快活林性息

More than 4,500 attended the 快活林性息 AT Conference in Anaheim March 10鈥�14, 2025, making it the largest conference of its kind in the world. Attendees had the opportunity to attend more than 350 educational sessions and the sold-out exhibit hall, where approximately 130 booths showed the latest products and programs in the assistive technology and the accessibility and disability industries.

鈥淲e see a wide swath of folks from local, state and federal government, large corporations and industries such as education, rehabilitation, even banking,鈥� says 快活林性息鈥檚 Center on Disabilities Managing Director, Julia Santiago. 鈥淰irtually everyone is touched by accessibility standards and ensuring access and inclusion. We also see lots of users, individuals of all abilities and disabilities, looking for different services and products.鈥澛� 聽

鈥淲e provide the forum for people to connect and learn from each other,鈥� Santiago continues. 鈥淭his is kind of a rare opportunity,聽 where, for instance, a teacher can engage with a product developer from a large company, and those connections ultimately push the industry forward.鈥�

This year was a celebration of the 40th聽 Anniversary, and the keynote speaker was former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who shared the impact and the importance assistive technology has had for her.

鈥淲e also hosted a job fair, various networking events and thought-provoking fireside chats throughout the week,鈥� Santiago said, 鈥渁nd a lot of fun: Happy hour on Monday, a big party celebrating our 40 years on Tuesday, and accessible karaoke, a long-time favorite event.鈥�

Last year, the conference was a great event, attracting more than 4,000 attendees. The keynote speaker, DeafBlind human rights attorney Haben Girma, was especially enlightening about the challenges and opportunities of technologies in affording all kinds of accessibility, most especially in communication. In her address, available at 快活林性息ATC.tv, Girma declares that 鈥淒isability is innovation 鈥� Technology has the potential for a lot of opportunities for the 1 billion people with disabilities in the world鈥︹�� That鈥檚 right, the largest minority group鈥� 鈥淒isability if a part of human diversity.鈥澛� (I encourage you to view Girma's moving 2024 keynote.)

The 2025 快活林性息 ATC included presentations of research projects, AI, accessibility life cycles and guidelines, legal updates and much more. Many great products and services were on display at the Exhibit Hall, from companies and organizations that include Nike, Sony, Amazon, Google, CVS Health, The Braille Institute, the Department of State.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a really exciting event, to see people connect, and there is so much to learn and experience,鈥澛� Santiago says, 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 so fulfilling to know that over 40 years, we are still having an impact. Thousands of people have attended the conference over the years, and they take the knowledge and experience back to their communities, touching the lives of countless. Ultimately, of course, the goal is to eliminate the barriers for people of individuals of all abilities and disabilities to participate fully in work, in school. And yeah, in life.鈥�