Overview

This workshop, led by the Royal Society, the United Kingdom’s national scientific academy, offers a unique opportunity for assistive technology scientists and engineers to engage in collaborative policy influencing. Participants will explore key findings and recommendations from a forthcoming report on digital assistive technology (DigAT) policy, contributing their expertise to shape actionable policy strategies, at both international and localised scales, for advancing accessibility.

Project Description

The project underpinning this workshop assesses the role of data and digital assistive technologies in meeting the needs of individuals living with disabilities or functional limitations. Led by the Royal Society, in collaboration with leading researchers and practitioners in the field, the project delves into the complexities of the DigAT landscape, focusing on emerging technologies and policy implications.

Key themes include:

• User-Centred Research: A comprehensive investigation into the experiences, challenges, and preferences of disabled individuals using technology in the UK, drawing from commissioned mixed methods research by the Research Institute for Disabled Consumers.

• Policy for Inclusive Innovation: Examination of policy challenges and opportunities in the DigAT landscape, including research funding, regulatory frameworks, accessibility standards, and data governance through four country case studies, completed by researchers from the Cambridge Judge Business School Digital Technology Policy Programme.

• Data-driven solutions and data ‘footprints of exclusion’: Consideration of available data (and data gaps) related to disabled individuals and its utility for informing the development and implementation of DigAT. Conversely, we also examine the potential for leveraging small datasets (where populations are underrepresented) for inclusive technology development, research carried out in collaboration with the Small Data Collaborative Research Institute.

• Transferrable learnings from adjacent technology sectors and innovators: use cases detailing the contributions of gaming, travel and tourism, and arts and culture technologies.

• Technology transience: Analysis of market challenges and technology transience in DigAT, including the obsolescence and outdatedness of technologies, highlighting the need for solutions that are sustainable, updatable, and future-proof.

Workshop format (90 minutes)

Welcome and Introduction by Royal Society Representatives (5 minutes): Representatives from the Royal Society will provide an overview of the organisation's commitment to promoting science and innovation for the benefit of society. They will introduce the workshop objectives and set the stage for collaborative discussions.

Presentation of Key Findings (20 minutes): Royal Society delegates will present key findings from the forthcoming report on DigAT policy, drawing on insights from original research, learnings from industry, and policy landscape. They will highlight opportunities and challenges in DigAT, setting the context for further discussions.

Participant Roundtable (30 minutes): Participants are invited to ask questions and share their perspectives on the research findings, recommendations, and implications for digital assistive technology policy. Facilitators will ask participants to feed back on the language, actors and implications of findings and recommendations, as well as potential communications activities and further engagement with the DigAT science sector.

Synthesis and Discussion (30 minutes): Facilitators will lead a synthesis session to distil key insights and emerging themes from the roundtable discussions. Participants will have the opportunity to share their perspectives and contribute to the development of actionable policy recommendations. Engagement will be interactive and multimedia to enhance accessibility (eg Miro board, sticky notes).

Conclusion and next steps (5 minutes): Royal Society delegates to share their appreciation and next steps. Participants, should they agree, will be acknowledged as workshop contributors in the final report. No names or attributions will be used in any content of any report.

This workshop informs the Royal Society's Digital Assitive Technology policy project, which is guided by an expert committee comprised of:

• Professor Sir Bernard Silverman (Committee Chair, University of Oxford)
• Dr Vint Cerf ForMemRS (Google)
• Professor Cathy Holloway (Global Disability Innovation Hub)
• Professor Jacques Fleuriot (University of Edinburgh)
• Dr Hamied Haroon (University of Manchester)
• Dr Louise Hickman (Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy)
• Mr Prateek Madhav (AssisTech Foundation, India)
• Professor Paul Upchurch (University College London)
• Professor Seralynne Vann (Cardiff University)
• Professor Mike Wald (University of Southampton)