of Persons with Disabilities. The most positive story comes from South Africa. Gabi Khumalo of [...]
While Indian cities like Bangalore are working toward greater accommodation of persons with disabilities in its public services and commercial spaces, the neighboring country of Pakistan continues to struggle with the initial steps for removing barriers of inclusion and accessibility. One advocate in the southeast Asian country says the first step toward achieving these goals [...]
A quick scan of Wikipedia’s entry for the Indian city of Bangalore, and one finds a lot of similarities to Boston, Massachusetts. Both are capitals of their respective states and have long histories that intertwine with its people’s struggle for independence from the British empire. Some of the each country’s best-known colleges and research institutions [...]
The world is observing International Day of Persons with Disabilities for the 20th year today. The theme for 2012 is “Removing barriers to create an inclusive and accessible society for all,” and the background material found on the United Nations Enable website makes explicit that these barriers can be physical, technological, political, and societal; all [...]
Two projects launched earlier this year at the University of Wisconsin-Manitowoc are making strides toward integrated employment for people with disabilities in this city found on the shores of Lake Michigan. Reporter Cindy Hodgson had separate stories published in last Sunday’s edition of the Manitowoc Herald-Times Reporter, examining how each program is providing career training [...]