Re: Some success from the UK

Congrats to Julie!

- Judy

At 06:44 PM 7/13/00 +0000, Julie Howell wrote:
>Hi everyone
>as well as working at RNIB, I run a community site for people
>with multiple sclerosis (MS).  I do my best to make the site fully
>WAI compliant.  I had some award successes this week which I
>thought might be on interest.
>Here is the RNIB press release, in which WAI is mentioned.
>Best wishes
>Julie Howell, RNIB, UK
>
>13 July 2000
>
>RNIB WEB EXPERT WINS TWO MAJOR AWARDS
>
>Julie Howell, the Royal National Institute for the Blind's (RNIB)
>Campaigns Officer (Accessible Internet), has won two website
>awards in one evening.  In the Yell UK Web Awards organised
>annually by Yellow Pages, she won hands-down with 75% of the
>votes in the "Daily Mirror Readers Choice" category, and was
>runner-up in the 'Best Personal Site' category.  In addition, she
>gained first prize in The New Statesman New Media Awards in
>the "Online Community" category.  In a bizarre twist, Julie had
>originally been asked to be a judge in the New Statesman
>Awards for accessibility, and then found out why she had not
>been contacted about the shortlisting: she was on the list herself!
>
>Julie - who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) ten
>years ago - created her website, Jooly's Joint, five years ago,
>as an on-line community of people with MS around the world.
>
>"I am thrilled to receive these two awards on behalf of the
>thousands of people
>with multiple sclerosis who make up the community that is
>Jooly's Joint," she said reacting to her double success.  Going
>on to refer to her work with RNIB, she continued: "These awards
>recognise that websites that are designed with the needs of
>everyone in mind can be winners.  Careful, accessible web
>design (as recommended by the Web Accessibility Initiative)
>can result in attractive, functional sites that are a joy to use and
>easy to create.  I hope more designers will take a leaf out of my
>book and consider the needs of everyone when designing for
>the web." 
> 
> Julie Howell has also been recognised as an internet pioneer
>in a new book: "Heroes.com: the names and faces behind the
>dot com era", sold in aid of The ITV Year of Promise.  
> 
> The book is a collection of interviews with significant figures of
>the internet age, and Julie was selected because: "Julie Howell,
>the name and face behind Jooly's Joint, is one of our greatest
>heroes.  Her site is visited regularly by 10,000 members who are
>living and surfing with multiple sclerosis".
>  
> Notes for Editors:
> 
> 1	The UK Yell Web Awards 2000 are the "people's choice"
>of the best of the Net. Now in its fifth year, the Yell Awards
>continue to recognise and promote the wealth of creativity and
>originality within the UK Web industry
>(http://www.yell.co.uk/awards).
> 
> 2	For more information about the New Statesman new
>Media Awards, go to
>http://www.newstatesman.co.uk/newmedia.
> 
> 3	Jooly's Joint: people with MS supporting each other is at:
>http://www.mswebpals.org.
> 
> 4	"Heroes.com:the names and faces behind the dot com
>era" by Louise Proddow of Sun Microsystems, is published by
>Hodder and Stoughton (http://www.dotcomheroes.com). The
>book is being sold in aid of the charity ITV Year of Promise
>(http://www.itv.yearofpromise.co.uk/).
> 
> 5	The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Web Content
>Authoring Guidelines are available online at:
>http://www.w3.org/WAI.
> 
> 6	Further information about RNIB's Campaign for Better
>Web design is available online at: http://www.rnib.org.uk/digital.
> 
> 7	RNIB's Technology Service provides a wide range of
>information on the use of technology by blind and partially
>sighted people. The service helps sighted and people with
>serious sight problems, such as employers, those in work or
>seeking work, students, teachers, parents, and educational and
>employment professionals.  RNIB Technology Information
>Service can be contacted at: www.rnib.org.uk/technology, or by
>phone on: 024-7636 9555, or via email: technology@rnib.org.uk.
> 
> 8	RNIB is the leading charity working in the UK offering
>practical support, advice and information to anyone with a
>serious sight problem.  For information, call the RNIB Helpline
>on: 0845-766 9999.
>
-- 
Judy Brewer    jbrewer@w3.org    +1.617.258.9741    http://www.w3.org/WAI
Director, Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) International Program Office
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
MIT/LCS Room NE43-355, 545 Technology Square, Cambridge, MA,  02139,  USA

Received on Friday, 14 July 2000 00:38:34 UTC