There was a lot of accessibility-in-government buzz today, including a new accessibility guide from 18F, a digital services agency in the US federal government. 18F is a group of designers, developers and product specialists working in the open (and on Github) using the lean startup model…a pretty novel approach in comparison to the gazillion-dollar-yet-crusty-and-terrible-on-launch websites we’ve seen released in the last few years. A clear, public accessibility guide (even if just a first draft) will help those creating websites for the government to make sure they are designing and developing accessibly. They are taking issues and pull requests on Github, too!

In addition to more development techniques (like not turning off focus outlines!), it would be great to see inclusive design thinking incorporated. I did love this statement on the homepage:

Wait, you said this is something I should do from the start of a project? Really?

YEP! Start accessibility early in UX and Design, work together closely instead of “chucking over the fence”, and document what you learned. By being open about our process of fail/fix/repeat, we can all make the internet more accessible in and outside of the government.