Accessibility for Localization Professionals

Have you considered how your localization efforts can be more inclusive?

In this interview, Verónica Morales Beltrán, a localization professional with over 12 years experience in the video game industry, talks about the challenges of incorporating accessibility best practices in the localization workflow.

Verónica is a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competences, Accessible Document Specialist and an Accessible Player Experience Practitioner, registered with the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (link opens to a new window). As a digital accessibility consultant, she focuses on making the digital space more inclusive and accessible for everyone. 

The content of this interview is made accessible with:

- closed captions for videos; click on the CC icon to enable then

- a bullet point summary in plain English under each video clip.

 

 

Tell us a bit about your background and how you became interested in accessibility?

  • Discovered accessibility in 2021
  • Time to think, learn something new
  • As a teacher, always aware of the importance of making content accessible to all students
  • Interested in languages and human-machine interaction
     

What are the biggest challenges in making localized content accessible to people with disabilities?

  • Lack of awareness  
  • "Someone else will take care of it" or "Will tell me what to fix"
  • Diversity of end users/personas in UX research
  • Accessibility at all stages of product development (research, development, testing, marketing or launch)
  • Not an afterthought. Shift to the left!
  • Accessibility is only associated with the disability community. However, we all benefit from it. 

How can cultural differences in perceptions of disability affect the localization process for accessibility?

  • Linked to accessibility maturity levels:
    • Inactive: No awareness or recognition 
    • Launch: A11y recognized, plan initiated but activities not well organized
    • Integrate: roadmap in place, approach well defined and organized 
    • Optimize: a11y is embedded throughout the organization, consistently evaluated, and results are assessed.
  • Cultural differences play a big role, each country implements accessibility at its own pace, different laws and perceptions

Are there specific accessibility standards or guidelines that you consider essential to follow during localization?

Many languages have complex text layouts or writing systems. How do you ensure that accessibility features such as screen readers work effectively in these contexts?

  • Heading Structure
  • Elements correctly described
  • Purpose links
  • Documents tagged correctly
  • Alt text implemented
  • Language set, pronunciation
  • Keyboard navigation
  • End user (not only blind community / low vision people) may prefer to hear the information
  • Positive impact on SEO

Can you share an example of a successful localization project that prioritized accessibility for a global audience?

What advice would you give to companies or organizations that want to ensure that their localized content is accessible to everyone?

 

 

  • Invest in accessibility awareness (You can't know that what you don’t know)
  • Train your teams, create dedicated positions for accessibility experts, collaborative effort
  • Shift-left approach and across all the product development
  • Involve users with different abilities “nothing about us, without us”
  • Keep on learning. Stay up to date, connect with professionals. Learn and contribute.

 

Isabella Massardo

Content strategist at GALA. A linguist and technologist who has lived in Italy, Russia and the Netherlands. Through GALA, Isabella offers the translation community content that’s relevant, reliable, and timely. She is always on the lookout for thought-provoking globalization and localization topics.