"The Social Co-operative “David Chiossone” supports and promotes social, educational, sport and working integration of disabled people (most of them blind and partially sighted people). We give advise for the prevention of blindness and sight loss." [ from the Charter of the Cooperative ].
All our efforts, according to the principles of the charter, are focused on the topic of virtual and physical accessibility of technologies, places, events, meetings, etc.
The idea to create a Co-operative that works in this huge confused field comes from these cues: Who best of those who lives the troubles of handicap day-by-day can contribute "to estimate" accessibility of sites that should be conceived also for them? Who can better propose solutions, give advices, follow the work of programmers in order to render all accessible?
The members of David Chiossone co-operative are young impaired people co-ordinated by a team of experts and operators. Our strength comes also from the fact that the group can profit of the long established experience of “Istituto David Chiossone” (institute for blind in Genova-Italy, www.chiossone.it) and of the multi-centered experience of Agora consortium (www.consorzioagora.it).
In the spirit of the Co-operative we help disabled people to be self-confident and we help to transform their lives through work, leasure and support. We work to get a greater social and working integration of disabled people.
Therefore the cooperative can offer an brand new way of problem solving, based on the technologies and the web, with strong social impact and with a direct participation of the disabled people.
Research: Open Source software accessibility
We are available to lead free evaluations of Open Source software to be distributed to all the potential end users under license GNU-GPL, with the purpose of meeting its compliance to the accessibility and usability standards.
We are a team of experts in psychology, ergonomics, assistive technologies, accessibility, among whose members figure people with special needs, physical and sensory disabled; we are available to test or to participate in the software designing and developing.
For more info: Marco Arscone arscone@chiossone.net
Contacts
Walter Bielli and Silvia Dini cooperativa @ chiossone.net
Genova, September 2007
