Empowered - eWork Solution for Persons with Disabilities

There are at least 50 million persons with disabilities in Latin America & the Caribbean of which about 80-90 percent are unemployed or outside the workforce. 82% of persons with disabilities live beneath the poverty line on less than one USD dollar a day and most of those who have jobs receive little or no monetary remuneration. Our solution is an accessible, virtual work platform that will offer persons with disabilities the opportunity to access employment and service provider contracts from the comfort of their homes for a percent of the fee that is charged per transaction. The services offered focus primarily on compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing. With more than one billion people in the world living with disabilities, it’s vital that technology reflects the diversity of the users to foster digital inclusion for all.

Persons with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to unemployment and poverty. Disability has a significant economic and social impact on persons with disabilities and their families, as well as on their communities and society. 15% of the world’s population has some form of impairment, which equates to 470 million people of working age.  Less than 20% of people with disabilities are currently in work and 82% of all people with disabilities live beneath the poverty line on less than one USD dollar a day. Employment rates are lower for men and women with disabilities than their peers without disabilities. Disproportionately, persons with disabilities can be paid less, hired without a formal job description, forced to take jobs that don’t fit their interests or aspirations, and even engaged in undignified or dangerous work. In Latin America & the Caribbean, there are at least 50 million persons with disabilities of which about 80-90 percent are unemployed or outside the workforce and most of those who have jobs receive little or no monetary remuneration. 

Our mission is to improve the digital accessibility of products and services for persons with disabilities, promote independent living and encourage equal participation in society. With more than one billion people in the world living with disabilities, it’s vital that technology reflects the diversity of the users to foster digital inclusion for all. Ipsum Technologies works on projects which provide persons with disabilities greater access to information, education, employment and other opportunities. Our customers are primarily small business owners, SMEs and NGOs in Trinidad and Tobago who are willing to outsource their digital services to our Empowered Platform. In 2019, we surveyed 35 businesses, of which 67.7% would hire PWDs (persons with disabilities) for job vacancies if they were capable of working remotely, 65.7% would do business with another company if they created employment for PWDs and 73.5% would contract a company that employs PWDs for those products and services. In addition, we have tested the market demand and pricing sensitivity by offering website design services to a few personal contacts who are also business owners for a small fee to test their willingness to pay which has proven to be quite successful.

Our solution is an accessible, virtual work platform that will offer persons with disabilities the opportunity to access employment and service provider contracts from the comfort of their homes for a percent of the fee that is charged per transaction. A 15% commission is charged on each transaction plus a USD$10 monthly subscription. We are seeking to train and employ persons with disabilities in advanced digital skills and accessible technology. 

People with disabilities are an untapped resource of skills and talents.  Most businesses are not taking advantage of the nearly half a trillion dollars in market value of this population. People with disabilities have skills that businesses need, both technical job skills and transferable problem-solving skills.
Professionals in the Information, Communication and Technology fields should take a serious and conscious approach to making their applications inclusive to all. Leaving out an entire section of the global community, simply because of a disability, is both socially and economically wrong and ignores a huge customer segment.
Through our Empowered Platform we intend to offer services that ensure compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing. This would create job opportunities for Latin American and Caribbean developers and persons with disabilities to work together on digital accessibility projects with clients located anywhere in the world.

In Trinidad and Tobago, local NGOs, educational institutions and state enterprises compete with us to provide educational services to the community of persons with disabilities and internationally, organisations like Level Access, Equal Web, Accessibility Oz, and Deque compete with us to provide digital accessibility services. What we offer is different from these organisations because we are seeking to train and employ persons with disabilities in advanced digital skills and accessible technology. 

Through our Empowered platform we intend to offer services that ensure compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing. This would create job opportunities for Latin American and Caribbean developers and persons with disabilities to work together on digital accessibility projects with clients located anywhere in the world.

The rise of the internet and the proliferation of digital devices and services within the last three decades have changed the way in which people work and communicate with each other. These developments have led to the digital economy and presents new opportunities and challenges to employers, employees, educators and policy makers. The digital inclusion of persons with disabilities in the social and economic advancement of our society is therefore critical to the overall development of our country. There are at least 50 million persons with disabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean, of which an estimated 80-90 percent are unemployed or outside the workforce. The Empowered platform will create opportunities for persons with disabilities to access employment and service provider contracts in the growing digital economy thus reducing poverty leading to an improved quality of life for them and their families.We intend to offer services that ensure compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing. This would create job opportunities for Latin American and Caribbean developers and persons with disabilities to work together on digital accessibility projects with clients located anywhere in the world.

In 2019, Ipsum Technologies conducted a survey of 35 businesses to assess their willingness to hire persons with disabilities through our Empowered Platform. 67.7% companies responded that they would hire PWDs (persons with disabilities) for job vacancies if they were capable of working remotely, 65.7% would do business with another company if they created employment for PWDs and 73.5% would contract a company that employs PWDs for those products and services. 

In addition, we have tested the market demand and pricing sensitivity by offering website design services to a few personal contacts who are also business owners for a small fee to test their willingness to pay. This experiment has proven to be quite successful and so we now intend to officially launch the service offering compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing.

This would create job opportunities for Latin American and Caribbean developers and persons with disabilities to work together on digital accessibility projects with clients located anywhere in the world.

Empowered does not currently serve any clients. We have conducted surveys to assess the feasibility of the platform and completed three pilot websites for business clients. We are now pursuing business opportunities with three (3) US based companies to offer digital accessibility services within the next year. Over the next five years, we would like to work with at least twenty (20) international companies through our Empowered Platform.

Over the next 5 years, I would like to work with the Caribbean Telecommunications Union and other stakeholders to promote the development and implementation of policies to support the digital inclusion of persons with disabilities through compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing, and education/training in accessibility principles. In addition, I would like to host workshops and seminars sensitizing the general public about the accessibility needs of persons with disabilities and the importance of digital inclusion. I would like to become a regional distributor of products available from RightHear, WHILL, Hamilton Relay and APH. Lastly, through our Empowered Platform, I would like for Latin American and Caribbean developers and persons with disabilities to work together on digital accessibility projects with clients located anywhere in the world. 

An assessment of the impeding factors to the implementation of this initiative regionally includes a lack of policies which foster widespread availability of accessible ICTs, limited access to technology, high cost of assistive technology, and a general lack awareness by persons with disabilities of what ICTs can do to facilitate their socioeconomic inclusion.

It should be noted that addressing these barriers requires advocacy and collaboration of stakeholders involved in government, education and industry, as well as the definition of cross-sectorial policies and strategies so that the investments in improving access and accessibility of ICTs in one sector can impact positively on other sectors.  

Empowered is an initiative of Ipsum Technologies which is a social enterprise that is focused on creating opportunities for persons with disabilities to thrive in the growing digital economy. Since our incorporation in 2014, we have been developing assistive technology devices, accessible websites and multimedia content, and have acquired expertise in ICT accessibility.

Ipsum Technologies has 1 full-time staff and 7 part-staff. 

We have contracted the following organisations:
UWI Engineering Institute 
Game Changer Concepts
The Scribble Pad
Dream Maker Studios

Ipsum Technologies is comprised of eight (8) diverse, passionate and
knowledgeable team members who concentrate their efforts on the achievement of digital inclusion for persons with disabilities so that they can thrive in the growing digital economy. Marlon Parieaho (Blind), Asenath McEwen (Low Vision) and Candice John (Low Vision) contribute tremendous insight into the needs of the visually impaired community. They are strong advocates for the rights of persons with visual impairment and have extended that passion towards the inclusion of persons with other types of disabilities. Shawn Melville is the Managing Director and team leader who is passionate about social entrepreneurship, social innovation and development engineering. Winston Blackwood, Chinara Griffith, Niesha Nicholas and  Samuel Nicholas are equally passionate individuals and make invaluable contributions in their respective disciplines of engineering, IT, HR and accounts.

We have key partnerships with the following organizations:

NCPD - National Centre for Persons with Disabilities
PAVI - Persons Associated with Visual Impairment
TTBWA - Trinidad and Tobago Blind Welfare Association
TTAHI - Trinidad and Tobago Association for the Hearing Impaired 
CTU - Caribbean Telecommunications Union
G3ict - Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs

We are partnering with the Caribbean Telecommunications Union and other stakeholders to promote the development and implementation of policies to support the digital inclusion of persons with disabilities through compliance with Section 508 and the WCAG 2.0-2.1 guidelines for document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, accessible website development and testing, and education/training in accessibility principles.

Our solution is an accessible, virtual work platform that will offer persons with disabilities the opportunity to access employment and service provider contracts from the comfort of their homes for a percent of the fee that is charged per transaction. A 15% commission is charged on each transaction plus a USD$10 monthly subscription. We are seeking to train and employ persons with disabilities in advanced digital skills and accessible technology. 

Persons with disabilities will upload their portfolios or resumes to a portal.
Ipsum Technologies will partner with employers and businesses to assess their human resource needs and create job descriptions that cater specifically to persons with disabilities. An accessible portal will allow persons with disabilities to access jobs posted by employers and businesses.

Our success to date has brought us public interest and grant funding from the government of Trinidad and Tobago through the Ministry of Planning and Sustainable Development's Idea 2 Innovation and Lumination Challenge competitions. Using this funding, we were able to build a MobiAssist prototype and develop the Blind Way Forward packages. We will continue pursuing grant funding from organisations locally, regionally and internationally as a means of financing our projects.

Apart from grants,  we intend to approach impact investors to finance our growth. This funding will be primarily utilized to develop our Empowered Platform which will create job opportunities for Latin American and Caribbean developers and persons with disabilities to work together on digital accessibility projects with clients located anywhere in the world. Revenue will be generated from a percent of the fee charged per transaction on the platform.

Other revenue generating activities include the hosting of paid workshops, seminars and webinars with organisations and individuals that are seeking to improve their knowledge of digital accessibility. In addition, revenue can be earned from the regional distribution and sale of assistive technology and accessible ICT devices obtained from international suppliers.

The Solve Challenge will help us to build awareness of the need for greater digital inclusion of persons with disabilities. Professionals in the Information, Communication and Technology fields should take a serious and conscious approach to making their applications inclusive to all. Leaving out an entire section of the global community, simply because of a disability, is both socially and economically wrong and ignores a huge customer segment. We intend to network with investors, other entrepreneurs and innovators who can fund, support or inspire us along our journey. We also hope that our initiatives will benefit from being exposed to a larger market of investors and customers.

The following is a list of organisations we would like to partner with:

Accessibility Oz, Deque, Level Access, Equal Web, Accenture, Google Accessibility, Microsoft Accessibility, IBM Accessibility, Apple Accessibility, Perkins School for the Blind, American Printing House, World Institute Disability, Consumer Technology Association, IAAP, Essential Accessibility, Sprint Accessibility, The Viscardi Center.

Persons with disabilities face several challenges when communicating with others and interpreting their environment depending on the type and severity of their disability. Artificial Intelligence can potentially reduce these challenges by compensating for one or more of their disabilities allowing them to operate unassisted by others.

The Empowered Platform can harness the power of AI to assist persons with visual impairment using image analysis, classification and optical character recognition to tag photos, videos and documents. To be useful for persons with disabilities, it must use a simple workflow and be built accessible. Persons with visual impairment use screen readers and magnifiers to access websites and other digital content. The website/application and the content share by its users must be read by these technologies.

Similarly, AI can be utilized to assist persons who are deaf or hard of hearing with communicating using real time voice-to-text libraries, live captioning and sign language interpretation. Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing have difficulty communicating with others who don't understand sign language. Direct video calling is a key feature which could be included in the platform so that deaf and hard of hearing users can communicate with other users.

Other assistive technologies are available to users with physical, speech and cognitive impairments and can facilitate their use of the platform and will be integrated according to the demand of users. These technologies when supported by AI, open tremendous opportunities for persons with disabilities to access the growing digital economy.