Lance Willett: WordPress for Everyone: Delivering Inclusive Design
Published
February 26, 2018
WordPress has always been about websites, but it’s not just about websites. It’s about freedom and possibility. When we build websites for ourselves and others we are democratizing publishing for everyone regardless of language, ability, or economic wherewithal.
At Automattic, we believe Inclusive Design is essential to this mission. We’re inspired by the work of Kat Holmes and her clear articulation of design as needing to be increasingly inclusive — especially in the technology world.
Inclusive Design is for those who want to make great products for the greatest number of people. A philosophy of openness that matches the freedoms of WordPress, yet also offers a practical approach to growing your business. To reach more people, to find a larger addressable market by recognizing exclusion and learning from diversity. As Kat says, “Solve for one, extend to many.”
In this talk I’ll share the most important principles of Inclusive Design illustrated with stories from product improvements in our work at Automattic for WordPress.com and Jetpack (https://design.blog/inclusive/).
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February 27, 2018 at 9:17 am |
Slides, links, and notes here: Inclusive Design (sensible.blog).
The microphone recorded audio starts at 1 min 03 sec. I’m sorry for the beginning audio — microphone wasn’t working! I can transcribe the intro here.
Last year, 2017, was a year of awakening, and this is the talk I needed to hear a year ago. It’s an urgent and important message. I’m discovering that inclusive design starts with exclusion, broadens perspectives to build empathy, brings that empathy into my work.
Seeing a divide, in my youth — _yo nací en México, y tengo los dos pasaportes_ (I was born in Mexico and I still have both passoports — meant from an early age felt what it was like being on the other side, a foreigner. Finding a bridge over a divide has been central to my work as an adult. This theme continued for me in WordPress work as I had one foot in code/design working on themes; also an introverted/extroverted balance.
Discovering inclusive design showed me the strength of this duality — a bridge across divides, cultures, and teams.
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