Published by the EBU Office
With the financial support of
DG Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities
of the European Commission
Table of contents :
Shared Space Conference in Germany
EBU Commissions and Steering Groups
National news
Announcement
FEATURE
[ The opinions expressed in this Newsletter are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the EBU. ]Editor’s Note
Welcome to EBU Newsletter N° 64.
Over the last two months, EBU has been very active highlighting blind and
partially sighted people’s issues. Press
releases have been produced to mark a number of international days including
World Sight Day, White Cane Day and
European Road Safety Day. The latter, which we reproduced in this
Newsletter, warns against hazards faced by the
visually impaired because of the introduction of Shared Space schemes in
Europe. This is further developed in an article
about the Shared Space Conference which recently took place in Germany.
Readers will also find that EBU members have been as active as ever in
trying to improve copyright legislation and
access to television.
The Rights Commission is reconstituting its network which should contribute
to an active exchange of information and
expertise on blind and partially sighted people’s rights in Europe. The
Commission is also working on the setting up of a
groundbreaking European knowledge base on visually impaired people’s rights,
which should support the effective
implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with
Disabilities.
Our FEATURE section is devoted to Braille labelling on pharmaceutical
packages. It provides useful background
information on the significant work initiated by EBU and on what has been
achieved to date.
Enjoy your reading !
Please feel free to send your comments on the layout and contents of our
Newsletter to
ebu@euroblind.org
European Road Safety Day
EBU Press release – Paris, 13 October. –
Over the past sixty years, roads and pavements have been designed and built
for traffic and pedestrians. Pavements have also been built to give all
pedestrians a safe place in which to walk.
There have been various designs of formal pedestrian crossings, but all have
served their purpose, giving people a place to cross the road safely and
with confidence. For the past thirty years, organisations of blind and
partially sighted people have campaigned to improve road crossings to make
them more accessible, including tactile markings to indicate where the
crossings are and audible signals to indicate when it is a safe time to
cross. In some countries, a knurled rotating knob was introduced to help
deaf blind people as they are not able to hear the audible signal.
We have campaigned to keep pavements in good repair and clear of clutter. So
often, obstructions, such as overhanging branches, street signs, litter
bins, shop displays, and parked vehicles have prevented blind and partially
sighted people from walking safely on pavements. But, even with all these
obstacles, at least we have known where to walk, and where to find a safe
place to cross the road.
However, over the past three years, a new concept has been introduced in
many streets in Europe. This is the Shared Space concept. In most cases it
means that the pavement and the pedestrian crossing is removed completely,
creating a shared surface, and leaving no safe place for pedestrians to walk
and no safe place to cross the road.
The new idea is that the traffic and people mix together, and the pedestrian
must make eye contact with the driver, to indicate to each other what they
intend to do. For a start, that is impossible for a blind or partially
sighted person, and would be very difficult for someone with a learning
disability. In cities where these shared surface streets have already been
introduced, blind people have had to stop using these streets because they
no longer feel safe using them.
Surely, on this European Road Safety Day, everyone, including planners,
architects, local and national governments should not be making roads and
streets more dangerous than they are already. There are nearly 30 million
blind and partially sighted people living in Europe, many of whom travel
daily to their shops, to work and to social events in their local
communities. Many also travel throughout Europe for their holidays. Whatever
journey they make, for whatever reason, they need to feel safe and
confident. So roads and pavements must be designed and built taking into
account the real needs of blind and partially sighted people.
Further information from EBU Office,
ebu@euroblind.org
Shared Space Conference in Germany
BLIND FAITH IN TRAFFIC
By Hans Kaltwasser, International Relations Officer, German Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted.
The conference “Shared surface and shared space” was organised by the
Joint Technical Committee on Transport of the German Federation of the Blind
and Partially Sighted (DBSV) in late August 2008. Over 80 participants
gathered to investigate the Shared Space schemes in Osnabrück, Germany.
The terms “confidence” and “traffic space” hardly seem to reconcile,
particularly as many car drivers and cyclists are all too fond of
maintaining priority over pedestrians. The Shared Space concept aims to
create and maintain confidence through a shared navigation space, which is
common to all road users.
The Conference focused on the experience of the visually impaired. No road
signs, no traffic lights, no kerbs; in a nutshell Shared Space is a traffic
management concept based on eye contact. So how can the needs of blind and
partially sighted people be accommodated appropriately in this context?
Having a common traffic space shared by people who are motorised, moving by
muscle power or simply walking requires more than just mutual attention
based on eye contact. A large group of pedestrians, including the visually
impaired but also other people with reduced mobility, children and the
elderly, would be at greater risk when using Shared Space.
The presentations by experts from Germany, the Netherlands, Great Britain,
Austria and Switzerland made it clear that blind and partially sighted
people must not be excluded from the streets.
The discussion built on research conducted on the thoroughfare in Bohmte,
Lower Saxony. This study was completed as a result of DBSV’s intense
lobbying in the context of the first German Shared Space pilot project.
Taking certain factors into consideration such as unlimited sojourn on
shared surfaces and safe orientation for the visually impaired, can prevent
Shared Space schemes (and similar urban design plans) from becoming no-go
areas for blind people.
Solutions were proposed to improve orientation. Crossing points may usefully
be managed with zebra crossings or traffic lights. It is also important to
consider the kind, height and amount of kerbs placed at crossing points and
at separation points between road and pavement.
Conference delegates agreed on a positive assessment of the considerably
reduced speed in Shared Space, which is set to a maximum of 30 kph. They
stated that 20 kph would be even better and that visual contrast should be
reinforced. A number of additional suggestions and requirements to improve
the Share Space concept were released for publication.
The Conference ended on the conclusion that faith in Shared Space schemes
might be created if the needs of all road users, including the visually
impaired, are considered and adequately addressed.
Further information from Hans Kaltwasser, DBSV,
h.kaltwasser@dbsv.org
Access to television
As explained in the last edition of the newsletter, there has still not been
any serious commitment by industry to make TVs "speak". This is a key
requirement for blind people, and one that we have long called for in
meetings with European TV manufacturers.
A lot of work has been going into the preparation of an EBU stand at the
second "e-Inclusion ministerial conference", which will take place in Vienna
between November 30th and December 2nd.
This is a high profile event. We aim to use the stand to underline our
concerns that "digital switchover" will mean "digital switch off" for blind
people unless urgent action is taken by the Commission and by industry to
make digital TV accessible.
Further information and briefing material from Dan Pescod, RNIB European and
International Campaigns Manager,
dan.pescod@rnib.org.uk
Copyright
Have you ever tried to get an accessible book from another country, but
found you were not allowed to? At the moment copyright law often stops blind
people's organisations from sending or receiving accessible books across
national boundaries. Various members of the EBU are campaigning through the
World Blind Union to change this.
This is a real problem, since the number of organisations worldwide that are
capable of making accessible copies is not large, and we need to share our
resources to ensure access to the greatest number of accessible books.
The World Blind Union has been working with an NGO called Knowledge Ecology
International (KEI), libraries and a host of others to come up with a
proposal for a draft international treaty on access to copyrighted material
for blind people. In the first week of November 2008, WBU will table this
proposal at the World Intellectual Property Organisation's headquarters in
Geneva (WIPO), at its Copyright Committee.
At European level, EBU is preparing a response to a European Commission
"green paper" on copyright. We will say that EU copyright law needs to be
strengthened to ensure that blind and partially sighted people can make
accessible copies of books they have bought without breaking copyright law.
We will also be calling for better rules to stop publishers from making
online books inaccessible to blind and partially sighted people. This often
happens when technical blocks, designed to protect a book from piracy,
disable a screen reader.
Both of these initiatives will take time, and we are likely to face some
tough opposition. But the ultimate prize would be a significant increase in
the availability of accessible books for blind and partially sighted people.
It's surely a battle worth fighting!"
Further information and briefing material from Dan Pescod, RNIB European and
International Campaigns Manager,
dan.pescod@rnib.org.uk
Back to contents
EBU Commissions and Steering Groups
EBU Rights Commission
EBU RIGHTS COMMISSION - WORKING TOGETHER
By Philippe CHAZAL, President of the EBU Rights Commission
Working on the evolution of rights for blind and partially sighted people
requires, more than any other work areas, that member countries regularly
share information with each other. National good practice must be widely
disseminated to inspire, and impact on, other countries.
It is therefore important :
- That EBU member countries promptly appoint their link officer on the Rights Network (previously known as Hermes Network) to provide information on legislation affecting the situation of blind and partially sighted people in their countries. Each Commission member must link with two or three member countries.
- That EBU member countries rapidly complete the data base template concerning Article 27 (work and employment) of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. Contributions should follow the layout of the French input that has already been circulated so that national legislation can be easily compared.
The Rights Commission plans to publish at the beginning of each calendar
year an annual review setting out progress made in EBU member countries. In
France for example developments include legislative measures to promote the
full inclusion of blind and partially sighted people in community life; to
enhance access to the web and to written documents; and to improve the free
post scheme. I will report on these developments in the Review and I hope
that other countries will do the same and report on progress made, however
small, by the end of this year.
I know how busy we all are with our many tasks, time is often short to reply
to questionnaires or write articles. But it is only through a joint effort
that we will move forward.
Further information from Philippe CHAZAL,
presidence@cnpsaa.fr.
National News
Belgium
Audio-description was launched for the first time in amateur and
professional theatres by the Brussels Association of Amateur Theatres (ABCD)
on 4 October 2008. About 20 different plays, amounting to more than 40
performances, will be offered in audio-description in French-speaking
Belgium during the 2008-2009 theatre season.
A training scheme in live audio-description for the performing arts was
developed in 2007 by the project coordinator Christine Welche and a
professional actor Cedric Juliens. They met with the key players in
audio-description in Paris, attended several audio-described plays and
received assistance from a committee of visually impaired theatre lovers.
12 audio-describers have been trained so far. 13 plays were audio-described
as part of the training scheme with the support of various theatre companies
in Brussels. The trainees were actors and translators who believed in the
project and they all put their skills and enthusiasm into it.
The ABCD received support from the Elia Fund (King Baudoin’s Foundation) and
partnered with the ONA (Oeuvre Nationale des Aveugles) to acquire high
quality audio-descriptive equipment that can easily be transported from one
venue to another.
Further information from Christine Welche
audio-description@abcd-theatre.be or on the website
http://www.abcd-theatre.be/textes/audio-description.html .
Back to contents
France
Strong job prospects now await the visually impaired in the growing Beauty
and Well Being sector.
For the first time, the Thalgo Training School opens its doors to visually
impaired students who will earn the same professional degree as their
sighted peers.
The Thalgo Group is an international leader in the fields of cosmetics and
marine spa treatments; it also runs its own highly regarded Training School.
Facials, full body treatments, nail beauty, cosmetic care and perfumery are
some of the subjects covered in the Beauty and Cosmetics course.
The opening of this degree to visually impaired students is the result of a
collaborative initiative involving several French key players in the area of
job inclusion.
Further information from Virginie Forest,
virginie.forest.pro@gmail.com
Germany
The 7th edition of the German Week of Vision was held from 9 to 15 October
2008. This year’s theme was “Blind and partially sighted children”.
Week of Vision aims to raise awareness on good vision, blindness prevention
and the situation of the visually impaired in Germany and other countries.
A range of information campaigns and events were organised across the
country, including open days in eye clinics, presentations, technical
exhibitions, audio-described movies and events in the dark. Both World Sight
Day and White Cane Day were celebrated as part of these events.
Week of Vision was sponsored by Aktion Mensch and Carl Zeiss Meditec; it was
supported by the German Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted,
Christoffel Blindenmission, the Professional Association of Eye Doctors, the
German Committee for the Prevention of Blindness, the German
Ophthalmological Society, the German Association of Blind and Partially
Sighted Students and Professionals and the Agency of German Lions.
Further information from Petti West,
p.west@woche-des-sehens.de ,
or on the website
www.woche-des-sehens.de
Iceland
As part of their on-going Guide Dog Project, Blindrafelagid (the Icelandic
Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted) entrusted four guide dogs to
their new owners at an official event on 12 September.
Guide dogs have been quite a rarity in Iceland, with at most one guide dog
in the country at any given time. In 2004, a Blindrafelagid member turned to
the association to acquire a guide dog. As a result, a committee was set up
to start a guide dog activity and, in 2007, an agreement was signed with the
guide dog training school of the Norwegian Association of the Blind and
Partially Sighted.
The training scheme involved the participation of six Blindrafelagid members
in a three day introduction course at the dog school in Oslo, Norway.
Blindrafelagid also engaged in several awareness raising events and
information campaigns to educate the general public and prepare for the
dogs’ arrival on Icelandic soil.
The project was supervised by Blindrafelagid and the Ministry of Health in
Iceland. It received the support of the Lions movement which donated 109.000
Euros.
Further information from Blindrafelagid, the Association of the Blind and
Partially Sighted in Iceland, www.blind.is
The Netherlands
As education tools are increasingly turning into visual and digital
documents, Viziris (the Dutch Visually Impaired Organisation) is proposing a
set of measures to improve the quality and availability of accessible school
materials.
Most visually impaired Dutch children attend mainstream schools. They work
with manuals made accessible to them by a special service whose task is to
oversee the adaptation of teaching tools.
Viziris submitted its proposals to Ms. Sharen Dijksma, Dutch State Secretary
for Education, Science and Culture, stressing that unified guidelines are
crucial to ensure that adapted textbooks are made available throughout the
schooling system and to retain a high educational standard. Viziris called
for the establishment of a national knowledge centre, where expert
adaptation advice could be produced and disseminated.
Viziris also demanded accessibility guidelines and a quality mark for
digital education material such as learning software. They insisted that
such guidelines would be most effective if they were made mandatory for
publishers.
Finally, Viziris argued that delays could be resolved if mainstream schools
communicated their book lists earlier to adaptation services. Likewise,
publishers should be encouraged to share new content with adaptation
services before going to press.
The State Secretary welcomed these proposals and offered to support the
creation of a national knowledge centre to look into adaptation issues and
accessibility guidelines.
Further information from Viziris,
info@viziris.nl
ANNOUNCEMENT
An Innovative Tactile Paving System
VETTORE
By Giuseppe Bilotti, EBU Commission on Mobility and Access to Transport
As a result of the increased awareness of the need to make the public
environment more accessible, many projects have been started throughout
Europe over the last few years to improve visually impaired people’s
mobility and accessibility to the built environment. Vettore is one such
project; it was started three years ago by the Italian Union of the Blind
and Partially Sighted to look at the design of a guiding tactile system.
Accessibility and mobility are areas where our organisations must work
together to identify, and agree on, the solutions most appropriate to
overcome obstacles to mobility and independence. Only if we share the same
objective will we achieve tangible results.
What follows is a presentation of Vettore, a guiding tactile system based on
the research carried out in Italy. I hope it will contribute to the
introduction of a common system throughout EBU countries.
Vettore is based on the following requirements.
1. Having a limited set of symbols:
The system is simple in that it has only a few elements to be detected, identified and remembered.
- sine wave (or sinusoid) for the direction
- domes to warn against and detect impending danger
- coloured side strips for partially sighted people
2. Continuous attention and concentration:
- It is a fundamental element to keep the user’s sensory perception awake
- Vettore should not be an obstacle for other people with or without disabilities
- Its wave-like texture makes it an optimal guiding system that helps the ankle maintain balance – this involves a slight inclination of the feet which stimulates the locomotory system and which does not require the use of any external aid
3. The wavelike shape of the paving keeps the feet in a continuous
non-relaxed position, which makes the visually impaired person constantly
detect the direction of the path.
An important factor in the design phase was the need to maintain
the orientation at turns or direction changes. Research showed that the
solution to maintain the continuity of direction was to use the wavelike
feature also at turns, without inserting different tactile symbols. The sine
wave on the turn tile exactly matches the waves on the following tile, which
guarantees continuity of the path and exact detection of the direction.
Further information from:
www.sinusoide.it
FEATURE :
EBU working jointly for accessible pharmaceutical labelling
By John Heilbrunn, Chairman of the EBU Pharmaceutical Labelling Working Group.
This article highlights best practice within the following areas:
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Regional collaboration to make a stronger and united voice (the European
Blind Union has been the mouthpiece and platform upon which the respective
national organizations have been working);
Increased collaboration and joint efforts undertaken by several
organizations of the blind in the UK, Spain, Germany, Denmark and several
other European countries;
Ground-breaking new research on Braille legibility in terms of dot height
undertaken by the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) and the
University of Birmingham (sponsored jointly by the industry and 7 national
blind organizations);
Constructive work in finding acceptable compromise values with the relevant
industrial sectors without giving up basic quality requirements.
Background:
In the autumn of 2004 the EU adopted a change to the directive on
Pharmaceutical products which, amongst other provisions, contained an
Article 56A on access for blind persons to information about their medicine.
The provision contains two sections, one on the obligation to put Braille on
pharmaceutical products and one on making the so-called Patient Information
Leaflet (PIL) available to visually impaired persons in accessible formats.
(The PIL is the paper inside all products giving information on composition
of the substances, possible side-effects, dosage requirements, etc.).
The Article in the EU directive does not give specific instructions on how
the producers, the distributors or the dealers are to fulfil their
obligations, and this has meant that the industry, the pharmacists, the
regulatory bodies and the end-users (patients/users' organisations) have
been compelled to find ways and procedures to get the formats, dimensions
and methods as operational as possible.
Braille can be provided on medicinal packages in two ways: Either through
embossing Braille text on the cardboard pack containing the tablets, the
liquid or whatever product. The other way is to stick a label on the product
where Braille is formed through a chemical process that leaves dots stuck on
top of the label. This last method generally ensures Braille of a better
(higher) quality, but it means adding an extra component in the process and
labels are not considered practical in all instances.
Another issue is the wear and tear on dots in the handling and stocking of
packages, as over time Braille dots may deteriorate and become less
readable.
In certain countries, such as Italy and Spain, Braille has been on
pharmaceutical products for years. Quality has varied considerably, but
there has been no focused and joint attempt to set a standard and lobby for
really good Braille labelling. The necessary background and knowledge on
end-user requirements, technical possibilities and production restrictions
were not there and the situation has been such that those who did have
Braille on their packages were grateful and did not lobby to improve the
quality of labelling.
The main stakeholders involved in the production and packaging of
pharmaceutical products are the pharmaceutical industry, the packaging
industry and end-users’ organizations, i.e. blind organizations.
In addition, the national and EU regulatory bodies have been involved on the
sideline as they have certain overarching responsibilities and obligations.
What are the main interests of the involved bodies?
The blind end-users need good, legible, crisp and distinct Braille on
medicine package and as much relevant information in a Braille format as
possible, based on what they know and can easily understand.
The carton industry wants Braille embossing procedures that are as
inexpensive and straightforward as possible and that fit in the general
processing of cardboard from a flat sheet to a finished, folded, printed and
glued box.
To ease production, they also wish there were authoritative Braille tables
to adhere to, with a similar Braille from country to country and the same
letters, numbers and punctuation signs.
The pharmaceutical industry wants a system that ensures products from the
same production batch can be marketed in as many countries as possible. They
are also looking for utmost information accuracy to avoid potential
liability risks and law suits based on Braille misrepresentation. Further,
they require Braille labelling (dots height) that does not lead to the
cracking of the surface of the packages for this could result in a less
pleasant appearance of the underlying print or in illegible print for
sighted product users.
Therefore there are various considerations pulling in different directions.
This situation does not necessarily point to the fulfilment of a majority of
the wishes in a fully acceptable manner. Compromise is the solution, i.e.
the best result from a negotiated outcome.
Where are we today?
A technical standard document is close to being ready for voting. With
research results on the table, the blind movement could argue that under a
certain reasonable threshold, Braille dot height is mandatory to enable
older persons to read Braille confidently and reliably. We could brush off
the previous industry-based and unauthorized trial tests by referring to
robust scientific results based on sound research principles.
A standing European Braille code has not been developed as regards Braille
tables and symbols for packaging use. As a basic principle, countries have
been left with the right to their own Braille representation. Only those who
willingly went along with the guideline on pharmaceutical Braille will see
this Braille appear on the medicinal packages in their countries.
To its dismay, the industry has been compelled to accept the need for a
Braille labelling that not only varies in terms of language and brand name,
but also in its use of symbols such as microgram, percent, and fractions.
In its policy, EBU maintained the right to national Braille tables in each
respective country; as a result, work within and between organizations has
been cordial and most constructive. The industry, however, had a hard time
to understand and accept differences and country-specific occurrences.
The blind movement handled a challenging task in trying to map out the
various national Braille tables. It has also been a challenge to find the
authoritative bodies dealing with such matters and identifying the ways that
decisions on Braille representation might be taken.
With this directive, the EU sent a progressive signal towards better and
fairer accessibility to information for blind persons in a way that is in
fact stronger than what is found in most national settings. The blind
movement has shown its maturity in being able to stand up to the giant
industrial complex in a constructive manner.
Further information from John Heilbrunn, Chair, EBU Pharmaceutical
Labelling Working Group, jh@dkblind.dk
Back to contents
Coming Events |
EBU Board
10
– 11 January 2009 COUPVRAI (France)
Contact : Birgitta Blokland, EBU Secretary General
Email : bjb202@hotmail.com
EBU Commissions and Steering
Groups
16 – 18 January 2009 TUUSULA (Finland)
Youth Steering Group
Contact : Oystein Fylling, EBU Youth Steering Group Coordinator
Email : oystein.fylling@netcom.no
Other organisations
Until 8 March 2009 STRASBOURG (France)
Temporary Exhibition "Dialogue in the Dark";;
www.dialoguedanslenoir.com/en/dialogue-dans-le-noir-en/
20 November 2008
DUBLIN (Ireland)
ACCESS AND THE CITY – Conference
Organised by the National Disability Authority, the Centre for Excellence in
Universal Design, the European Observatory and the Dublin City Council.
This conference will showcase best practice examples of how technology can
be used to provide access for all in cities and towns.
http://www.universaldesign.ie/
21 - 23 November 2008 MADRID (Spain)
TIFLOINNOVA - International Exhibition of Assistive Technology for People
with Visual Disabilities
Organised by ONCE-CIDAT, this year's edition will display the latest
products and trends within the world market of assistive technology for
blind and partially-sighted people
http://tifloinnova2008.once.es/index.cfm?idi=ingg
3 – 5 December 2008 BIRMINGHAM (UK)
4th International Tactile Graphics Conference and Exhibition
This event, also offering pre-conference workshops and excellent networking
opportunities, will cover all aspects of tactile graphics for blind and
partially sighted children and adults in education, work and daily life.
Presentation topics will include challenges and solutions, applications and
good practice, technologies for producing and accessing tactile graphics,
training, and tactile graphic literacy.
www.nctd.org.uk/conference/Conf2008/index.asp
20 - 23 April 2009
WROCLOW (Poland)
Conference and Workshop on Assistive Technologies for People with Vision and
Hearing Impairments: Past Successes and Future ChallengessThis is the sixth event in the CVHI international conference series on Assistive Technologies and Rehabilitation Engineering supported by the European Commission. CVHI is part of the CWST project, http://cwst.icchp.orgg.
Topics will deal with the engineering and scientific aspects of assistive technology for sensory impaired people.
Information soon available from:
www.elec.gla.ac.uk/Events_page/CVHI/cvhi