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
Be flexible with meeting time and timelines
Action for Facilitating , Preparing for committees , and Organizing
Choose accessible meeting spaces
Action for Physical spaces
Make online meetings accessible
Action for Organizing and Technology
Manage access conflicts
Action for Facilitating , Organizing , Preparing for committees , and Workload
Plan meetings so people worldwide can join
Action for Organizing
Provide translation and interpretation for everyone
Action for Language and Organizing
Set meeting language captions correctly
Action for Organizing
Use accessible hybrid meeting practices
Action for Organizing