Understanding Accessibility: A Digital Journey

We cannot stress enough the importance of creating accessible digital spaces. Accessibility emphasizes that everyone should have equal access and ease of use. It is a commitment to ensuring that everyone, irrespective of their abilities, can access and interact with the digital space.

I have been learning a lot about making websites more accessible. I would like to share my experience in this journey.

My Experience with Accessibility

While working on a website’s design and content, I stumbled upon a glaring oversight. Many parts of the website did not adhere to the WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) standards for color contrast. While this seemed like a minor detail, for users with color vision deficiencies, it was a significant barrier. Recognizing the gravity of this issue, I immediately reached out to the design team. With collaborative efforts, we were able to overhaul the website’s color palette. Our main aim was straightforward. We wanted to make sure that every single piece of information, each button, and all the links on the website were easy to read and tell apart. This was important for people with difficulties seeing certain colors, thus improving readability.

Identifying Common Accessibility Issues

While color contrast was the issue at hand in my experience, there are a whole lot of other digital accessibility challenges. Here are some that I can think of;

• Pictures Without Descriptions (Alt text): Some people rely on screen readers. If pictures don’t have descriptions, these people won’t know what’s in them.
• Keyboard Navigation: Some people can’t use a mouse and use keyboards instead. Websites should work well for them too.
• Videos Without Captions: People who can’t hear need words on the screen or a description of the sounds in videos.
• Font size change: Some people need bigger text to read. Websites should let them change the font sizes.

Improving Accessibility: Steps Forward

To fix these problems, here’s what we can do:

• Regular Website Reviews: Use tools to find problems and fix them.
• Ask Users: Talk to people with disabilities and ask what problems they face.
• Inclusive Design: When making a website, think about all users from the start.

Conclusion

Digital accessibility is a continuous journey of learning, understanding, and implementing. It Is about recognizing and ensuring that digital spaces are welcoming to all. My experience with color contrast was one step. there is a whole lot more to explore and achieve.