Interview with Angie Rajani, CPACC

QUESTION 01 Can you tell us a bit about yourself, and how your disability might impact your experience, as someone who attends live in-person and virtual events?

As a person who lives with C-PTSD and ADHD, the differences in my experiences between in-person and virtual events tend to be quite stark.

When it comes to in-person events, if it is a meeting or conference, I have to get there early to make sure I can get a good seat, usually closer to the front, so I can focus on the speaker(s)/media. Being short doesn’t help when everyone is seated at the same height, so my whole experience is oriented around the time and location, and then I don’t get to network because I need to save my seat. I also find that clothing for in-person versus virtual events impacts my ability to enjoy the event. Finding clothing that is professional or venue appropriate and comfortable is a challenge when I have sensory issues and temperature impacts my ability to focus and feel comfortable.

Virtual meetings allow me to be in my most comfortable clothing, seating, and temperature, while also allowing me to adjust the volume, so I can actually get the most out of the experience. Having captions for virtual events allows me to better focus and process what I am hearing and seeing. Captions also allow me to take notes or absorb the learning from the session or get those jokes because I can read them off the screen.

QUESTION 02 Thinking back on some of your experiences attending in-person or virtual events, what are some of the worst things speakers, trainers, and other communication experts can do to ruin your experience as an attendee?

For in-person events, my biggest barriers or attributes that do not contribute positively are:

• Insensitive humour about women/gender/race/pronouns/body size – These usually make me feel uncomfortable because they are sensitive topics to me and impact my ability to navigate the world in the same way others do.
• Lack of a sign post or a table of contents – Whether you are in-person or not, having some way of finding information upfront about what you will be covering helps my brain recall the right information or at least lets me know I will need to take notes if something I know nothing about will be covered.
• No Captions or materials/slides – For virtual events, I need captions in order to best process what I am hearing and take notes; however, if it is an in-person event, if you have provided the slides beforehand or some material afterward so I can match up my notes with what I heard that would help me solidify what I learned from you, rather than rendering it forgettable because I don’t have a way to store the material.
• Not offering a virtual option – Sometimes in-person events aren’t transit accessible or the timing doesn’t allow you to join and enjoy the event. If you can offer a virtual event, you are allowing people to make it on time and actually enjoy your presentation or event without the anxiety of coming late. With my ADHD, I have missed events because I don’t always have the best sense of time and if things were virtual, I would have been able to pop open my laptop and just start streaming without feeling the worst about not being there in person.
• Not offering an affordable option – We live in a capitalist society, and we do not all have the same wealth, ability to make the same or pay the same prices, access to the same socio-economic benefits. If you cannot consider economic access barriers, maybe you should consider why you think money is more important than inclusion.

QUESTION 03 Can you share some of the great things speakers, trainers, and other communication experts sometimes do that make a positive impact on your ability to fully enjoy your in-person or virtual event experiences?

One of the best experiences I’ve ever had at an in-person conference was where we were given access to the materials a week beforehand, so we had enough time to print them or have them on our computers. They also did a tour of the venue, so we would know where the exits, food, and bathrooms were. These two things made it much easier to participate because I felt comfortable and was actually prepared.

For a virtual event, I recommend providing captions and a transcript during the event and also producing a recording because this way even if someone missed the event they can still participate.

For me, it is about access. Asking attendees beforehand what they need to enjoy the event is proactively trying to make sure you are considering what people will want to be able to be present and enjoy the event. When hosting any event, asking what people would like or finding out what would entice them to join will probably help you design a more inclusive event, so you aren’t just designing for people who are coming, but you are finding ways to reach those who wouldn’t have come because they have not been included in the past.

QUESTION 04 If you had one piece of advice to give speakers, trainers, and other communication experts, so their content became more inclusive of people who have disabilities, what would it be?

My one piece of advice is, do not assume anything about your audience. Once we lay down assumptions, we start to make decisions on how to cater around those assumptions. Sometimes our assumptions can be tainted with biases, hierarchies, historical/outdated ideas, and our own negative experiences, which prevent us from connecting, including, learning, and enjoying with our audiences.

QUESTION 05 Thank you for sharing some of your insights with us today. As we wrap up our conversation, is there anything that you’d like to add, such as another thought, another piece of advice, another perspective, etc.?

If you can provide multiple media for people to enjoy your event or conference, please do it. Sometimes it is a cost issue, timing, location, mental capacity or availability that prevents people from being there in person. Having a recording with the appropriate transcript, interpretation (even subtitles for different linguistic profiles), highlights, or even a comparable digital experience, allows people to still participate without feeling like they are the reason they couldn’t join.