I’ve been having important conversations with people advocating at the policymaking level. These discussions often happen behind the scenes, but they shape the standards of accessibility across provinces, territories, and the country.
One key area is interpreting services — whether in-person, VRS (Video Relay Service over the phone), or VRI (Video Remote Interpreting). For remote services especially, we need policies that ensure two-way seamless communication.
Imagine a hearing person on a phone call dealing with high latency, lag, and choppy audio. It would be frustrating for everyone. The same applies to video calls for Deaf people connecting through interpreters. We need clear, low-latency, high-quality video so both the Deaf caller and the interpreter can communicate effectively without frustration.
This kind of advocacy happens because we connect with the right people — those who have technical knowledge and lived Deaf experience. By bringing these issues to decision-makers, we can push for better policies and technology in Canada, catching up to (or surpassing) what’s already working well in other countries.
These behind-the-scenes efforts are real accessibility wins that improve daily life for many.
What about you? Have you experienced lag or poor quality in video calls or interpreting services? What would “seamless” communication look like for you?
Share your thoughts in the comments!
See you tomorrow for Day 17!