What Does Apple Really Mean by the Slogan “Access Matters”? – Apple Should Expand!

Hey everyone I am Scott Savoy hoping that you are enjoying your December.
Lots to share and give, lots to be grateful for, and so much to share.
Today, I am pleased to share our president’s weekly editorial with you and for this week Donna J. Jodhan has some insightful questions for the Apple company.
Happy weekend everyone.


A green apple whose surface is cracked and full of deep fissures.

What Does Apple Really Mean by the Slogan “Access Matters”?
by Donna J. Jodhan

I am respectfully asking the Apple company to enlighten us further! For whereas I would consider this slogan to be one that can probably give us hope, there needs to be more than this to convince persons with disabilities that Apple and other technology giants are prepared to walk the talk.

For too long we have been hearing and listening to those high profile technology companies tell us that yes! They are committed to ensuring that accessibility is important and that they are going to work to ensure that persons with disabilities are not being left behind but alas!
We are still waiting for concrete action! We continue to wait for them to develop software, hardware, apps, and websites that show us that indeed! Access matters!
We continue to wait for them to start engaging in meaningful communication! We continue to wait for them to use their influence to pressure their third party vendors to get serious when it comes to using user testers with lived experience to test and verify their products.

So when Apple tells us “access matters”, we need more than lip service! Show us that you mean it! Show us that you will take the next step and do it now instead of maybe tomorrow!
This is my call for other technology giants to do the same! Apple is not the only culprit here!
Time to get going!

Just my two cents for today.


To learn more about me as an award winning sight loss coach and advocate visit www.donnajodhan.com

 

 

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News – November 2023 – Donna rejoins the Canadian Transportation Agency

The words 'Canadian Transportation Agency' appear on a red background next to a white maple leaf filled with swirling red lines.

Donna has rejoined the Canadian Transportation Agency’s Accessibility Advisory Group as the new representative from Barrier Free Canada/Canada Sans Barrières (BFC/CSB).

She looks forward to working with this CTA advisory group to help continue bringing about changes.

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News – December 2023 – Continuing to work with Elections Canada

The Elections Canada logo.

Donna will be continuing her consultancy with Elections Canada; starting in December, she will be reviewing and evaluating materials for accessible polling stations, and in January she will be participating in a live session to discuss further.

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News – November 2023 – Working with the Leaders’ Debates Commission

An image of several people raising their hands to ask to speak, with a Canadian flag in the corner and the title 'The Leader's Debates Commission' at the bottom.

Donna has been asked to work with the Leaders’ Debates Commission to review and evaluate their accessibility plans for the Accessible Canada Act and there will be more to come.

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News – November 2023 – Another assignment from the Knowbility Group in the United States

The Knowbility logo.

Donna is excited to be working on another assignment for Knowbility!

This time it is an assignment to audit the accessibility of a number of Vimeo videos.

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News – November 2023 – The Carroll Centre’s entrepreneurial and mindset panel

On November 15th, Donna participated in the Carroll Centre’s entrepreneurial and mindset panel to share her views on being an entrepreneur.

She talked about how and why she became an entrepreneur, the importance to keep on learning, to keep thinking outside the box, and to be able to weather all kinds of seas; rough and calm.

The audience consisted of both present and past students of the Screen Reader User Tester Training (SRUTT) program.

Donna thanks Nick Corbett of the Carroll Centre for having given her this opportunity to share her ideas and perspectives.

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News – November 2023 – Working with the Canadian Air Transportation Security Agency

Donna will be working with the Canadian Air Transportation Security Agency (CATSA) to evaluate and help develop training materials for its thousands of agents across Canada.

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News – November 2023 – Joining the Google Accessibility Research Group

Donna recently accepted an invitation to join this group and is very excited to do so.

About this group:
Announce-only email group that will receive periodic emails for opportunities to participate in Google Accessibility User Research, openings in the Google Accessibility Trusted Tester Program, and occasional surveys to better understand group demographics.

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News – November 2023 – Consumer Vision magazine

A photo of the front offices of Consumer Vision. They are behind a glass wall etched with the company name, where the second letter I in "Vision" has been changed to an exclamation mark, and displays their tagline: "Facilitating understanding."

Donna was featured in the November issue of Consumer Vision magazine. Donna thanks her friend and business associate Bob Branco for featuring her.

You can find the November issue at the Consumer Vision magazine website: www.consumervisionmagazine.com

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The WalMart Woes – Help Make the Holidays More Pleasant!

Hey everyone and welcome to December!
I’m Christian Robicheau and I am definitely in the holiday mood!
And today, our president Donna J. Jodhan has a very suitable editorial to share with you.
It is insightful and contains a call to those big stores!
Enjoy your weekend!


An empty blue and yellow self-checkout kiosk with a magazine rack on the right-hand side.The WalMart Woes
by Donna J. Jodhan

And with the holiday season fast approaching I am hoping that something drastic will be done to help those consumers such as seniors, persons with disabilities, and those who are unable to pack their own goods when they go shopping at not just WalMart but all of those other large entities to pack their goods.

I have tried very hard to understand the self check out reasoning and logic but truth be told I am having great trouble doing so and my concerns only continue to increase.

With the advent of those self check out kiosks, seniors, persons with disabilities, and so many others continue to be challenged when they go shopping. For me as a vision impaired person, I am practically unable to use these kiosks if a sighted friend does not accompany me and when I am able to find a cash register at WalMart then guess what?
The casher simply takes care of business by cashing my goods and does not even make a single attempt to help me pack my goods. They just sit there on their chair, cashes my goods, tells me the amount that I owe, then sits there waiting for me to pay up.
It may not be their job to help me but in the past we had cashers who were always willing and ready to pack goods for those of us who could not do it for ourselves

So what’s missing here? Has it now become a part of society where all that companies care about is to fill their tills with our money? No regard for service and no regard for helping those of us who have difficulty serving ourselves?
I respectfully submit that self check outs are nothing but a menace to society. They take away my independence as a vision impaired person to carry out my shopping independently and with dignity.
If I am unable to find sighted assistance to accompany me on my shopping trips then I might as well stay home.
If I decide to use a casher to cash my goods then I should not expect them for the most part to help me!
So where does this leave me as a Human Being?
Out in the cold and once more I and my community and others in similar positions have been sadly left out and forgotten.

I am calling on WalMart and others to please reconsider the way you do business!
Think of a rapidly aging population and consumer base and think of those hundreds of thousands of employees who continue to lose their jobs because of those self check out kiosks.


To learn more about me as an award winning sight loss coach and advocate visit www.donnajodhan.com

 

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