The InclusionHub Podcast has for the past several months featured insightful and oftentimes revelatory insights from a broad range of guests striving to make the world a better, and more inclusive place, for all—with particular focus on improving digital accessibility.
Our host Sam Proulx, Accessibility Evangelist at leading accessibility testing platform Fable, has led us through critical discussions with everyone from internationally renowned disability rights advocate Judith Heumann, civil rights attorney Arlene Mayerson, and key Capitol Crawl participant Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins to Inclusive Design Research Centre founder Jutta Treviranus, Small Technology Foundation founder Laura Kalbag, and many more.
And in every episode, Sam gives special thanks to InclusionHub’s Founding Partners, who make it all possible: leading customer relationship management software provider Salesforce; HubSpot Diamond Partner Agency Morey Creative Studios (MCS); leading accessibility testing platform Fable; and Be My Eyes, a free app connecting blind and low-vision people with sighted volunteers.
In episode 10, Sam metaphorically passed the mic to Jeffrey Howard of MCS, who continues this important conversation with several top executives and team members from these incredible businesses.
Welcome to the inaugural episode of our Founding Partner Series, spotlighting the extraordinary people and work of Fable.
Discussing the founding of their company, its mission of including people with disabilities in every stage of the testing process, the importance of digital accessibility and inclusion, challenges of allyship, concept of unlearning, and so much more, are Fable CEO Alwar Pillai and COO Abid Virani.
Here’s a snippet:
“Both from a moral and economic perspective, how would you sum up why accessibility and digital inclusion matter so much?” asks Jeffrey.
“I think the most relatable way,” explains Alwar, “is not thinking about this as binary. I think that’s been the easiest way for people to understand why you should invest in digital inclusion—that disability can be temporary, permanent, situational, each one of us can experience disability, and that all of us today benefit from technology that was designed for people with disabilities, and understanding that it’s contributing to broader usability.
“I feel we need to shift away from just that feel-good, do this because it feels good [mindset],” she continues. “No, do this because it makes sense. And I think people are slowly understanding that when you break it down in these different relatable ways.”
“I absolutely think that helping folks understand how they themselves experience disability, and how they’re already leveraging things built for people with disabilities, is a great way to get through the skepticism and make it more relatable,” echoes Abid.
To learn more about the guests and issues featured in this and all previous episodes, subscribe to The InclusionHub Podcast via your favorite podcast app. You can also access this episode’s transcript and read along!
As always, The InclusionHub Podcast is sponsored by our Founding Partners: leading customer relationship management software provider Salesforce; HubSpot Diamond Partner Agency Morey Creative Studios; leading accessibility testing platform powered by people with disabilities Fable; and Be My Eyes, a free app connecting blind and low-vision people with sighted volunteers. Stay tuned for more insights from them all as we continue our Founding Partners Series!