SOS Conference on Wireless Emergency Communications

October, 2008 – September, 2011

Staff

• Helena Mitchell, PhD, Project Director
• Frank Lucia
• Elizabeth Davis
• Salimah Major

Organizing Committee

• John Brabyn, RERC on Low Vision Blindness
• Marcia Brooks, Access Alerts project – WGBH National Center for Accessible Media
• April Cline, Georgia Radio Reading Service
• Elizabeth Davis, EAD Associates
• Judy Harkins, RERC on Telecommunications Access at Gallaudet University
• Peter Lalley, National Technical Institute for the Deaf (RIT)
• Claude Stout, Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc.
• Martin Yablonski, The Lighthouse International (NY)

Purpose

• Utilize educational opportunities to reach consensus and then promote adoption of research findings, technology development and policy recommendations for improving access to emergency alerts and warnings for people with disabilities.
  
  The conference will present findings from the wireless emergency communications project team (D3), conference invitees will include public safety and emergency communications organizations, members from the wireless industry, advocacy groups representing the interests of people with disabilities, and researchers in the fields of accessible IT and emergency management who will address three issues raised by the FCC:
• Critical, specific and accessible emergency alerts are not reaching vulnerable populations, such as people with disabilities, utilizing the most optimal means and methods
• A next-generation digitally-based alert and warning system should be developed in a manner that assures persons with disabilities will be given equal access to alerts and warnings as other Americans.
• A more comprehensive Emergency Alert System should be developed that incorporates existing FCC disability access rules.

Approach

• Establish an organizing committee of key stakeholders from wireless technology, communications, and policy areas to develop the program and prepare evidentiary information for the SOS Conference.
• Convene the SOS Conference to present key findings, generate recommendations, and evaluate findings and recommendations with the key stakeholders.
• Prepare dissemination materials including:  SOS Conference proceedings, consensus statements on the role of digital wireless technologies in emergency communications, white papers and filings with regulatory bodies in support of key recommendations.
• Conduct targeted outreach and education efforts by presenting Conference findings and recommendations to consumer groups, emergency personnel; federal, state and local policy makers; and the wireless industry. 

Resources / Links

• Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc.
• National Center for Accessible Media
• EAD and Associates, LLC
• Rochester Institute of Technology and the National Technical Institute for the Deaf
• Gallaudet University
• Lighthouse International

Previous Wireless RERC Project (2001 - 2006)

• Conferences and Roundtables