These last two to three months have been really busy for me and the Association generally. As I turn to the blog to bring you all up to date on what we’re doing and perhaps more importantly to give you some ensight into what lies behind what we do, I realise there’s a lot to get through. This entry will pick up a number of items in brief and then I’ll deal with some topics in more detail.

These last two to three months have been really busy for me and the Association generally. As I turn to the blog to bring you all up to date on what we’re doing and perhaps more importantly to give you some ensight into what lies behind what we do, I realise there’s a lot to get through. This entry will pick up a number of items in brief and then I’ll deal with some topics in more detail.

One major focus over the last few months has been Total Mobility and public transport in general. The scheme is found in most regions, but in reality the effectiveness of the scheme varies considerably from place to place and we believe the scheme needs to be consistent throughout the whole country.

Another major focus has been telecommunications. This includes domestic and mobile phones, the internet etc, and deals with the many ways modern society is changing as a result of new technology. We make the point that blind people risk being shut out of our own society if modern telecommunications services such as texting, touch screens and the internet overlook our needs. But we also make the point that often our needs can be met at little cost if the right decisions are made in the early stages as services are developed.

Back in July, we were privileged to meet personally with the Government’s Ministerial Committee on Disability Issues. Such meetings are scarce and you only get a short time. We had about twenty minutes, in which we gave formal presentations and answered questions on accessible public transport (including Total Mobility), Accessible Information and Accessible Telecommunications. Amongst those present at the meeting were Hon Tariana Turia (Minister for Disability Issues), Hon Pansy Wong (Associate Minister for Disability Issues), Hon Tony Ryall (Minister of Health), Hon Nathan Guy (Associate Minister for Transport). Officials and Chief Executives from some of these government departments were present also. We were told that Ministers would follow up on the various issues raised, thus outcomes are keenly awaited.

This year’s conference was very successful, despite being a little down on numbers due to current economic constraints. The theme was “life is for living”, the idea being that whilst we do spend a lot of our energy educating the community about our needs, in the end the reason why we do that is so we can all live a full and productive life. We were all captivated by some inspirational speakers who are doing just that, doing their bit and getting the most out of life.

Last year our Conference endorsed the idea of creating a Memorial Hall of Honour so people that have made a lasting positive impact on the lives of blind people can be remembered forever. All that remained was for nominations for inductees to commence. This year Conference appointed the first three people to the Memorial Hall of Honour: Cyril White, Terry Small and Lionel Voice. All three are founding members of the Association and have made considerable contributions over their lives that have shaped the lives of blind and vision impaired people and this Association. An attractive display cabinet will now be set up at our National Office to collect appropriate items and information to honour the memory of these and other people as they are added to the Hall of Honour.

Another area receiving a lot of our attention is strengthening branches and creating ways for our members to participate in areas which don’t have a branch. Recently the Waikato Branch was disestablished because it just hasn’t been able to function. Several other branches are finding it more and more difficult to find the people willing to come onto committees and do the work of a branch. Yet we know that in all of these areas members are still willing to meet from time to time to have their say. We are giving a lot of attention now to how we can find ways to ensure as many of our members as possible can be heard so our policies truly reflect the aspirations of our members.

The Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind is making good progress in rolling out its new digital talking book service . Our recent Conference passed a resolution congratulating the Foundation on the progress it is making but calling for a download service to be introduced as quickly as possible for people who would rather not rely on receiving CDs in the post. We have heard that the Foundation may consider a download option as part of an “enhanced” service that blind people might be asked to pay for. We will be strongly opposing this approach as we believe a download option should be a standard component of any 21st century talking book service.

The Association has congratulated the Foundation on the introduction of its Simply Touch and Read (STAR) Programme initiative for teaching braille. The innovative way Braille can be learnt using this programme is generating a lot of interest around the world and brings a great deal of kudos to the Foundation.

The Foundation recently published best practice guidelines on accessible signage . This explains how to create signs, particularly in buildings, that are most beneficial to blind people. There was good consultation and the Association was pleased to add its endorsement to these guidelines.

More news coming soon.