Are You Missing the D in DEI?

Welcome to Making Work Accessible! This biweekly newsletter brings you content on accessibility at work - exploring practices in learning and development and human resources - from blog posts to webinars to social media sharables and more.

In this edition, I've got a new magazine article published, two new presentations to share, and a few thoughts from the blog. If you're new here or just returning, welcome!

People Excellence Magazine

I wrote an article recently for the Workplace in Action? People Excellence Magazine.

In the inaugural edition of People Excellence, we celebrate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in the workplace, showcasing the initiatives and commitment of our clients toward building inclusive environments.

I've included a few excerpts from my article, "Are You Missing the 'D' in DEI?" here:

People with disabilities are the world’s largest and fastest-growing minority group. Anyone can join this group at any time – through accident, illness, or simply by aging. Globally, over 1 billion people live with disabilities, representing a significant percentage of the population – over 25% in some countries. Despite these numbers, disability remains a neglected dimension in the broader DEI conversation. This exclusion creates a distorted picture of inclusion, leaving a large segment of the population feeling marginalized and hindering progress towards a truly equitable society.

It’s important to recognize that disability does not exist in a vacuum. By understanding how it intersects with other aspects of DEI, we can create more comprehensive and effective inclusion strategies. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are essential for building a just and thriving society. Integrating disability into the heart of DEI initiatives is not just a matter of political correctness, it’s a matter of ensuring that everyone has the chance to participate and contribute. By actively including disability in DEI conversations and actions, we unlock the full potential of a diverse and inclusive society.

I hope you'll read the rest of my article on my blog, and check out the full magazine for a variety of perspectives.

Graduation Day!

Take a moment, if you can, to look around you. Notice the three people closest to you. It’s likely that one of the four of you is living with a disability. This isn’t just a statistic—it’s a reality that affects how we build our communities and workplaces to be inclusive and accessible to everyone.

Today, we are fortunate to have Britne Jenke with us, an expert in accessibility training and consulting. As someone who navigates the world informed by her own experiences with disability, Britne brings invaluable insights that challenge conventional views on disability etiquette.

In her talk, ‘A Crash Course in Disability Etiquette,’ Britne will transform your understanding of what it means to be truly inclusive. You’ll learn not just the ‘rules’ but the real-life applications of creating respectful and welcoming environments for everyone. Get ready to change the way you think about and interact with the world around you.

Please join me in welcoming an inspiring trainer, consultant, and advocate—Britne Jenke!

At our National Speakers Association - Las Vegas Chapter Speaker's Showcase, I had the opportunity to present my new mini-keynote, "A Crash Course in Disability Etiquette." The edited recording is coming soon, but in the meantime, I’ve provided a rough transcript of my talk on my blog.

The entire showcase was incredible! We heard so many experts sharing their wisdom across different topics and industries, and I guarantee everyone in the audience left the day having learned something new.

Writing for Accessible Learning

I had the pleasure of filling in to cover a last-minute cancellation and presented a new session at this year's Accessibility Summer Camp. "Writing for Accessible Learning: ALT Text, Captions, Transcripts, and Beyond!" shares some of the great information from my recent blog series on Writing for Accessibility - in a fun and interactive way! This session provides some great resources (as always) as well as practice activities for writing better ALT Text and Captions.

More on Accessible Writing: Fancy Fonts

Speaking of that blog series on Writing for Accessibility - we're still not done!

I had a great conversation with my network lately - what is it with those fancy fonts?

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Content creators of all sorts want the ability to format text differently, for emphasis and clarity. So, understandably, people use "fancy font" generators, like I did to get the text above. There's no other way to make text bold on social media, right?

Read the rest of the blog post to find out!

July is Disability Pride Month

I have several openings in my calendar for July if you're looking for a speaker or facilitator for a topic on Disability Pride. As a person with multiple disabilities and multiple certifications, I can bring experience and expertise on Disability Inclusion, Examining Ableism, Accessibility at Work, and more.

Want me to add your organization to my upcoming events list? Get in touch!

Share Your Thoughts!

I'm trying out a new tool for collecting quick testimonials called Senja . Have you attended one of my sessions this year? I'd love to hear your thoughts! It should take you less than a minute.

I think that's about all for this edition! If you just can't wait for the next newsletter, you can catch posts as they come out by following Inclusive Pixelation on LinkedIn or subscribing to my blog at https://inclusivepixel.com/blog/ - until next time!