In this Issue
1) Message Board
2)Articles
* Feeling the Beat
* Accessibility Standards Goal Behind Schedule
* Province Wrong to Make Only New buildings Accessible: Disability Group
* Thorold Urged to Make Ferry Wheelchair Accessible
* Ontario Seeks Input On Draft Accessibility Standard
* A Father's Reflection in a Time of Pain
* Amazon and e-Bay Flunk UK Retail Site Test
* Dentists Need Patience to Treat Special-Needs Patients
* Sprint's BlackBerry Was Not Developed for Persons With Disabilities(PWD)
* Help Blind People See the World
3) Accessibility For Ontarians With Disabilities Act Alliance Updates
4) Calendar of Events
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Message Board
Take Our Poll:
Do you think the Province will reach its target for the full
implementation of the AODA by 2025?
To take our Poll go to http://www.aoda.ca/?page_id=140
"Bad Eyes Design and Consulting builds industry leading, accessible
websites using today's best practices and in accordance with the W3C
standards and provides
accessibility audits. Visit them on the web at www.badeyes.com ."
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Articles
Feeling the Beat
Dear All:
Hello, my name is Jack Liang. I am a student researcher working with Dr.
Elaine Biddiss at the Bloorview Research Institute. I am designing a
device to
help people join in dance activities, especially people who have
difficulty hearing rhythms in music. I am looking for volunteers to take
part in a research
study. I want to see how feeling the musical rhythm through vibrations on
the skin helps people to dance.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/deaf_articles.php?deaf=383
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Accessibility Standards Goal Behind Schedule
Province told to move more quickly to allow broader use of public spaces
OTTAWA - The provincial government is moving ahead with creating
accessibility standards for all buildings, sidewalks, roads, and any other
man-made structure,
but the chairman of the province's largest advocacy group for people with
disabilities says the process is taking too long.
David Lepofsky, chairman of the Accessibility for Ontarians with
Disabilities Act Alliance, says members of the disabled community
understand the task is
complicated, but that if the government continues to move at its current
pace, it will fail to meet the 2005 act's goal of having the province
100-per-cent
accessible by 2025.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/all_articles.php?all=382
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Province Wrong to Make Only New buildings Accessible: Disability Group
Should retrofit old ones, too
An advocacy group for people with disabilities says that the Ontario
government is ignoring an important piece of legislation that was supposed
to make
the province's buildings more accessible.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/all_articles.php?all=384
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Thorold Urged to Make Ferry Wheelchair Accessible
Gilbert Lizotte has no problem getting on and off the Port Robinson ferry.
But the St. Catharines resident knows accessing the pontoon shuttling
people across the Welland Canal in south Thorold isn't easy for everyone,
particularly
for people using wheelchairs.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/mobility_articles.php?Mobility=385
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Ontario Seeks Input On Draft Accessibility Standard
McGuinty Government Takes Steps To Break Down Barriers For People With
Disabilities
Ontario is seeking input on the initial proposed accessible built
environment standard, which was released today for public review.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/all_articles.php?all=381
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A Father's Reflection in a Time of Pain
Cameron Smith, father of Alexandra Smith
'What kind of a province do we live in, and what kind of a society are we,
when we refuse to look through the disruptive, occasionally threatening
behaviour
of the mentally ill to see human beings urgently in need of help?'
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/health_articles.php?health=379
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Amazon and e-Bay Flunk UK Retail Site Test
The UK Web sites for Amazon and eBay were among the worst performing
retail sites of 50 tested in June by site review specialist Sitemorse. In
fact, with
Amazon coming in at 46th place and eBay at 47th, the sites couldn't do
much worse.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynewsinternational.com/?p=716
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Dentists Need Patience to Treat Special-Needs Patients
TORONTO - Judy Teper leans back in the dentist's chair, squinting against
the bright light shining in her face. A nurse asks the 39-year-old to open
her
mouth. But Judy, whose fists are clenched in her lap, locks her jaw in a
grimace.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/press/health_articles.php?health=380
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Sprint's BlackBerry Was Not Developed for Persons With Disabilities(PWD)
I am pleased to become a consumer of the BlackBerry telephone craze. I had
held onto my Sprint cell phone too long. As someone who receives more than
a
hundred e-mails daily, I watched with envy as people accessed their
e-mails on trains, buses, cars, at airports and on streets as they walk.
They were
in constant contact with their friends, clients, news organizations and
family. They could text message or call anyone they wanted at anytime from
almost
anyplace. Instant communication and productivity are a pressed button in
the palm of their hands.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynewsinternational.com/?p=712
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Help Blind People See the World
Spain -- Video from portable cameras are analysed to calculate the
distance of obstacles and predict the movements of people and cars. This
information
is then transformed and relayed to a blind person as a three-dimensional
'picture' of sound.
The concept is apparently simple and two prototypes have been successfully
tested. Laser and digital video cameras become the eyes for the blind man
and
see the objects and activity going on around him.
Read more at
http://www.accessibilitynewsinternational.com/?p=714
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Accessibility For Ontarians With Disabilities Act Alliance Updates
* Is The Ontario Government Ensuring That No Tax Dollars Are Used To
Create Barriers Against People With Disabilities?
Posted:Saturday, July 11
http://www.aodaalliance.org/strong-effective-aoda/07082009.asp
* AODA Alliance Submits Brief To Charles Beer Recommending How To Conduct
His Independent Review Of The AODA 2005
Posted:Saturday, July 11
http://www.aodaalliance.org/strong-effective-aoda/07022009.asp
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Calendar of Events
Below is a list of upcoming events, for more details go to
http://www.accessibilitynews.ca/acnews/events/.
* City of Kawartha Lakes Aware Fair
Deadline:Saturday, October 03
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