The Access Board’s Public Affairs Program is tasked with conducting outreach on behalf of the agency. These outreach activities help to build the agency’s relationships with the public, other agencies, external organizations, and international partners. Below are some of the major outreach activities conducted by the Board.
Public Events
The Access Board hosts various public events, including hearings, briefings, town halls, information sessions, and presentations, to inform the public on accessible design and acquire feedback from the public on accessibility. Visit the Access Board’s Events page for more information.
Interagency Collaborations
Interagency Accessibility Forum
The annual Interagency Accessibility Forum (IAAF) provides a venue for federal accessibility professionals, buyers, developers, designers, project managers, leadership, and many others to exchange best practices in managing and implementing digital accessibility standards and reporting required by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The event is hosted by the Government-wide IT Accessibility Program within the Office of Government-wide Policy (OGP) at the General Services Administration (GSA). The Access Board co-sponsors the event alongside the Accessibility Community of Practice (ACOP) at the Federal CIO Council, in collaboration with other federal agencies.
Access Board staff regularly present at IAAF on a plethora of accessibility topics. View archives from past years on Section508.gov.
Accessible Social Media Guidance
In 2024, Board staff collaborated with the General Services Administration (GSA) on updates to the accessible social media guidance on Section508.gov. Much of this guidance was informed by the Board’s current social media strategies. These social media best practices and the updated guidance have been the topic of multiple webinars led by Access Board staff, often alongside collaborators from the National Park Service (NPS) and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS). These sessions have been held for attendees at IAAF, the Board’s Section 508 Best Practices Webinar Series, and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
Tribal Nations
Title VI Program
Access Board staff collaborate with the Administration on Community Living’s (ACL) Older Americans Act Title VI grant program that provides nutrition and other support to elders on tribal lands. ACL staff have identified disability access to ceremonial spaces as a key quality of life issue for older tribal members. The National Congress of American Indians passed a resolution in 2023 encouraging tribes to enhance accessibility of ceremonial spaces and naming the Access Board as a resource for technical assistance.
Board technical staff continue to engage in better understanding the range of accessibility barriers presented in these spaces, so that the agency can provide appropriate technical assistance upon request; this has included virtual and in-person observations of ceremonial spaces. The Board also works with ACL staff to provide technical assistance for the accessibility of Title VI program offices and connections to additional resources.
Memorandum on Tribal Consultation
On January 26, 2021, the Memorandum on Tribal Consultation and Strengthening Nation-to-Nation Relationships was published in the Federal Register. The Memorandum directs federal agencies to ensure that “Tribal sovereignty and self-governance, commitment to fulfilling Federal trust and treaty responsibilities to Tribal Nations, and regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal Nations are the cornerstones of Federal Indian policy.” In 2021, the Access Board developed a plan of actions in its outreach to Tribal Nations.
Since the plan of actions was developed, the Board has continued to provide technical assistance to the Title VI grant program, including presentations at the National Title VI Training & Technical Assistance Conference in 2024 and 2025. Access Board staff also attended and actively engaged in the 2024 Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Traditional Healing Summit.
International Outreach
In addition to the engagements listed below, Access Board guidance and consultation are frequently sought by European and Canadian accessibility partners.
International Visitor Leadership Program
The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. Through short-term visits to the United States, current and emerging foreign leaders in a variety of fields experience this country firsthand and cultivate lasting relationships with their American counterparts. Professional meetings reflect the participants’ professional interests and support the foreign policy goals of the United States.
Through IVLP, the Access Board has been pleased to host representatives from nations all around the world, including the Central African Republic, Germany, Indonesia, Moldova, and South Korea among others. The Board looks forward to hosting additional countries in the future.
Conference of States Parties to the CRPD
The 17th Session of the United Nations Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (COSP17) took place in June 2024. Access Board Executive Director Sachin Pavithran and Director of the Office of Technical and Information Services (OTIS) Alison Levy served as official members of the State Department delegation. Collectively, they participated in multiple engagements reaching dozens of country delegates, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), C5+1, and accessibility partners from Austria, Israel, Japan, and Kenya.
Annual Conferences
Access Board staff regularly attend national and international conferences that allow the agency to promote accessible design and build connections with other organizations. Some events that staff regularly attend include the annual California State University-Northridge (CSUN) Assistive Technology Conference, Global Disability Summit, Interagency Accessibility Forum (IAAF), M-Enabling Summit, National ADA Symposium, National Title VI Training & Technical Assistance Conference, and Zero Project Conference.