An IDRC Project An Inclusive Design Research Centre Project

Quick Actions

  • Platform & Tools
    • Use reliable platforms with accessibility features (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams).
    • Ensure platforms work with screen readers, braille displays, hearing aids, and other assistive technologies.
    • Encourage the group to choose collaboration tools together and decide how they will use them to best accommodate everyone. For example, many screen reader users prefer to have the chat feature disabled in a video conference or used very sparingly so that they aren’t listening to a speaker and the chat at the same time.
    • Allow flexibility and customization so tools can work with individual needs and assistive technology.
  • Documents & Materials
    • Share all documents before the meeting in accessible formats.
    • Avoid live editing that screen readers or translation tools cannot follow or make sure to read out and describe all changes that are being made
    • Use screen sharing consistently and describe visual content for people who are blind or have low vision.
  • Speaking & Participation
    • Remind participants to say their name before speaking.
    • Make sure only one person speaks at a time; raise hands before speaking and avoid talking over others.
    • Use inclusive language.
    • Explain jargon and abbreviations.
    • Keep captions on for everyone.
    • Ask participants to mute themselves if not speaking to reduce background noise.
    • Offer ways to participate without speaking such as chat, email, shared documents.
    • Repeat questions or comments from participants for clarity.
  • Meeting Management & Inclusivity
    • Provide breaks and allow people to step away without judgment.
    • Allow anonymous feedback or a way to talk directly to the chair.
    • Share clear meeting rules so everyone knows how to take turns and ask questions.
    • Check in with quieter members to make sure they are included.
    • Offer virtual attendance for all meetings so people with mobility, transportation, or health challenges can participate.

More Information

Examples

Barriers these actions address

Inaccessible hybrid meetings

Why is this a problem?

During hybrid meetings, where some people are physically in the room and others are online, people in the room often have an advantage. If the meeting is not set up well, remote and disabled participants can miss important information or have their input overlooked.

Common problems include:

  • Poor sound, background noise, or people speaking without microphones.
  • Cameras not showing who is speaking.
  • Slides or visuals not described out loud, which is also a problem for blind and low vision people who are in the room.
  • Captions missing or incorrect.
  • People providing sign language/interpretation not visible to everyone.
  • Documents and tools that do not work with screen readers or other assistive technologies.
  • Materials shared only during the meeting, not in advance.
  • No clear system for taking turns.
  • Facilitators focusing mostly on people in the room.
  • Online contributions being missed or ignored.
  • Side conversations happening in the room that remote participants are left out of.
  • Technology delays or platform problems.

Ways to address the barrier

  • Choose accessible meeting spaces
  • Make remote/virtual/online meetings accessible
  • Plan meetings so people worldwide can join
  • Provide translation and interpretation for everyone
  • Set meeting language captions correctly
  • Use accessible hybrid meeting practices

Inaccessible virtual meetings

Why is this a problem?

Virtual meetings can create barriers if they are not planned with accessibility in mind. This makes it difficult for everyone to participate. A virtual meeting will not be able to meet all accessibility needs, but they should be set up to address the accessibility needs of the people participating.

Common problems include:

  • Materials not shared before the meeting so people have time to prepare.
  • Poor sound or no microphones.
  • No video of the speakers or poor lighting which makes lip reading impossible.
  • Slides or images not described aloud.
  • Small or hard-to-read text.
  • No captions, or captions that are wrong.
  • No sign language/interpretation.
  • No chat monitoring.
  • Chat used in such a way that it interrupts screen readers, forcing people who use screen readers to either ignore the chat or miss the content in the main meeting.
  • Documents that don’t work with screen readers or other assistive technologies.
  • Fast-paced live editing, which is not clearly described as it is happening.
  • Online tools like polls, whiteboards or chat services that are hard to use or don’t work with assistive technologies
  • Internet or platform problems, or incompatibility with assistive technologies

Ways to address the barrier

  • Check and improve accessibility
  • Make remote/virtual/online meetings accessible
  • Plan meetings so people worldwide can join
  • Set meeting language captions correctly

Lack of training and support for chairs and facilitators

Why is this a problem?

Chairs and facilitators often need help to run inclusive and accessible meetings, but support is limited. Common problems include:

  • Few resources are available on how to lead inclusively and accessibly to ensure everyone, including D/deaf and D/disabled people, can participate.
  • Little guidance is provided on managing diverse or cross-cultural groups.
  • Time and resources to manage both technical and accessibility tasks are limited.
  • Handling conflict resolution without enough training and support.
  • Knowledge of accessible technology for virtual meetings and document sharing is not common.

Ways to address the barrier

  • Choose accessible meeting spaces
  • Empower chairs and facilitators to manage conflict
  • Host onboarding meetings before committee work begins
  • Make remote/virtual/online meetings accessible
  • Provide chairs with practical support and tools for accessibility
  • Provide ongoing accessibility and inclusion training
  • Provide translation and interpretation for everyone
  • Use inclusive approaches for decision-making

Limited meeting times and time zone exclusion

Why is this a problem?

Meetings are often scheduled based on North American or European work hours. This limits participation and excludes voices from many regions. People in Asia, Oceania, Africa, and other places may be unable to attend. Differences in Daylight Savings Time can make this worse when meeting times shift and are inconsistent.

Ways to address the barrier

  • Make remote/virtual/online meetings accessible
  • Plan meetings so people worldwide can join