Blog

Media Release: Be. Leadership in Governance Programme 2022   Be. announce an exciting new Leadership Development Programme to foster a community of disabled and access leaders equipped with the skills for 21st century governance, and to embed accessibility at a strategic level in the board agenda.   Over the past 10 years, there has been greater recognition ...

More people with disabilities are taking up roles in leadership and in the boardroom, according to a new report, as organizations see a high level of engagement in inclusion practices for the sector. The latest 2022 Disability Equality Index (DEI) from Disability:IN revealed that 126 companies or 30% of its respondents have a senior executive who is internal...

This is an interesting post I came across from the Centre for Inclusive Design . Diverse teams and diverse representation are the first steps toward Inclusion, but this means considering all the ways we differ. Often we're quick to recognize the differences we see, but the meaningful ways people differ are often below the surface.  

“When it comes to unconscious bias, none of us are immune. We all have stereotypes about others informed by our past experiences, culture, early influences in our lives, and the very nature of our brains and how they work to categorize experience."    In this article, Rebecca Hourston, Managing Director of Talking Talent shares advice to help you begin to ta...

This is a very powerful TED Talk & something I'm also very passionate about.  Annamarie Jamieson talks about building inclusion into the Stuff workplace.  The journey of a company challenging perceptions and transforming business by including disabled people in everything they do. Annamarie firmly believes that everyone has the right to contribute to society...

This is an interesting article by Kate Heron, a Recruiter in Wellington.  Hybrid working can also work well for people living with access needs (disabilities) as well.  Hybrid working is the newest flexible working arrangement and people are loving it. Read Kate's blog below to understand it more and find out why you're seeing it everywhere! Read Kate's blog...

I've been following with interest the work Text Help has been doing on Diversity & Inclusion. This blog talks about how technology can support staff with hidden disabilities because we're all different. Could you be missing out on top talent because your diversity and inclusion program doesn't quite support neurodivergent candidates?     Discover how technol...

Press Release Hon Carmel Sepuloni  Minister for Social Development and Employment Hon Poto Williams  Minister for Disability Issues 1 July 2022 In what is a milestone day, the Government has launched Aotearoa New Zealand’s first Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled People, and New Zealand’s first Ministry that will have a NZ Sign Language name, as well as Te Reo ...

In this blog, TextHelp shares 11 key takeaways from their first-ever Festival of Workplace Inclusion which took place last month. Festival speakers shared some great advice around the themes of inclusive recruitment, retaining and developing diverse talent, and creating an inclusive culture. Read the main takeaways from each session.  

A good designer can create a ramp that is both functional and suits its surroundings. Being a heritage building is a terrible excuse to exclude people. The constant tension between heritage and accessibility - thank you Virginia Fallon for calling it out!  Read Virginia's article.

Disability in the Workplace   Accessibility needs to be the norm, not an afterthought.    One in four New Zealanders have access needs and most of those people could be contributing to our economy if we take three steps to start to change the conversation around disability in the workplace, says equity advocate Genevieve McLachlan.  “There are simple but hig...

Here's an interesting read on the difference in how "disability" and "chronic health condition" are defined. If we include people with health conditions in the accessibility conversation, we're talking about a whopping 79% of the population! Read the full article .

I've stayed at the Sudima Hotel in Auckland several times when visiting the city, so was very interested in this review by Stuff reporter Olivia Shivas. Read Olivia's review . 

Are you wondering how to get started with digital accessibility? Be. Lab  has put together some free resources on how to be accessible online, specially tailored for those who are starting out or don't have any specialist knowledge. Start your digital accessibility journey today.   Read the blog and get your free digital accessibility resources.

The new Ministry for Disabled People’s journey begins on 1 July 2022. So what does this mean for you? Disabled people deserve better. They deserve a way to engage and shape a better future for themselves. This is the reason for the new Ministry. The new Ministry will take the lead for disability support services and transforming them so that in the future, d...

Did you know that 1 in 4 New Zealanders has an access need or disability? That's more than a million NZers, a number which is increasing daily with our ageing population. Accessibility is crucial to building strong communities, better business and a nation where everyone thrives.  As one of those living with access needs, I'm proud to be part of the  Be. Lab...

In the second of our Digital Accessibility webinars, we share some simple changes you can make to your website to increase accessibility. Digital accessibility doesn’t have to be in the “too hard basket”. Join accessibility experts from Be. Lab to learn about simple, inexpensive changes you can make to increase your customer base, brand loyalty and revenue. ...

In preparation for Global Accessibility Awareness Day on Thursday 19th May,  Be. Lab  partnered with  Digital Boost to run two digital accessibility webinars.  Many small business owners think online accessibility is an unnecessary added extra and an expense beyond their budget. In this webinar you’ll learn the value of ensuring your online platform and pro...

May 9-15 is NZSL Week, which celebrates that New Zealand Sign Language has been an official language since 2006.  NZSL has definitely risen in profile over the past couple of years, partly due to the visibility of interpreters at the daily COVID briefings. However, it is still an endangered language.  The theme this year is “NZSL is essential”. It is essenti...

As the tourism industry looks for ways to recover from the pandemic, Access Tourism provides an incredible opportunity. Here are some tips for tourist providers, to help get you started on your Accessibility Journey.   Read these tips .