Over the past decade, Gerard has built and advised accessibility teams worldwide,and helped to drive accessibility for the Atlassian Design System. What if you could stop accessibility bugs before they're even written? No audits. No last-minute scrambles. No "we'll fix it later"

Roy Samuelson ensures blind people enjoy watching videos. He authored A Voice Actor's Guide to Audio Description Performance, and consults with media companies on voice decisions and how to build accessibility into production. He treats accessibility as storycraft, not compliance

Meet Jason, Lead Digital Accessibility Specialist and speaker of Smells Like Shift Spirit. Tired of accessibility being treated like a compliance checkbox? Jason is bringing a more collaborative “Shift Out” approach to the main stage. Practical strategies. No compliance ballads.

Tait Hoyem is a Computer Science graduate looking to make accessibility better at its core This talk explores accessibility across the boot chain, from power-on through into the OS, we'll examine what accessibility infrastructure exists today, where critical gaps remain.

Jessica Roache is a Senior Manager at Ubisoft, winner of 2023 GAConf "MVP Award for Unsung Hero," Marketing content can form barriers between customers with disabilities and you. Learn practical tips on how to create accessible marketing content.

Meet Fabian Herrera, Senior Software Engineer and CPWA! In “Beyond The <div>” Fabian explores how semantic HTML can make React Testing Library tests more accessible, resilient, and reliable. Better markup. Better tests. A better web. #A11y #Accessibility #A11yTO

With nearly 30 years of web development experience, Patrick has partnered with many Fortune 500 clients to craft digital experiences that are as accessible as they are elegant. This session shows how a native Dialog element, \deliver robust accessibility out of the box.

Meet Jason, Lead Digital Accessibility Specialist and speaker of Smells Like Shift Spirit. Tired of accessibility being treated like a compliance checkbox? Jason is bringing a more collaborative “Shift Out” approach to the main stage. Practical strategies. No compliance ballads.

What developers see in the DOM isn’t always what assistive technologies experience. Jeremy Rivera, Full-stack Software Engineer, Developer Advocate, and CPWA, will break down the accessibility tree and show you how to inspect it in DevTools.

Cars are becoming smartphones on wheels—but are their interfaces accessible to everyone? In this session, Claudio Luís Vera, digital accessibility consultant, speaker, and writer, explores how web and mobile accessibility principles can transform the automotive experience.

Some bugs break the game. Others quietly make it inaccessible. Dusty Levenberg explores how QA teams can catch accessibility gaps earlier, center player experience, and rethink what “working” really means. If the system works but the player can’t, it’s still broken.

Ian Lloyd has championed accessibility since 2000, speaking at CSUN, Pixel Pioneers &amp; State of the Browser. Pass or Fail? Join his interactive session as he throws tricky WCAG edge cases at you. Vote live, see how others voted, then unpack why.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of AI and Accessibility Justin brings experience as a developer, accessibility engineer &amp; product manager to explore AI’s potential — and its pitfalls. What’s good? What’s bad? And what’s downright ugly? Join us to find out.

James believes front-end code should work well for everyone In this practical, code-rich session, we take on a challenge: color systems. Dark mode, high-contrast themes, and user preferences are all great ideas — but adding each one can mean more variables. #A11y #Accessibility

We are super excited about the lineup of talks for this year, get ready to join us for #A11yTOConf on October 22nd and 23rd, 2026. In-person and virtual tickets available on tickets.a11yto.com/e/36

Virtual tickets are back for #a11yTO Conf 2026! If travel isn't possible, join us online from wherever you are. Virtual tickets are on sale now. Already have an in-person ticket? Email info@a11yto.com to make the switch. conf.a11yto.com #a11y #Accessibility #InclusiveDesign

Many of you have reached out, and we heard you. Due to overwhelming interest, we're extending our Call For Speakers for this year's #A11yTOConf deadline to Sunday, June 14th at midnight. Travel and accommodation are on us-submit your talk and join us on October 22+23rd in Toronto this October.

#a11yTOConf is set to return to the Barbara Frum Atrium at CBC on October 22 & 23, 2026. The call for speakers is open! Have a great idea for a talk? You can submit until June 4. You can find more info about tickets, the call for speakers, and all things a11yTO at conf.a11yto.com.

We’re excited to bring #a11yTOConf back to the Barbara Frum Atrium (CBC) on Oct 22–23, 2026. We’re eager to take the stage again for two days of learning, networking, and community-building. Tickets are available now,secure yours and join a diverse, welcoming global community. See you there!

#a11yTO Camp is back! 🎉 Join us May 9 in Toronto for a day of learning & connection with the accessibility community. 🎟️ $20 tickets (supports ASL, captioning & lunch) 🎤 Talk ideas? Submissions open (free ticket for speakers!) Grab your spot now → camp.a11yto.com

FEBRUARY 2026 SOCIAL — This evening Join the #a11yTO community this evening for a relaxed, in-person gathering focused on connection and reflection. We’ll be looking back on our accessibility journey in 2025. 📍 Firkin on Yonge (upstairs) ⏰ 6–8 PM

Save the date! #a11yTOConf returns to the Barbara Frum Atrium at CBC on Oct 22–23, 2026. Two days of learning + connection with accessibility pros worldwide, with a renewed focus on technical talks and actionable takeaways. More soon!

#A11yTOConf is a wrap! Huge thanks to everyone who showed up, shared, supported, and celebrated accessibility with us. Until next time—stay bold, stay inclusive! ✨🙌

“Trauma is the sense of being trapped. So, providing choices is huge in a trauma-informed practice.” — Hitomi Yokota #A11yTOconf #a11y

Now is time for our last speaker! Here goes Eric Bailey on: It is designed to break your heart: Cultivating a harm reduction mindset as an accessibility practitioner" This talk references the practice of harm reduction as a methodology to help you sustain your best efforts and avoid burnout.

Up next is Mike Mai on their talk: "Tiny CSS, Big Impact" Learn the tiny CSS techniques that deliver big accessibility benefits.

Lunch is over! Now on stage, here's Adrian Roselli with: "Talkin' Tables" This session will walk through the basics of how to construct an HTML table.

It is now lunch time. Bon appetit!

Coming on up is Albert Gareev on: "Accessiologically: Humanizing Accessibility Compliance Through Experiential Examples" They share a poetic yet practical take on digital accessibility with “Accessiologically,” exploring emotional, cognitive, and navigational barriers through story and reflection.

Now on stage is Quintin Balsdon with his talk: "Ally Keys: A hardware tool for Mobile Keyboard Accessibility" Ally Keys is a keyless external keyboard for mobile devices that lets you test keyboard, screen reader, and switch access from your main computer—no extra setup needed!