Corporate Leadership Award

Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) is a leading provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents. Every day, millions of users and thousands of businesses experience Nuance’s proven applications.

Nuance recognizes that people interact in all kinds of ways and is committed to providing the right tools to help them do this. Many of the solutions developed by Nuance have important applications in accessibility and assistive technology, including speech recognition, text to speech and more. An assistive technology for those with a broad range of physical and learning challenges, Dragon speech recognition reduces the pain and frustration of daily computer tasks by helping to reduce the number of keystrokes and mouse clicks needed to create documents or manage computer applications - all by voice.

Non-Profit Leadership Award

The Institute for Human Centered Design (IHCD), founded in Boston in 1978 as Adaptive Environments, is an international non-governmental educational organization (NGO) committed to advancing the role of design in expanding opportunity and enhancing experience for people of all ages and abilities through excellence in design. IHCD’s work balances expertise in legally required accessibility with promotion of best practices in human-centered or universal design.

IHCD has been the lead organization in the international Universal Design movement, having hosted or co-hosted five international conferences (New York -1998, Providence -2000, Yokahama – 2002, Rio de Janeiro – 2004, Kyoto – October 2006) as well as international student design competitions, smaller regional meetings and publication of web and print materials. IHCD is currently exploring an international event that would offer nations in the Middle East multi-disciplinary consultation for post-conflict reconstruction from a Universal Design perspective. IHCD continues to work with the UN on the implementation of the new Treaty on the Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities that endorses Universal Design as the basis for design guidelines.

Our Core Beliefs

• Design is powerful and profoundly influences our daily lives and our sense of confidence, comfort, and control.
• Variation in human ability is ordinary, not special, and affects most of us for some part of our lives.

What We Do

The Institute for Human Centered Design promotes design that works for everyone across the spectrum of ability and age and enhances human experience. Home to both the NE ADA Center and the nationwide Fair Housing FIRST Technical Assistance Center, IHCD provides easy access to information and guidance about the civil rights laws and codes that provide a bedrock of accessibility in the US. IHCD also provides education and consultation about strategies, precedents and best practices that go beyond legal requirements to design places, things, communication and policy that integrate solutions to the reality of human diversity.

Our work includes:

• funded projects with target audiences, specific services and products and grant periods;
• consultation to public and private entities on accessible and universal or human-centered design;
• generating initiatives in response to unmet needs that we research and most often evolve into proposals for funding;
• promotion and education through web and print publications; lectures, workshops and conferences; formal and tailored courses; and public policy advocacy.

Individual Leadership Award

As Camp and Youth Services Manager for Easter Seals Massachusetts, Colleen helps youth with disabilities develop their abilities and expand their opportunities. She is a mentor who encourages youth to be active on Beacon Hill through advocating for key legislation for youth with disabilities. Notably, Colleen rallied support for DLC’s ‘Bridges to Success’ bill to help youth in special education smoothly transition from school to the adult world. A former Easter Seals client, camper and board member, she is a strong believer in teaching others to advocate for themselves and instilling confidence in today’s youth. Colleen and her work are an inspiration to the disability community and offer encouragement for the future of the disability rights movement.

Unsung Hero Award

As Executive Director of the Massachusetts Architectural Access Board, Tom is responsible for ensuring public buildings in the Commonwealth are accessible to people with disabilities. Tom works with architects, builders, developers, and building officials to educate them on staying in compliance with regulations and making their buildings accessible. Tom is a force of nature in his work and is a large part of why Massachusetts has high accessibility standards.

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