Help the FCC Launch the Accessibility and Innovation Forum

To address the barriers that people with disabilities face in accessing technology, the National Broadband Plan ("NBP") recommends, among other things, that the Federal Communications Commission establish an ongoing Accessibility and Innovation Forum ("A&I Forum" or "Forum").

At the March 10 event rolling out the NBP's accessibility recommendations, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Chief Joel Gurin announced that the Commission would launch the A&I Forum in July. The Forum will be an ongoing collaborative problem-solving effort with diverse stakeholders to promote innovative solutions to broadband and other communications technology barriers. The Forum will allow the Commission to use new tools and tap into new sources of ideas and innovation to address accessibility problems, using ongoing online efforts, workshops, field events, and facilitated dialogues. In July, we plan to 1) launch a clearinghouse; 2) announce guidelines for the Chairman's Award for Accessibility and Innovation; (3) expand blog coverage of ongoing accessibility efforts in the public and private sector; and (4) announce future workshops and field events. Over the next 12-18 months, we will expand these efforts and add new initiatives. We will be seeking input on each of these aspects of the new A&I Forum in a series of blog posts over the next two weeks. This post seeks input on an online clearinghouse.