At the Bay Area Makeathon last year, Google.org convened technologists and designers at TechShop in San Francisco, California, for 72 hours of writing code and designing prototypes for people with disabilities. The charitable arm of the tech giant, which invests in tech entrepreneurs solving problems, focused its 2015 Google Impact Challenge on solutions for the 1 billion people living with a disability.
Benetech, a nonprofit technology company focused on technology for social good, received a Google.org seed grant to devise technology for a human rights information platform. Its programs extend from human rights to global literacy, like an online library of accessible books reaching 375,000 people with disabilities in over 50 countries. Devex spoke with Benetech president Betsy Beaumon about her mission to leverage technology in order to develop solutions for people with unmet needs. Here are the highlights of the conversation:
You are known for coining the phrase “born accessible.” Can you expand on how global development professionals should account for people with disabilities in their work?
About the author
Catherine Cheneycatherinecheney
Catherine Cheney is the Senior Editor for Special Coverage at Devex. She leads the editorial vision of Devex’s news events and editorial coverage of key moments on the global development calendar. Catherine joined Devex as a reporter, focusing on technology and innovation in making progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Prior to joining Devex, Catherine earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Yale University, and worked as a web producer for POLITICO, a reporter for World Politics Review, and special projects editor at NationSwell. She has reported domestically and internationally for outlets including The Atlantic and the Washington Post. Catherine also works for the Solutions Journalism Network, a non profit organization that supports journalists and news organizations to report on responses to problems.
