ACB Advocacy Update

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Happy Global Accessibility Awareness Day! May 21, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update, Clark celebrates Global Accessibility Awareness Day by speaking with Jeff Bishop, ACB Board Member, ACB Information Access Committee Chair, and all around nice guy. Clark and Jeff discuss how the landscape of accessible technology has changed over the past ten years with the passage of the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA). Not only the law that re-instated audio description requirements, the CVAA fostered accessibility requirements for communications hardware and software that is enabling people who are blind to work remotely from home, participate in ACB community events, and produce the first of it’s kind, ACB Virtual Conference and Convention!
Registration for the 2020 ACB Virtual Conference and Convention opens today, May 21, for ACB members, and May 28, for the general public; to learn more visit – www.acbconvention.org.
To checkout the wide variety of ACB Community Events, visit – www.acb.org/acb-community-conference-calls.

VisionServe Alliance May 14, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update, ACB Executive Director Eric Bridges speaks with Lee Nasehi, President & CEO of VisionServe Alliance. Learn about who composes the membership of VisionServe Alliance and what role they are playing within the blind and visually impaired community.
For more information about VisionServe Alliance, visit www.visionservealliance.org.
To access a transcript of this podcast, visit: https://acb.org/acb-advocacy-update-transcript-5-14-20.

Department of Education COVID-19 Waiver Report May 07, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update, Claire Stanley and Clark Rachfal speak with ACB First Vice President Mark Richert about the COVID-19 waiver report submitted to Congress by the Department of Education. Mark, who is serving as Interim Executive Director for the Association of Education and Rehabilitation for the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) shares his thoughts on what is included in the waiver report, the impact of previous advocacy efforts to ensure these waivers do not weaken the Free Appropriate Public Education in the Least Restrictive Environment protections for all students, and the vigilance required by advocates as Congress interprets these waiver requests into legislation.
To read the letter that ACB and the American Foundation for the Blind co-authored to Congress regarding waivers from the Department of Education, please visit: https://acb.org/acb-afb-joint-letter-covid19.
To learn more about AER, please visit: https://aerbvi.org/.
More information about ACB is available at www.acb.org, and if you like this podcast, please subscribe, and write a review.

How Remote Learning is Impacting Blind and Visually Impaired Students Apr 30, 2020

Show notes

This week, Claire speaks with Penny Rosenblum from the American Foundation for the Blind about a collaborative research project being conducted to assess the impact remote learning during the COVID-19 crisis is having on blind and visually impaired students. We will all be excited to learn what findings are gleaned from the survey.
To learn more and consider completing the survey, please visit: www.accessengagement.com.
More information about ACB is available at www.acb.org, and if you like this podcast, please subscribe, and write a review.

What’s a Blind Paralympian to Do? Apr 28, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update, Clark speaks with Lex Gillette, Paralympian, World Champion, and World Record Long Jumper, and Cat Bouwkamp, Membership and Safe Sport Coordinator, U.S. Association of Blind Athletes. Lex shares how he is coping physically and mentally with the delay of the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, and Cat shares the work that USABA is doing to make fitness and exercise more accessible for everyone who is blind.
To learn more about Lex Gillette, check out: www.lexgillette.com.
To learn more about USABA’s Staying Fit While Staying Put, and United We Move initiatives, please visit: www.usaba.org.
More information about ACB is available at www.acb.org, and if you like this podcast, please subscribe, and write a review.

ACB & Be My Eyes Apr 23, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update Claire Stanley speaks with Will Butler from Be My Eyes. The two discuss what users can do with the smartphone application, and the exciting new relationship ACB and Be My Eyes launched on April 22, 2020. Listen to find out how you can take advantage of the new service!
To read the press release about the partnership, visit: https://acb.org/acb-announces-partnership-be-my-eyes

Accessible Voting and COVID-19 Apr 16, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update, Claire and Clark discuss how the pandemic and social distancing requirements are impacting the planning by states for the 2020 primary and general elections. As many states move to conduct entire elections using paper ballots and vote by mail, ACB and our members are working hard to ensure election officials offer an accessible voting alternative to vote by mail for voters with disabilities.
To read the press release and letter that ACB and more than 75 disability and civil rights organizations sent to Congress, please visit: https://acb.org/congress-must-protect-voting-rights-for-disabled-4-13-20.
To learn more about ACB, please visit: www.acb.org.

Conversation with Comcast Apr 14, 2020

Show notes

On this special edition of the Advocacy Update, take a break from binge watching to join a conversation hosted by ACB with Comcast. Join ACB’s Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs, Clark Rachfal, as he speaks with Tom Wlodkowski, Vice President of Accessibility for Comcast Communications, to learn how they are ensuring their products and services are available and accessible to as many people as possible.

To learn more about ACB, please visit: https://acb.org/.

ACB & Blind Love Apr 09, 2020

Show notes

On this episode of the ACB Advocacy Update, Claire and Clark fall head over heels for the PBS Independent Lens series, Blind Love. We discuss what is so attractive to Producer Patty Zagarella about dating while blind, and we speak with Blind Lover Joni Martinez about her quest to find Mr. Right.
Blind Love is available with audio description on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/eC7ZLLMHVvY.
To learn more about ACB, please visit: www.acb.org.

ACB Advocacy Services Committee Open Call Apr 06, 2020

Show notes

On this special edition of the Advocacy Update, Clark and Claire present on an open call of the ACB Advocacy Services Committee chaired by ACB Board Member, Jeff Thom. Clark and Claire discuss the provisions that may impact ACB members in the third COVID-19 stimulus package passed by Congress and signed into law by the President on Friday, March 27, as well as the other legislative and regulatory priorities on which ACB is actively engaged. To conclude the webinar, Clark and Claire listen to member concerns and respond to member questions. You may share advocacy-related issues with ACB by emailing: advocacy@acb.org, or by calling: 1-202-467-5081.
To learn more about upcoming ACB community events similar to this webinar, please visit: https://www.acb.org/ACB-community-conference-calls.

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