TravelAbility Insider

The Intersection of Travel and Disability

Disability Advocates

Engineer Invents Gloves That Turn Sign Language into Audible Speech

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The engineer and designer wears the glove he made. He is sitting next to a co-worker. He is dressed casually and smiling.
The engineer who designed the glove says he was inspired to find an easy way to communicate with his niece.

Roy Allela, a 25-year old engineer and inventor from Kenya, has found the ultimate solution to bridging the communication barrier between deaf and hearing people. He has invented the Sign-IO gloves that can translate signed hand movements to audible speech so deaf people can “talk” even to those who don’t understand sign language, according to a post in the blackbusiness.com blog.

OUR TAKE:  Behind almost every great innovation is someone who is touched by disability—a father, an aunt, or in this case an engineering uncle. Allela was inspired to create the gloves because he and his family struggled to communicate with his 6-year-old niece who was born deaf. The unassuming young inventor who works for Intel estimates the glove expected to generate revenue of around $30 billion by end of 2024,” according to Global NewsWire. For us, it’s a good reminder to set the bar higher and higher every day.

READ MORE 

Busting Records & Myths: One Rider Spends 1,000 Days Straight on Rails to Trails

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Four riders including Ian Mackay with a backdrop of mountains snow and green grasss
Four riders, including Mackay, tackling the mountains on a gorgeous days out. photo courtesy: Rails to Trails.

It takes a certain kind of dedication to get out on a trail every day. As in, every day. Seven days a week. Rain or shine. Scorching days, freezing days and every kind of day in between. The last day I missed was Halloween 2016, Ian Mackay told Rails to Trails. He surpassed consecutive day number 1,000 in July. In this piece, writer and rider Scott Stark, who also enjoys exploring trails across the country, describes how a serious bike injury changed Mackay’s approach to enjoying time spent trail’riding’.

OUR TAKE:  There is a way for everyone to enjoy the outdoors—and thankfully, some people are driven enough to find that path and share it with the entire state. At the TravelAbility Summit on November 11-13, the focus will always be on ability. We have found there’s an entire world of people like Mackay adventuring through life and will continue to highlight them, helping travel and destination marketers get a more accurate picture of the ‘accessibility’ customer. READ MORE on the Rails to Trails blog.

Mike May, New Advisory Board Member, Comes Crashing Through

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Mike May is the subject of the book Crashing Through by Robert Kurson.

Mike May, New Advisory Board Member, Comes Crashing Through

Mike May broke world records in downhill skiing, joined the CIA and has been a successful entrepreneur for decades. As if that weren’t enough to make him a compelling hero for a book about his life as an adaptability advocate, there’s more. May, who was blinded by a chemical explosion at age 3, is one of a handful of adults offered the chance to have a  revolutionary stem cell transplant surgery to  restore his vision. At the time, 1999, there were fewer than 20 cases, but he went on to have the risky surgery and is now recognized on a national level as a champion for adaptive technology and sports. 

Today he is the chief evangelist for Access Explorer, a navigation company. He was previously Executive Director of the Workforce Innovation Center at Envision in Wichita Kansas, CEO of the Lighthouse for the Blind in Seattle and CEO/Founder of Sendero Group, makers of accessible navigation products. He was a member of the White House delegation to the 2010 Paralympics and has been inducted into the U.S. Association of the Blind Hall of Fame. The book on his adventures is written by Robert Kurston and titled Crashing Through (it will also be turned in to a film.) You can meet Mike May and learn more about his story at TravelAbility Summit on November 11-13 in San Francisco. We are also pleased to welcome May to the Advisory Board this month. “As a technology entrepreneur, disability advocate and fearless leader of change in the travel industry, Mike brings a rare combination of skills to the Summit,” said Jake Steinman, founder of TravelAbility Summit. “I knew as soon as we spoke that he would be a strong advocate and collaborator for the blind along with the outstanding travel experts we will have at the Summit.”  

Don’t Miss Out on Expert Advice at TravelAbility Summit! Meet A Few of Our Superstar Speakers

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Meet two of our superstar speakers—and watch for more updates on our speaker’s page. There’s really a lot of talent and expertise in our lineup. Start here:  

Eric Lipp is the founder and executive director of the Open Doors Organization (ODO), which commissioned groundbreaking research on accessible travel identifying the untapped market at 17.3 billion dollars in 2015. He started ODO after personally experiencing the restrictions that people with disabilities face in everyday life. (Eric was diagnosed with Von Hippel Lindau disease at age 30, which resulted in a tumor growth on his spinal cord, ultimately limiting his mobility.) In 2014, Open Doors launched Open Taxis, a centralized taxi dispatch for wheelchair accessible vehicles in Chicago with over 350 vehicles. Passengers can either call Open Taxis for service or use its smartphone app that includes key features such as estimated wait time and an estimated fare quote.

Marc Garcia is president and CEO of Visit Mesa. Under Marc’s leadership Visit Mesa has become the country’s first-ever destination marketing organization designated as a Certified Autism Center by the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES). As a parent of a child on the autism spectrum, Marc has raised the bar in the city of Mesa by requesting partner businesses in the hospitality community follow their lead to undergo autism training. Guest-facing staff at Mesa businesses are actively being approached and will complete autism sensitivity and awareness training within the next six months. Prior to joining Visit Mesa, Marc was vice president of Visitor Marketing & Community Development for the Greater Phoenix Visitors & Convention Bureau.

photo of Suzanne Boda courtesy American Airlines PR;  photo of Marc Garcia courtesy IP Photography

You can find out more about all of the speakers on our site, here. 

REGISTER NOW for the two-day event in San Francisco this November! REGISTER NOW

 

 

 

Denver Brew Pub Taps Into Opportunity by Hiring People with Disabilities

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bar chalkboard with different craft beer taps Not sure that hiring people with disabilities will be a good fit? That’s quickly changing in restaurants and pubs across the country. Take Brewability Lab, the first brewery in the U.S. staffed by adults with developmental disabilities. The Denver, Colorado operation will be called Brewability on Broadway, according to a recent announcement. Founder Tiffany Fixter describes the new Denver location as “far more accessible and conducive to business” than its original space. Vinepair recently wrote about the new place. See a video of the staff on-site, here.

Our Take: More restaurants and bars are finding that hiring disabled workers makes good business sense and positions their brand as forward-thinking trailblazers in their communities. 

 

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