“Dots and Dashes” is a short newsletter featuring a variety of topics and ACB stories. This issue features the White House’s 2020 budget proposal and its potential impact on blind and visually impaired people, a study on connected autonomous vehicles and blind pedestrians, Hulu adding audio description, and advocacy updates.

“Dots and Dashes” is a short newsletter featuring a variety of topics and ACB stories. This issue features a job opening in ACB’s Minnesota office, awards deadlines, a convention tour preview, information about a Section 503 study, Advocacy Updates, and more.

Below is a listing of our 2019 tours in Rochester, N.Y. during the Conference and Convention of the American Council of the Blind. Prices listed are per person for pre-registration. On-site pricing will be slightly higher.

Friday, July 5

Genesee Country Village, 8:00 AM - 4:45 PM, $100

Gift shops, lunch included. Tour is not wheelchair accessible; minimal walking.

City Bus Tour I, 2:00 PM - 4:30 PM, $21

Enjoy a narrated tour of Rochester, no stops, no walking.

Are you ready to start gearing up for the 2019 ACB Brenda Dillon Memorial Walk? “100K Photo Finish” is this year’s Walk theme. The Photo Finish is in line with the overall convention theme of Picture the Future. What does the 100K part represent? Yes, you guessed it! Our goal is to raise at least $100,000 for ACB and its affiliates this year, and with your help, we can do it.

Thank you to everyone who helped, in any way, make the 2018 Walk a success. We raised more than $93,000.

“Dots and Dashes” is a short newsletter featuring a variety of topics and ACB stories. This issue features a reminder on membership updates, the results of the World Blind Union’s Audio Description Survey, the USA is the 50th signer to the Marrakesh Treaty, information about the next board of publications meeting, WBU Audio Description Survey results, and the latest Advocacy Updates.

ACB Joins all of its U.S. partner organizations in celebrating the final diplomatic step for the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland on February 8, 2019. ACB President Kim Charlson is a member of the Board of Directors of the Accessible Books Consortium, the WIPO entity working on implementation of the Marrakesh Treaty with the fifty member countries.

A new international survey reveals that audio description (AD) is an important assistive technology worldwide providing access to people who are blind or have low vision to the arts and many other visually-rich events.

The new international AD survey (69 countries and the Pacific Disability Forum) finds that:

Step Into the Leadership Spotlight
by Kenneth Semien, Sr.

We are pleased to announce the hiring of Clark Rachfal to be ACB’s Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs.

March to the Beat of a Different Drum
By Kenneth Semien, Sr.