The first FreedomTech Assembly was held in the Aviva Stadium on November 16th 2017 with over 180 partipants, drawn from across the health, education, employment and tech sectors.   FreedomTech is a partnership between Enable Ireland and the Disability Federation of Ireland, and its primary goal is to ensure that those who need Assistive Technology can get it in a timely manner.  

This involves a national advocacy initiative, focused on promoting the benefits of AT in all contexts: at home, at work, in education and for leisure purposes.

This FreedomTech Assembly heard from a number of compelling speakers, all of whom could speak from direct experience of the transformative impact which Assistive Technology can have. A national Assistive Technology Passport system is strongly advocated by FreedomTech, so that anyone who needs AT can play an active and central role in the Assessment, Procurement and Training process.

Check out other key recommendations for the creation of a national AT Ecosystem here:

http://www.enableireland.ie/sites/default/files/publication/ATPaperfinal.pdf 

Teresa shared with us her son Jamie's experience of using AT.  Teresa is the Mother of a 15 year old who is an enthusiastic user of many assistive technologies'.

From the early days of using a Big Mac or switches and then a Mighty Mo (which had Teresa's voice recorded on it),  to currently using his Communicator 5 Software on his MS Surface Pro.  Jamie also uses a touchscreen with a Gridpad for his social media - a typical teenager!  Jamie and Teresa moved into their new home 2 years ago.  Jamie was so excited and is able to enjoy their garden in his powerchair without the need for supervision. Their home has a wide range of environmental controls which allow Jamie to control the radio, lights, doors, X-Box and Playstation.  A group of Jamie's class mates visited their home (at Jamie's request) so that he could demonstrate all the things he can do there.  Teresa explained that technology is now a huge part of Jamie's life.  He has grown because of it.  While technology can take some getting used to and needs patience, overall Jamie's life is richer because of it. 

‘It makes you see that you can be anything you want to be with the Assistive Technology around you. As a disabled person, you need it, it’s part of your life’.

We were invited to deliver this course by the Malta Communications Authority (MCA), who secured EU funding for it. The course was accredited and hosted by Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST).

Participants were drawn from Health, Education and Malta's Commission for the Rights of People With Disabilities.

This course forms one part of a larger national strategy to develop AT services across Malta. We were honoured to be part of this very important and exciting initiative. Thanks MCA and MCAST for the opportunity to collaborate!

Enable Ireland’s National Assistive Technology (AT) Training Service and third level partners Dublin Institute of Technology have facilitated the collaboration between product design students and Assistive Technology users since 2008, through its Community Design Challenge. 

This partnership grew out of the expressed needs of adult AT users who reported frustration with the design of many AT products.

The winner of the 2015 Community Design Challenge was the “Bus Buddy” a concept designed by Evan Markley and Kaitlyn Mast from Purdue University in the US. The Bus Buddy concept was inspired by the difficulties encountered by  a team member when navigating the streets of Dublin independently as a blind person.

Dublin Bus have implemented real time information at many bus stops and this has resulted in a vastly improved service for all their users but none more so than those with disabilities.

We are delighted to confirm that we are recipients of a Dublin Bus Community Spirit Award.  The funds received from this award will go towards developing The Bus Buddy further, and take Dublin Bus even further ahead in the area of accessibility.  Our sincere thanks to all at Dublin Bus for this generous award, to our expert AT users who provide invaluable feedback, and to the Product Design Students at DIT for their collaboration and problem solving skills.

Our Foundations in Assistive Technology Course is in the final stages of an accreditation review (a standard process undertaken by DIT for all their courses). We will shortly be scheduling dates for this course, which will involve 3 days face to face training along with approximately 7 days of online learning content. If you would like to be added to our mailing list to learn about the next course, please contact Shirley Deakin at: sdeakin@enableireland.ie 

On the 16th of November last year, there was a big conference - this time on Assistive Technology. I went along to have a google (pardon my pun). Why do we need AT? Is it another excuse to hide away from our disabilities - or is it for bridging the gap to our full potential?

Speakers included the founder of the Mobility Mojo Website and App, Stephen Cluskey – a website that works in the same way as TripAdviser, but focuses on accessible travel destinations. Another speaker, Teresa Patterson, spoke about the AT that her son uses, and how thrilled he was to be able to show off to his friends how loud he could turn up the volume at home.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, there are people who feel intimidated and isolated by having AT around. Some feel that it brings a lack of focus along with it.

On top of that, body shaming is another matter that gets overlooked. Even in the able-bodied utopian world, there is no longer a need for face to face contact. We are in an age where there is no need for talk and touch! Maybe I am a dinosaur, but it is freaky to see people getting hugged and receiving them. We feel more comfortable talking on our hands free phones in each of our separate worlds.

Having said all that, there was a need for a conference such as Freedom Tech. It was a long time coming.  Whether or not having AT is a difficult juggling act.

Who said life was easy - particularly when you are disabled!

The rise of virtual assistants has been remarkably swift.  The main virtual assistants at the moment are Apple's Siri, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Microsoft Cortana.  

While they offer many of the same features, each assistant has its own advantages and disadvantages.  Either Apple's Siri, or Google Assistant now come available in all new mobile phones.

What can they do?

Back in the 'old days', when you had a question, you might ask someone or look it up.  These days, you can just ask your computer.

You can activate the virtual assistant to listen to your commands without pressing any home button (handsfree), by saying 'Hey Google', 'Hey Cortana', 'Hey Siri', or 'Alexa'. 

With the internet as their source, they work well replying to questions in any topic area.  Built-in to mobile phones you can ask the virtual assistant to call or send a message to one of your contacts, query your calendar or find how far away away from home you are.

With devices such as Amazon Echo and Google Home we can easily link up various smart home hubs to control a television, lights, cameras and much more with your voice.

Check out Google Home here