Chapter 1 Introduction

Microsoft and HiSoftware believe there is now the opportunity and the imperative to make real progress toward a more inclusive society through an accessible Web.

The Riga Ministerial Declaration of June 11, 2006 emphasizes that “only 3% of public Web sites surveyed comply with the minimum Web accessibility standards and guidelines, hindering access to Web content and services for people with disabilities who comprise some 15% of the eu population. The declaration sets an ambitious policy goal: 100% of public Web sites to be accessible by 2010.

The tools and strategies to address this problem exist which means it is possible to make significant and rapid improvement with reasonable effort and expense. Web accessibility can be an area of sincere focus for organizations of all types and sizes today. Education and training represent some of the biggest obstacles for public agencies and private sector enterprises to create accessible Web sites – simply knowing what to do and how to do it.

Recognizing that the disappointing statistics show that we are not where we would like to be with Web accessibility and knowing that the tools exist to make progress, we asked ourselves, “What can be done?” We decided to conduct a series of Web accessibility dialogues. Not simply a single day or an ad hoc event, but a process that would lead us from Lisbon to Vienna to the next e‑Inclusion Conference and beyond—to real, measurable progress.

Throughout 2008, Microsoft gathered government officials, industry leaders, and non-governmental organization (ngo) representatives across several European countries as part of a series of interactive dialogues on the current state of Web accessibility. The objective of the Dialogues was to explore how critical players in both public organizations and private industry can worktogether on solutions that create a more accessible World Wide Web. The Dialogues featured robust conversation that both framed the challenges faced by proponents of Web accessibility and illuminated various solutions that organizations are using to realize the shared goal of an accessible Web environment.

This Handbook from Microsoft and HiSoftware is one result of the European Dialogues on Web Accessibility. It combines practical strategies with some of the perspectives, goals, and vision that came out of those Dialogues. Our intent is to provide a tool that will help organizations worldwide foster accessibility in their operations.

The handbook begins with a summary of the important knowledge shared at the series of European Dialogues on Web Accessibility. Those lessons-learned and best practices are followed by an example process for implementing a comprehensive Web accessibilityy. community that helps organizations implement some of the practical strategies from the Dialogues. Finally, the Handbook offers some specific tools and tips to understand and meet Web accessibility standards.