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Accessibility WG SurveyFinal Report: Thursday, June 11, 2015

Compiled from answers to the Survey Monkey

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SUMMARY Report Date: June 12th, 2015

Total 20 Responses by the following ICANN Staff members:

• Diane Schroeder (Questions : 1-8 and 10)

Sr. Director, Administration & Talent Management• Amy Stathos ( Questions: 19,20)

Deputy General Counsel- ICANN • Nancy Lupiano (Questions 9, 11)

Director, ICANN meetings team• Chris Gift & team, (Question 12, 13, 15, 16, 17)

VP, Digital Services, Product Management• Laura Bengford (Questions 16, 17)

Senior Product Manager, Product Management• Natalie Schoer (Questions 12 and 13)

Social Media Coordinator, Communications• Chris Mondini (Questions 14,15 and 18)

VP, Stakeholder Engagement NA & GBE, GSE - Business Engagement

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Q1: Is there support at a senior level for ICANN to incorporate accessibility for persons with disabilities in its policy and processes?

Assigned to: Diane SchroederComment: When this has been raised in the past, management has been very supportive.

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Q2: If yes, at what level? Board or executive level? Is there a person at a senior level who is nominated as an Accessibility Champion? (I.e. raises accessibility issues related to policy, organizational, operational and communications programs and projects)?

Assigned to: Diane SchroederComment: There is not a person nominated as an Accessibility Champion. Board and execs have both been supportive.

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Q3: Does ICANN build in accessibility considerations into its policy-making process?Assigned to: Diane Schroeder

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Q4: Has ICANN initiated an assessment of the domain name industry’s approach to accessibility for persons with disabilities?

Assigned to: Diane Schroeder

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Q5: What policies are in place to ensure diversity of hiring, with particular attention to employment of staff for persons with disabilities?

Assigned to: Diane Schroeder

Comment: ICANN policies comply with the legal requirements in its various places of business to ensure diversity of hiring - this includes disabilities. We make any requested reasonable accommodations.

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Q6: Does staff have a working knowledge and awareness of the type of technologies, both hardware and software, used by persons with disabilities?Assigned to: Diane Schroeder

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Q7: Have staff undergone disability awareness training? If so, please specify nature, frequency, and at what stage this is provided to recently hired staff.

Assigned to: Diane Schroeder

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Q8: Are ICANN staff and community members with accessibility issues taken into account when selecting venues for ICANN meetings; global, regional, and local meetings?

Assigned to : Diane Schroeder

Comment: we always examine every opportunity for "handicapped' access and elevator access and ramp access. Braille is not something that is available in many of our regions so we depend on the appropriate "constituency" group to assist with the blind as well.

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Q9: Are there any current provisions within the ICANN’s Meetings related to accessibility issues?

Assigned to: Nancy Lupiano

Comment: Every venue that is viewed to be used for meetings is examined for "access" for physically challenged including wheelchair access, braille, and “signing" if necessary. We check elevators, wheel chair ramps, braille access at all venues. Our challenges are in regions where access for "challenged" individuals is not a priority of the venue or the architects.

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Q10: Is Constituency Travel aware of any ICANN Travellers accessibility issues and their needs?

Assigned to: Diane Schroeder

Comment: We have process for handling medical exceptions for travelers. Accessibility on site would be handled by the meetings team.

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Q11: What accommodations does ICANN make for presenters with disabilities at ICANN meetings?

Assigned to: Nancy Lupiano

Comment: We look to the planner of the session to tell us if someone is physically unable to go to a head table and we make all efforts to provide a comfortable scenario for them to present. Bring a microphone to them, stay with them to help them know when someone has a question that they want to ask ... things like that

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Q12: Are ICANN’s communications and productivity tools such as Google Sheets, webinars, web conferencing, Skype, Slack, or other software accessible for persons with disabilities?

Assigned to: Natalie Schoer Social Media Coordinator, Communications

Comment: ICANN includes Soundcloud (audio clips/podcasts) and the captioning of videos as part of the communication materials.

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Q13: What accessibility components are taken into consideration when designing communication materials?

Assigned to : Natalie Schoer

Comment: ICANN includes Soundcloud (audio clips/podcasts) and the captioning of videos as part of the communication materials.

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Q14: Does the Global Stakeholder Engagement (GSE) team make an effort to engage and outreach to disabled populations and other populations with accessibility issues?Assigned to: Christopher Mondini.

Comment: No active outreach, but GSE is a champion of At Large's efforts to highlight the challenges faced by such populations and to conduct outreach in future.

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Q15: Are there currently any GSE related provisions in place that help support persons with disabilities to participate in ICANN, such as Captioning, training of moderators to respond to accessibilities issues, ICANN Remote Hubs or fellowships?

Assigned to: Christopher Mondini

Comment: Some automated and communications features exist, but there is no active training of moderators, remote participant managers or other program deliverers (at least that I am aware of)

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Q16: Do ICANN’s websites meet W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines v. 2.0 to Level AA?

Assigned to Laura Bengford

Comment: ICANN has started to use tools to identify areas of the website that require remediation for web accessibility and completed an RFP for a vendor to assist in the process of tools, process, and implementation. More details can be found on https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2014-12-23-en

One of the goals of the initial assessment is to gain meaningful insight and baseline how ICANN is performing on web accessibility today, to understand what is required to improve, and gain a plan to execute whereby ICANN can measure improvements over a one-year timeframe. We will engage disability stakeholders to perform testing and validate our approach and perform a follow-on survey one year later, to ensure improvements are allowing disable persons to participate.

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Q17: Does ICANN specify accessibility criteria in its procurement of technology software and equipment?

Assigned to Laura Bengford

Comment: Part of the Web Accessibility assessment will include guidelines for procurement for consideration during evaluation of new systems, tools, and vendors for accessibility.

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Q18: Does ICANN senior management regularly consult with the At-Large Accessibility Working Group and the At Large Technical Taskforce on the impact of the introduction of new technologies on people with disability?

Assigned to: Chris Mondini

Comment: Chris Mondini, Chris Gift, and Laura Bengford regularly attend the At-Large Accessibility Taskforce and have included members of the taskforce in the web accessibility assessment RFP, review of conference captioning software, and other activities of the group.

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Q19: Is ICANN’s legal department proactive in identifying new legal standards, locally and internationally, pertaining to accessibility?

Assigned to : Amy Stathos

Comment: ICANN, through its legal and HR teams, are regularly involved in identifying legal standards pertaining to accessibility. ICANN legal has also worked, and continues to with the Meetings team to ensure that ICANN identifies issues relating accessibility as it relates to Public Meetings, through contract or otherwise, as applicable.

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Q20: Are there any steps, from a legal perspective that ICANN should take both to provide more adequate resources to those with disabilities, and to protect ICANN from potential liabilities?

Assigned to: Amy Stathos

Comments: In terms of providing resources for those with disabilities, ICANN is dedicated to ensuring that it complies with all laws and regulations, as applicable, and does not discriminate against those with disabilities. ICANN supports any efforts, as appropriate, to help enhance resources for those with disabilities, both for its staff members, as well as others. Further, ICANN ensures that its policies, procedures, and contracts, as applicable, contain appropriate language with respect to issues relating to those with disabilities.