I’m here to 'calmly blow your minds in a scholarly but weirdly accessible way'.
This will be my mantra from now on. Thank you Hilary.
I thoroughly enjoyed the #CampDigital conference, as I did six years ago. And everyone I speak to is really excited about the content, the welcoming atmosphere and an unmistakeable ingrained warm-heartedness. That’s impressive to pull off.
And I really want to make everyone aware of how much attention is given to #accessibility at Camp Digital.
There is a quiet space for reflection without tech. There are live captions, and hearing loops in all spaces. And all rooms and floors are reachable without steps.
As speakers we received clear instructions on how to make our slides more accessible, considering things like font size, contrast, colour and flashing.
There was also a session of lightning talks, directed by Sharon O'Dea, giving new speakers from underrepresented groups the chance to work on speaking skills in a safe confidence-boosting environment. All conferences should have this.
When you give this much attention to ensuring an inclusive mindset, you get the type of conference where people are supportive, friendly and look out for each other. Everyone is here *together*, not as separate individuals.
Sidenote: The fact that I had prepared my videos with captions meant I could deliver my talk without major issues despite a sound failure. Accessibility is valuable in so many ways.
Huge shoutout to Cat and Shaun – this was all beautifully piloted.