Accessibility Considerations in Climate Communication: Efforts and Lessons Learned from the Fourth National Climate Assessment

Abstract:

A key component of successful climate communication is ensuring that the information being conveyed is accessible to the broadest possible audience, including people with visual, cognitive, physical, and a wide range of other limitations. Unless care is taken to make content accessible, these challenges can affect how people perceive the information being communicated and how they experience the means of delivery and can even prevent them from viewing or accessing the information. Because the impacts of climate change are far reaching, ensuring that information is accessible to all is extremely important.

Here, we discuss accessibility efforts as part of the Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4), which, as a federal product, adheres to the standards outlined by Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (1973 and 1998, respectively) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990). These laws provide protections to those with disabilities, ensuring that they are not discriminated against based on their disability status (Section 504) and that they have equitable access to electronic and information technology (Section 508).

NCA4 comprises hundreds of thousands of words of text, more than 280 figures, numerous tables, and dozens of photographs and is presented in both PDF and web formats. As a result, it involves a broad range of accessibility concerns, including making figures suitable for those with visual impairments (e.g., appropriate color schemes for those with color vision deficiency, text alternatives for non-text content) and providing accessible web content (e.g., keyboard navigation, suitable color contrast) and fully accessible PDF documents. Examples will be shown of such efforts implemented by the NCA Technical Support Unit, including lessons learned and planned improvements for NCA5.