When: 22/01/2009 - 10:00 till 16:00
Where: Microsoft, Cardinal Place, 100 Victoria Street, London
What:
Our Shared Opportunity
Microsoft and HiSoftware believe there is now the opportunity and the imperative to make real progress toward a more inclusive society through an accessible Web.
The Riga Ministerial Declaration of June 11, 2006 emphasizes that “only 3% of public Web sites surveyed comply with the minimum Web accessibility standards and guidelines, hindering access to Web content and services for people with disabilities who comprise some 15% of the EU population.” The declaration sets an ambitious policy goal: 100% of public Web sites to be accessible by 2010. This objective was reiterated in December 2008.
The tools and strategies to address this problem exist which means it is possible to make significant and rapid improvement with reasonable effort and expense. Web accessibility can be an area of sincere focus for organizations of all types and sizes today. Education and training represent some of the biggest obstacles for public agencies and private sector enterprises to create accessible Web sites – simply knowing what to do and how to do it.
Microsoft and HiSoftware invite you to join a small group of web accessibility practitioners, experts, and thought leaders including representatives from HM Revenue & Customs, Lloyds TSB and AbilityNet to discuss the challenges, business imperatives and practical strategies for building a more accessible web. In addition to exploring the current state of web accessibility, this event will cover the following topics:
- How do you create a holistic approach to accessibility within your organization? Why is it critical?
- What are some of the fundamental components that should be included for a successful long term web accessibility strategy? How can those components be adapted to different types of organizations?
- What is success and how do you measure it?
The Agenda: The event will begin with a panel discussion exploring the creation of a process based approach to implementing a Web Accessibility Program. This discussion will include experts from Non-Government Organizations and Enterprise Organizations (including Small Businesses) as well as Public and Private sector Web accessibility leads, and other key stakeholders. The morning session will continue with an interactive dialogue with the entire audience to better understand the key components for creating a repeatable process for their accessibility work.
The afternoon sessions will focus on specific solutions, strategies, case studies and best practices that Microsoft, industry and the marketplace are providing to assist partners and customers address accessibility within their Internet and Intranet environments.
The Participants: By invitation only. In order to make this the most productive possible event, the participants will have a substantive knowledge of web accessibility and represent a cross section of perspectives and experiences – enterprises, NGOs, Governments, etc.
RSVP: You can register your place at this event by clicking the website link or calling the number below.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/InviteOnly.aspx?EventID=47-A6-9F-F5-3D-4E-D6-39-00-8B-FA-09-A8-6C-81-16&Culture=en-GB
Enter Invitation code: 82E5EE
Or telephone 0870 166 6680 quoting reference 9435.
Please note any accommodations that may be necessary for your participation. Also, please note that a primary objective of this event will be to create a document capturing the richness of the discussion – including key challenges and best practice solutions for web accessibility. The event will be recorded for that purpose. However, no attribution for any statements will be given to any participant without their permission. All participants will receive a copy of the output document.