Universal Design: Improving accessibility outcomes through universal design.
A talk for EmberFest 2022 by Melanie Sumner
A presentation at EmberFest in September 2022 in Paris, France by Melanie Sumner
A talk for EmberFest 2022 by Melanie Sumner
Melanie Sumner, Senior Software Engineer at HashiCorp, Design Systems Team On social media as @a11yMel
I want to thank HashiCorp for supporting Ember by sponsoring my travel to this conference. Now if you were like me, you are thinking “ok the graphics are cool but what does HashiCorp actually do? So, Super quick TL;DR time.
HashiCorp products fall into four categories: Infrastructure: Automate provisioning, compliance, and management of cloud infrastructure using a common workflow. Packer (machine imaging), Terraform (Infrastructure as code) Security: Adopt a modern security posture across all your infrastructure to protect customer data and critical systems. Vault (identity-based security), Boundary (secure remote access) Networking: Securely connect applications running in any environment. Consul (multi-cloud service networking) Applications: Automate provisioning, compliance, and management of cloud infrastructure using a common workflow. Nomad (workload orchestration), Waypoint (app deployment workflows), Vagrant (environment workflows) Finally, we’re working to bring all of these things together in the HashiCorp Cloud Platform, and that’s a work in progress.
And we’re working to unify these products into a single platform under the HashiCorp Cloud Platform. Our initial targets are packer, consul, vault and terraform, but we plan to provide a unified platform for all of our products.
And of course, you can see that a lot of HashiCorp products have roots in open source by visiting their GitHub org page.
You’ll hear references to A11y today and just in case this is your first time, the word is “accessibility” is often shortened to a-eleven-y because there are 11 letters between the A and Y in the word Accessibility. @a11yMel
There are four sections in this talk.
First, we’ll talk through a brief(ish) history of Universal Design.
Next, we’ll look at the principles of Universal Design and how they relate to accessibility
Then I’ll look at some possibilities for Universal Design in Tech, and what that might look like.
And finally, I’ll give you seven ideas for things you can do now, because actionable lists are always useful!
“The architect does not start with the presumption that people with disabilities are abnormal, are peculiar and different, and that, in order to make buildings accessible to them, they should be packaged together and then, with a set of special-for-the-disabled accessibility standards, have their requirements presented in top-down mode as add-ons to unspecified normal provision.” – Selwyn Goldsmith, 1963
“Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.” – Ronald Mace, 1973 @a11yMel
2012 STUDY Classroom design features can enhance or set back a student’s academic progress by up to 25 percent during the course of a year.
Along these transitions for the layout of the classroom, Universal Design was adapted for the learning curriculum itself.
In the 80’s, educators started to realize that they could use some of the concepts that had been developed by architects over the last 20 years, and provide improved experiences for all different kinds of learners in the classroom. Universal Design in Learning focuses on the areas of action, engagement, and representation- that is, ensuring each different learner persona is provided for.
Sound familiar?
1.Identify Desired Results 2.Determine Acceptable Evidence 3.Plan Experience
While countries across the globe are still making progress on defining digital accessibility rights, there are a surprising number of countries that already have
100+ countries have laws directly related to recognizing the rights and responsibilities of people with disabilities.
Many of these countries also have implemented or are implementing regulations related to building design.
Fewer countries have legislation related to digital accessibility but the number continues to rise.
1963 Architect introduces the “cut curb” design.
1973 Architect introduces legislation to mandate accessibility access.
1984 Educators develop universal design for learning.
1990’s Legislature addresses disability rights with ADA, UN Standards, and more.
We’ve seen some concrete examples of Universal Design in action, but other industries are still making progress. Let’s look at industries that are creating adaptive design (but not necessarily universal design).
Unit more recently, there were only a few companies making adaptive clothing, many were more concerned with functionality, and they failed to consider the overall aesthetics. It was widely, and incorrectly, accepted that you could have functional clothing or you could have beautiful, stylish clothing, but not both.
You’ll often find that velcro closures, magnetic buttons, side openings, step-in options, easy access points and sensory-friendly materials are used in these garments.
This is an image of traditional japanese garment that has been adapted for users in wheelchairs by making the sleeves removable. In this way, the wearer can participate in ceremonies while not getting their sleeves caught in the wheels on the way.
I bet it would also work out pretty great if you were a person who frequently got really hot and just wanted to wear something stylish and sleeveless.
The principles of adaptable fashion, as developed by fashion consultant Stephanie Thomas in 2004.
Her company, cur-eight-able, helps design adaptable clothes for users with disabilities.
These clothes look pretty bog standard, but small details like pop buttons or zippers at the ankles make them easier for some folks to use.
Rebirth Garments is a shop that sells face masks that are useful for when you need to be able to lip read, or wish to have different ways to fasten your face mask.
Oxo pop top canisters Tilting bathroom mirror for users of all heights (https://www.potterybarn.com/shop/new/furniture+accessible-home/primarycategoryname-m-department-ff0010181f-1) Adjustable height desks Flexible chairs (Target) - what if we accommodated children who can’t sit still instead of punishing them? Weighted blankets (https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home-products/blanket-reviews/a24734005/best-weighted-blankets/) Alexa and similar devices (stories: https://www.amazon.com/b/ref=ods_afe_hop_msty?node=21161213011)
The design is useful and marketable to people with diverse abilities. For example, a counter space or desk surface may be raised or lowered to accommodate users of varying height, or an individual who uses a wheelchair.
The design accommodates a wide range of individual preferences and abilities. For example, a captioned video will allow people to choose to listen or to read in order to understand content. This not only provides access to individuals with hearing impairments but also accommodates those who would rather not use sound or who comprehend better through reading.
“Overcome the social conditioning to do things one way, when a different way includes others.” – Hirabayashi Kei
They are called “heuristics” because they are broad rules of thumb and not specific usability guidelines.
So we have the Universal Design principle of equitable use And we have the Design Heuristic of Match between the system and the real world And there are WCAG Success Criteria that relate to these concepts as well!
03 Universal Design in Tech @a11yMel
UD Principles Heuristics Success Criteria
1963 Architect introduces the “cut curb” design. 1973 Architect introduces legislation to mandate accessibility access. 1984 Educators develop universal design for learning. 1990’s Legislature addresses disability rights with ADA, UN Standards, and more. Today Technologists innovate for the modern web.
Seven things you can do now
Information that provides help to users must be consistently placed.
A keyboard focus indicator should be clearly visible and discernible.
Provide multiple ways for a user to authenticate.
➢ Do not prohibit copy/paste or password managers ➢ “Identify all the images of cats” ➢ Login links instead of username/password entry ➢ Options! Let the user pick what method best suits them from a few different (secure!) options.
Improve target sizes.
love 44x44. but smaller sizes can pass too if they have spacing.
Review redundant entry requirements.
➢ Allow the user to change the ID, but defaults to the previously entered one. ➢ Allow the user to confirm that the billing address and delivery address are the same address. ➢ Pre-fill the search input with the previously entered search term in the same process.
Be proactive about a11y at work.
Share https://pleasefunda11y.com
Use the automation we already have.
Visit https://a11y-automation.dev to see the different automation tools available
I think universal design is good for business because not only does it increases our potential customer reach, it can increase our active use for existing customers. So it’s good for business.
but it’s great for users. And that’s what we’re after. That’s why we’re here. To do what it takes to build experiences that include everyone.
And of course you’ve heard me say this one before, but I’ll say it again. You do not require permission to create accessible code. It is a facet of your craft. It is a marker of your knowledge and expertise.
Reach out with any questions!
