GitHub, the world’s leading AI-powered developer platform, has unveiled a series of internal initiatives, in celebration of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, aimed at making the platform more inclusive for its extensive community of over 100 million developers. These initiatives, led by GitHub’s first Head of Accessibility, Ed Summers, highlight the company’s commitment to accessibility.
The new initiatives include:
- Accessibility Design Bootcamp: A program designed to raise awareness of web accessibility best practices and advocate for accessibility across different teams within GitHub.
- Accessibility Champions Program: This program empowers GitHub employees to promote accessibility within their teams.
- Engineering Fundamentals Program: This initiative focuses on scaling accessibility by defining, measuring, and sustaining engineering excellence, with accessibility as a core component.
Ed Summers emphasized the importance of involving people with disabilities in technological development. “A popular mantra within the disability community is, ‘nothing about us without us’. This reflects the belief that people with disabilities must actively participate in decisions affecting their lives. Given that technology plays a crucial role in all aspects of life, it is essential for those with disabilities to contribute to and lead its development,” he said.
The latest installment of GitHub’s Coding Accessibility series showcases blind developers Jamie Teh and Michael “Mick” Curran, who have built thriving communities for the blind, by the blind. Their open-source software is used by hundreds of thousands of blind people globally. GitHub is proud to support these communities, underscoring the importance of empowering people with disabilities to enhance technology accessibility.
Summers added, “We are working to build a culture of accessibility within GitHub. Our approach includes company-wide training for every Hubber, the Engineering Fundamentals program, the accessibility design bootcamp, the accessibility champions program, and the Primer design system. However, we know that accessibility is an ongoing process. GitHub is continually evolving to meet the needs of developers, and our accessibility program must grow with it.”
GitHub’s culture of accessibility starts with mandatory training for all employees, covering types of disabilities, assistive technologies, disability etiquette, and the importance of accessibility. This foundational knowledge supports the company’s comprehensive accessibility program.
- The Engineering Fundamentals Program serves as the backbone of GitHub’s accessibility governance. It includes three pillars: accessibility, availability, and security, with scorecards to monitor and measure service performance against these pillars.
- The Accessibility Design Bootcamp is another key initiative, focusing on preventing and removing accessibility barriers during the design phase. Since its launch in March 2023, the bootcamp has trained 50% of GitHub’s Design team through interactive exercises and discussions.
- The Accessibility Champions Program has grown significantly, starting with 17 engineering champions and now including 52 champions. The program includes hands-on exercises, monthly meetings, and collaborative events to identify and address accessibility issues in real-time. GitHub aims to expand this program to at least 100 champions by the end of the year.
- Lastly, the Primer Design System is an open-source set of guidelines for designing and building user interfaces at GitHub. It incorporates accessibility feedback from users with disabilities, ensuring cohesive and accessible experiences across the platform.
