Virtual Assistant: a 3-D avatar, the best classmate for deaf students

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/virtual-assistant-a-3-d-avatar-the-best-classmate-for-deaf-students-1.2256365

Yanivis Izaguirre

The Irish Times

20 June 2015

Text / Under 800 Words

In Honduras, tens of thousands of people have hearing disabilities. The National Autonomous University of Honduras has developed software that converts spoken language into an avatar on the computer who signs for the hearing impaired. Teachers in classrooms can teach hearing impaired students with this new software.

Legal Aid With a Digital Twist

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/01/opinion/legal-aid-with-a-digital-twist.html?_r=0

Tina Rosenberg

The New York Times

1 June 2016

Text / 1500-3000 Words

Software and apps are helping millions of Americans trying to solve civil problems on their own.

Lend Me Your Eyes

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04r1sh9

Nick Holland

BBC

5 February 2017

Radio / Over 15 Minutes

New apps like Tap Tap See and Be My Eyes are helping blind people solve everyday problems by combining smartphone video technology with an army of volunteers. The app allows a blind individual to take a photo or video of an item that the person needs to "see"; it then either automatically interprets the photo and announces it aloud to the user, or, if the app itself cannot identify the object, sends it to a real person somewhere in the world who can.

The slow lane: Dutch app allows elderly to 'hack' traffic lights

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/jul/12/dutch-app-elderly-hack-pedestrian-crossings

Gordon Darroch

The Guardian

12 July 2017

Text / 800-1500 Words

In the Netherlands, city councils are piloting remarkable new technology to make roads safer and friendlier for cyclists and pedestrians through the use of apps that improve the efficiency and sensitivity of traffic lights to the elderly, disabled, and young children. Improved traffic flow is a key part of the way forward into a greener, safer urban future.

Uber, but for Grandma

http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/09/27/transportation-for-the-aging-population-000531

Kate Francis

Politico

27 September 2017

Text / 1500-3000 Words

The way cities are built in the United States makes getting around without driving a car difficult. This means that, for an increasingly aging population, mobility can be a significant issue, leading to challenges such as missed medical appointments and loneliness that can actually decrease lifespan. But in the age of the sharing economy, ride services such as Lyft and Uber reach out to the demographic that arguably needs them most, partnering with medical centers and hospice providers to get smartphone technology - or more "old school" alternatives such as hotlines - into the hands of senior citizens.

As Cancer Tears Through Africa, Drug Makers Draw Up a Battle Plan

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/07/health/africa-cancer-drugs.html?_r=1

Donald G. McNeil Jr.

The New York Times

7 October 2017

Text / Over 3000 Words

Two major pharmaceutical companies are offering discount cancer drugs in some African countries in an initiative modeled on the aids campaign. In African countries access to cancer treatment is scarce due to high prices of medicine, lack of medical staff and equipment and lack of awareness about the disease among the population; leading to higher death rates than in the developed world. The partnership to combat this also includes the American Cancer Society and IBM who are working to simplify cancer treatment guidelines and to make them available as an online tool to any hospital with an internet connection

How A Textile Factory Empowers Its All-Blind Work Crew

http://uproxx.com/life/dallas-lighthouse-for-the-blind-video

Alia Stearns

UPROXX

5 December 2017

Multi-Media / 3-5 Minutes

A startling 70% of blind persons in the United States are unemployed. The Dallas Lighthouse for the Blind is helping shift the understanding of what types of jobs are available to this population with a revolutionary factory built specifically for its blind employees. Each machine is retrofitted to be used safely and easily, empowering individuals to become more independent. This video takes you inside the factory to meet some of the workers.

How to Get Wheelchairs on Planes

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05qs5bd

William Kremer

BBC

17 December 2017

Radio / Over 15 Minutes

When you step on an airplane, you might not be thinking about people who use wheelchairs, neither are airlines. People who need to use wheelchairs have faced a number of challenges on airplanes, like lost and damaged wheelchairs, not being able to use the restroom, and feeling dehumanized. Some people, are taking matters into their own hands.

An Artificial Limb Can Bring Hope — But Who's Going To Make It?

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/07/23/425287726/an-artificial-limb-can-bring-hope-but-whos-going-to-make-it

Amy Yee

NPR

23 July 2015

Text / 800-1500 Words

Prosthetics can change lives, but in some countries there aren't enough people trained to make the needed limbs, braces and splints. To address the shortage in Bangladesh, the Center for the Rehabilitation of the Paralyzed is partnering with Red Cross and international donors to offer free training for local clinicians, and free treatment for patients.

Painting the world for people who don't see color

https://www.azernews.az/ijd/133425.html

Karla Pequenino

AzerNews

16 June 2018

Text / 800-1500 Words

ColorADD is a system of symbolic shapes representing colors for those that are challenged to perceive shades or are colorblind. The system is used extensively throughout Portugal on subway maps, crayons, and other appropriate places as well as being available as an app.