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Amy Jukes Joins TravelAbility as Strategic Advisor and Business Development Director

June 6, 2025 by lkarl Leave a Comment

Amy Jukes is the founder of AmVarra Consulting, where she and her team provides fractional executive support and strategy to travel businesses around accessibility. With over 20 years of leadership experience, she has served as Chief Operating Officer at Sage Inclusion, a national accessibility firm, and as Executive Director of Anam Cara, a nonprofit dedicated to educational advocacy for students with disabilities.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Amy to our team as she brings invaluable expertise in business development that will help us scale inclusion to the next level,” said Jake Steinman, founder, TravelAbility. “Her extensive experience conducting 400 travel industry accessibility assessments—many funded by grants she and her team initiated—will help destinations strengthen their leadership in accessibility.”

Her expertise covers nonprofit leadership, tourism strategy, and accessibility implementation, including audits, training programs, and operational planning for cities, airports, and national organizations.

At TravelAbility, Amy will play a key role in expanding The Accessibility Playbook and forging partnerships that enable destinations to move beyond compliance and toward a true competitive advantage. She is deeply passionate about making inclusive tourism both practical and profitable.

What if You Could Touch a Sunset?

April 30, 2025 by Eliana Satkin

Disabled Art creates a new way to experience visual art.

By Ted Tahquechi of Blind Travels

Last year, Blind Travels partnered with Redline Contemporary Art center of Denver and The Andy Warhol Foundation for visual art to develop a process that takes photographs and extracts the luminosity values and textures, then creates a 3d printable tactile print. This is not only great for the blind and low vision community, but has also been well received by the colorblind community and those who are on the autism scale, for their touch and audio features. The project was launched at the National Federation of the Blind national convention last year to rave reviews.

Disabled Art is now working with galleries, museums and even the VA. Their goal is to make art accessible to those who can’t see and to try to shift the mentality for accessible art to one that is considered in the creation of an exhibition rather than as an afterthought. Each piece has the traditionally framed photograph, the tactile (touchable) print, and a plaque with a braille label and tactile scannable QR code. Scanning the QR code gives an audio description of the original photo, then walks the viewer through the features of the tactile print. This gives the viewer all the context they need for what they are feeling, and delivers a true multi sensory experience. Find out more at https://www.disabledart.com/.

TravelAbility Named to Condé Nast Traveler’s “Beyond Barriers: 25 People Making the World More Accessible for 2025”

February 10, 2025 by Eliana Satkin

We are beyond thrilled to share that Jake Steinman and TravelAbility have been recognized in Condé Nast Traveler’s prestigious “Beyond Barriers: 25 People Making the World More Accessible for 2025” list! This honor represents so much more than a milestone—it’s a testament to the extraordinary work of our advisory board, summit leaders, and the entire TravelAbility community. Together, you’ve turned a bold idea into a movement that is reshaping the travel industry, proving that accessibility is not just a checkbox but a driving force for innovation, empathy, and inclusion.

From the advisory board members and those who helped conceptualize TravelAbility (you’ll notice some of them also made the list as individuals), to the noise makers and advocates, this recognition belongs to you. Your dedication to breaking barriers, sharing knowledge, and championing inclusivity has inspired a wave of progress, and we’re so proud to see the mainstream travel industry taking notice. This is not just a win for TravelAbility—it’s a win for each of you as you continue to work towards a world that’s truly accessible to all.

Let’s celebrate how far we’ve come while continuing to push the boundaries of what’s possible. Together, we’re proving that accessibility isn’t just about compliance—it’s about creating a world where everyone belongs. Thank you for being part of this incredible journey!

Waiting for Elevators – MTA Accessibility Update

November 7, 2024 by Eliana Satkin

Snail pace progress, but at least it’s progress.

The recent court ruling on elevator maintenance is a win, but seven years seems like a long time to the 12% of the population who can’t utilize most of the current Metro system. Wheelchair users are grateful for the 2023 settlement to build more elevators, but it still feels like riding an elevator lottery. Read the full scoop here.