Elder Law Prof Blog

Not Elder Law: Bird watchers around the world needed to gather crucial data

                                                                
From Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, bird watchers from more than 100 countries are expected to participate in the 17th annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), February 14–17, 2014. Anyone anywhere in the world can count birds for at least 15 minutes on one or more days of the count and enter their sightings at www.BirdCount.org. The information gathered by tens of thousands of volunteers helps track the health of bird populations at a scale that would not otherwise be possible. The GBBC is a joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society with partner Bird Studies Canada.

Read the full press release. 

 

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Kids can do the Great Backyard Bird Count for 2014

After almost 30 years, will airlines finally become fully accessible?

U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), in its ongoing effort to ensure equal access to air transportation for all travelers, is requiring airline websites and automated airport kiosks to be accessible to passengers with disabilities.  In addition, DOT will allow airlines to choose between stowing wheelchairs in a cabin compartment on new aircraft or strapping them to a row of seats, an option that will ensure that two manual, folding wheelchairs can be transported at a time.

 

The new rules are part of DOT’s continuing implementation of the Air Carrier Access Act of 1986.

 

“All air travelers should be treated fairly when they fly, regardless of any disabilities they may have,” said Secretary Foxx.  “These new rules build on our past work in ensuring that our air transportation system is accessible for everyone, while balancing both airlines’ and passengers’ need for flexibility.”

 

Under the new websites-and-kiosks rule, covered airlines are required within two years to make pages of their websites that contain core travel information and services accessible to persons with disabilities, and to make all of their web pages accessible within three years.  Websites are required to meet the standards for accessibility contained in the widely accepted Website Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).  The requirement applies to U.S. and foreign airlines with websites marketing air transportation to U.S. consumers for travel within, to or from the United States.   

 

The rule also requires ticket agents to disclose and offer web-based discount fares to customers unable to use their sites due to a disability starting within 180 days after the rule’s effective date.   Airlines are already required to provide equivalent service for consumers who are unable to use inaccessible websites.  Under the new rule, airlines must also offer equivalent service to passengers with disabilities who are unable to use their websites even if the websites meet the WCAG accessibility standards.

 

In addition, any automated kiosks installed at U.S. airports for services -- such as printing boarding passes and baggage tags --must be  accessible to passengers with disabilities until at least 25 percent of all kiosks at each airport location are  accessible.  Even if no new kiosks are installed, 25 percent of kiosks at each airport location must be accessible within 10 years.  The standards for accessible kiosks are based on those set by the U.S. Department of Justice for ATM and fare machines in its 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act rule as well as the Section 508 standards for self-contained closed products, such as copiers.

Read more about the new rules.

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Sweden is the best place in the world to grow old...

Sweden is the best place in the world to be old and Afghanistan the worst, according to a UN-backed global study.  The Global AgeWatch Index examined the quality of life of the elderly in 91 countries.  It warns that many countries do not have adequate support in place for their ageing populations.  By 2050, older people will outnumber children under 15 for the first time, with most of the elderly in developing countries, it said.  The Global AgeWatch Index was complied by the UN Population Fund and advocacy group HelpAge International, and released to mark the UN's Day of Older Persons.  Researchers used 13 different indicators - including income and employment, health provision, education, and environment - in what they said was the first study of kind to be conducted on a global scale.  The study's authors say countries across the world face an ongoing challenge from the rapidly ageing global population.

Source/more:  BBC

Read full report. 

Minnesota Gerontological Association posts program on seniors and driving

The Minnesota Gerontological Society has developed a program with Minnesota public television station tpt and other partners entitled "Love of Car: Transportation as We Age".  Find the program at
www.mngero.org as well as additional resources about transportation issues implicating older people. 

 

Help national leaders devise affordable, reliable public transit for seniors and persons with disabilities

The Federal Interagency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility (CCAM) invites you to participate in the United We Ride National Dialogue! 

Do you have suggestions and ideas that you would like to share with national leaders that can assist communities to increase access to affordable and reliable transportation services for people with disabilities, older adults, and people with limited incomes?

If so, you are invited to join a Federal Government online outreach effort to develop new ideas for transportation access for people with disabilities, older adults and persons of limited income!   For more information, and to register, visit the Dialogue website at www.UWRdialogue.org

The Federal Interagency Coordinating Council on Access and Mobility (CCAM) invites you to participate in the United We Ride National Dialogue. This groundbreaking, web-based interactive dialogue is designed to allow a broader range of opinions and ideas to inform future policies, the CCAM Strategic Plan and to strengthen the CCAM's relationship with its vast array of partners and stakeholders, including state, local, and tribal governments, transportation agencies, human service agencies, healthcare providers, employment specialists, educators, and consumers.

In order to capture this critical feedback, the CCAM is seeking your participation in a 2 week long, web-based dialogue that will begin on November 2nd and end on November 13th. The dialogue will allow participants to submit, comment, and rate ideas interactively on how to increase access to affordable and reliable transportation services for people with disabilities, older adults, and people with limited incomes. Your invaluable participation will directly inform the work of the CCAM on future policy decisions and the Strategic Plan.

This dialogue is being organized by the National Academy of Public Administration and Easter Seals, in partnership with the National Resource Center for Human Service Transportation Coordination, the Federal Transit Administration, and the Office of Disability Employment Policy.