Accessible Me

Accessible Me seeks to transform not just businesses, but the entire architecture of accessibility.

What they are building

I spoke with founder Michael Osbourne about what Accessible Me does. He explained that they focus on whether a real person can use an accessible interface in real world conditions; when tired, overwhelmed, under pressure or processing the world differently. This has led them increasingly into work in cognitive load, neurodivergence, and trauma-informed design. More than just audits and training, they want to build consideration for the diversity of human function into the fabric of the business so more people can participate without having to ask for accommodation.

What caught our attention

First, they are moving accessibility from an accommodation, to a design consideration. We build everything around assumptions, height, width, size of hand, speed of turn (roadways). Why is it that some people receive preferential treatment? Obviously, because there are more of them, right? But this is the reductionist, mechanistic mindset. Humans as cogs in a machine rather than the participants in a living system. Accessible Me recognizes the dignity and beauty in the differences amongst us. You don’t have to be disabled to appreciate that! Secondly, they offer an experience of inaccessibility in an Escape Room style activity called A11yship. This proves to me they aren’t just out to win contracts and exploit a market niche. They are making cultural change.

Michael and I discussed the emergence of a culture of perception and how that might be showing up in our various circles. He was intrigued by the idea of a people defined by their way of seeing and operating in the world. We talked of shared signals and the ways it may vary from community to community. Not in a directed and controlled approach, but organically through convergence of people who share the experience of being outliers in the dominant systems.