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TecAccess Delivers Keynote Accessibility Address in Tunisia
For immediate release
(804) 749-8646
info@tecaccess.net
Rockville, VA - April 5, 2007-- Founder and President of TecAccess, Ms. Debra Ruh, will deliver the opening keynote address at the 1st International Conference on Information and Communication Technology & Accessibility
on April 12-14, 2007, in Hammamet, Tunisia. The conference is organized by The Tunisian Association for the Development of Digital Technology and Human Resources (ATTR) and the Research Unit of Technologies of Information and Communication (UTIC) at the University of Tunis under the high patronage of Mrs. Leila Ben Ali, First Lady of Tunisia.
The cross-disciplinary conference will provide an outstanding opportunity for users, accessibility experts, graphic designers, researchers and technologists to address new trends and challenges, emerging technologies and progress in standards on topics relevant to today´s fast moving areas of Information and Communication Technologies. The highly anticipated event will witness the top international leaders in accessibility discussing how their combined efforts can support and improve global accessibility standards by encouraging participation from many disciplines.
Debra Ruh´s keynote address will discuss Accessible Technology: New Directions, New Possibilities. Sharing the keynote podium with Debra will be Shadi Abou-Zahra, Web Accessibility Specialist from the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative, Austria, who will discuss Web Accessibility - It´s Not Magic, it´s Art; Dr. Kinshuk, Professor and Director, School of Computing and Information Systems, Athabasca University, Canada, will address Opening Web-Based Learning to a Larger Student Community; and Dominique Burger, Association BrailleNet, France, will discuss Make it Accessible, They Say.
As an internationally recognized keynote speaker on the topic of accessibility, Ruh recently presented before members of the European Union in Brussels. In addition, she is a long-time advocate for the rights and inclusion of people with disabilities, and is also the Founder and President of TecAccess, a world-renown expert in Section 254, Section 508, E&IT (electronic and information technology) accessibility solutions, and W3C Standards. Ruh and her company, TecAccess, not only advocate and believe in accessibility for people with disabilities, but are also an employer of people with disabilities; currently employing over 50 associates with a varying degree of disabilities, including disabled veterans.
"At TecAccess," says Debra, "our associates demonstrate first hand the power of technology when it is made available to all members of our society. Since many of our associates are people with disabilities, they live daily with the struggles to fully access technology. Therefore, our associates are strong believers in universal design - and are the best possible leaders in this effort, each day they demonstrate to our clients that accessibility and usability need to be thought of in tandem because a product, service or website is not truly accessible until it is usable by everyone-the means computer users with and without disabilities."
This sentiment, which is shared by the organizers of the conference, emphasizes that in addition to "accessibility," the world should always consider of "usability" and pedagogical methodologies to transfer knowledge and competence.
To understand this impact, experts around the globe routinely point to the World Health Organization, and recent estimates which now demonstrate that between 750 million and 1 billion of the world´s 6 billion people have a speech, vision, mobility, hearing or cognitive impairment. Given the broad implications that accessibility and usability have on society in general, and the global importance of IT and accessibility, a common understanding and knowledge is a necessity. Without global standards and a harmonized approach to procuring information technology, different technical standards cannot be adopted.
By organizing this conference in Tunisia, which was the host of the World Summit of the Information Society 2005 and home to the research Unit UTIC, the cooperating partners would like to draw the attention to all communities toward the importance of accessibility.
The exciting variety of topics to be discussed during the conference are expected to cover state-of-the-art technologies, theoretical concepts, standards, products implementation, ongoing research projects and innovative applications of the Information and Communication Technologies and accessibility. Some of the topics of interest are:
- Accessibility Guidelines
- Accessibility Standards
- Web Accessibility
- End User Tools for Accessibility
- Improving Computer Access for Handicapped Users
- Human Computer Interfaces for Handicapped Persons
- Ergonomics
- Assistive Technology
- Technology Design for People with Multiple Impairments
- E-learning and Accessibility
- E-learning Tools and Environments for Handicapped Users
- Accessibility and Usability
- Adaptive Applications
- Software Engineering for Accessibility
- Educational Software for the Children
- Biomodeling and Human Computer Interaction
Closing the first annual international event will be Khadija Ghariani, the Honourable Secretary of State to the Minister of Communication Technologies, in charge of Information Technology, Internet and Free Software.
For more information about the 1st International Conference on Information and Communication Technology & Accessibility.
About TecAccess
TecAccess is the most awarded risk management and accessibility consultancy in the world. TecAccess turns potential risks into a marketplace advantage through leading accessibility services and products. With a focus on Section 508 compliance, TecAccess makes Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) accessible to the world´s largest and fastest growing demographic - people with disabilities. TecAccess is a certified Woman-Owned and SBA certified 8(a) and Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB).
For further information about TecAccess, please call: (804) 749-8646, e-mail info@tecaccess.net, or visit our website at www.TecAccess.net.
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