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Convenção das Nações Unidas sobre os
Direitos das Pessoas com Deficiência

Esse novo capítulo que eu vim aqui
falar com vocês

Meu nome é Leslie Ann Gibbons,
Eu fui criada no Reino Unido,

e vivo a 17 anos

na Califória do Norte nos EUA.

E estou muito feliz em ter

a oportunidade de falar com você um pouco

sobre algumas mudanças da
tecnologia e como isso impacta o

senso individual de independência e

aprimorando a experiência do cotidiano.

Então, eu posso ver suas mãos?

Quantos aqui passaram a noite no hotel?

Quantos de vocês tomaram
banho hoje?

(risos)

Quantos de vocês cometeu o erro
terrível de usar loção em vez de shampoo?

(risos)

Pare bobagem não é?

Mas para as pessoas que
são deficientes visuais descobrir

qual dos dois é shampoo isso pode

ser a diferença entre um dia péssimo

e um dia maravilhoso

6 anos atrás, pessoas com

deficiência confiavam quase que inteiramente

nos dispositivos especializados de standalone

e programas de software, mas essas

ferramentas e suportes que eram
antes caríssimas ou difíceis de usar

agora são comuns nas salas de aula,

Escritórios e nos nossos bolsos.

E hoje, embora o nível do consumidor

avanços e tecnologias tradicionais

nem sempre são acessíveis, olhe para

os seguintes avanços que temos visto

na tecnologia ao longo dos anos.

Houve uma enorme redução no poder

necessidades e uma maior disponibilidade de

new, more affordable, and smaller power

sources. There’ve been significant

improvements in networks and broadband

capabilities. For example, high speed

internet is now widely available in most

public places — even in the UN — and so

are smart phones. User interfaces and

input options have increased. For

example, touchscreens and gesture

recognition are now commonplace.

Social media- driven community

developments such as Kickstarter

and other crowdfunding resources

makes it possible for people who

have just an idea to seek funding in

new and creative ways. And today,

having access to development tools

such as 3D printers and app development

tools is by no means unusual. This

explosion of new technologies has

profoundly affected the ways in which

people with and without disabilities are

using digital devices and resources.

Assistive technology functionality has

finally moved into the mainstream, and

we now face a new demand for tools that

are context-specific, user-created, data

driven and nimble, embeddable, networked,

and wearable.

So how are wearables changing assistive

technology? And what about that shampoo?

With ever-smaller and less-expensive

hardware and component pieces

exploding on the marketplace, wearable

technologies are fast becoming a fixture

in our everyday lives, primarily in the

form of fitness trackers and

smartwatches. But beyond being able to

measure our heart rate and count our

steps, wearable technologies hold

significant promise for people with a

visual impairment.

Imagine this: You’ve arrived at your hotel

last night, and you go for a shower. In

the bathroom are four small bottles, all

the same size and shape. You assume

they’re shampoo and conditioner, shower

gel and lotion. But how do you know which

one is which? If you have eyes and still

have your glasses on, you can read the

small print, and you lay the bottles out so

you use the right one in the right order.

But what do you do if you’re blind, or

you’re unable to read the print?

For a person whose blind or has a

severe visual impairment, this is a

typical day-to-day problem. One of

the many “gotchas” that limit

their independence.

With the advent of live-streaming on

mobile phones, one solution might be

call a friend. Ask them which bottle is

which. The limitation of this is just the

availability, and ultimately the patience

of your friend. The better solution might

be to have a large pool of friends or

volunteers who can be contacted.

This is what Be My Eyes, the smart phone

app, has set up. It’s technology that will

quickly connect the user from their

smartphone video feed to a volunteer,

and the audio and video link enables the

right bottle to be found. The service is

free and well used. It’s ideal for simple

problems, but it limits you to those

problems that only need a video

feed and a volunteer.