Join Us Next Year For AIR Houston 2008

4th Annual AIR-Houston Winners Announced

(Houston, November 29, 2007) For the past four years, teams of busy technology professionals have volunteered their valuable time and skills to create web sites for nonprofit organizations. And not just any web sites – these sites are created with accessibility features that allow them to be accessed by everyone, including people with disabilities. The program is the Accessibility Internet Rally for Houston (AIR-Houston) which was started in 2004 by the nonprofit organization Knowbility.

The competition has two categories; Stock Car and Formula One. The Stock Car class sites are judged on basic accessibility, like text alternatives for pictures and the quality of link text (no "click here", please) while Formula One entries are also judged on advanced technologies like multimedia, data tables, flash, and scripted applications.

Winners of competition to build the "Most Accessible Web Site" were announced Thursday night, November 29h at an Awards Ceremony at the University of Houston Hilton Hotel. This year's winners for the most accessible web site are:

First Place Winners:
Stock Car: The Paparazzi Juggernauts – Site created for: CityWide Outreach Ministy
Formula One: Idea Integration – Site created for: Beyond Careers

Second Place Winners:
Stock Car: Topspot IMS – Site created for: Kids' Meals
Formula One – Access THIS! – Site created for: Step To It!

Third Place winners:
Stock Car: Techsophic – Site created for: Brighter Future Inc.
Formula One: Whiteboard Labs – Site created for: Orange Show Center for Visionary Art - Beer Can House

A list of all the teams that competed can be found on the 2007 Sites page.

The statewide AIR competition is a major initiative of Knowbility, an Austin non-profit organization (www.knowbility.org) that is globally renowned for making the worldwide web accessible for all people and offering solutions to businesses that can provide information and opportunities to under-served populations.

What is AIR Houston?

The Accessibility Internet Rally (AIR) is an award-winning, Web site building competition held annually around the country. This exciting competition has been recognized for excellence and innovation by business and political leaders and was held for the first time in Houston in 2004.

How does AIR Houston work?

The competition trains professional Web developers in the evolving field of Web accessibility. National experts lead hands-on accessibility training sessions to explain emerging federal and state access mandates and provide training in accessible design tools and techniques. Training sessions begin this Summer to prepare for Rally Day on November 3rd. Check the Training and Event Schedules page for more details.

Once they are trained, these teams will compete, showcasing their talents as they donate their newly-acquired accessible design skills to a nonprofit organization. During one high-energy workday, our community will rally around the powerful idea of technology access for everyone, including children and adults with disabilities.

Why is AIR important?

Currently the U.S. population includes more than 54 million people with disabilities of all sorts. Many of these people are unable to fully benefit from the Internet and the World Wide Web because many Web sites have not been designed and built with accessibility in mind. The nationwide AIR events are designed to help local nonprofit organizations gain a fully-accessible Web site through the efforts of professional design and development teams. AIR-Houston participants use their accessibility training to build these Web sites in one day. At least 20 nonprofits will gain professionally designed and accessible Web sites. AIR-Houston participants will enable these various organizations to market their missions on the World Wide Web.

Accessible design also has a global economic impact. For example, the 54 million Americans with disabilities have an aggregate income of $1 trillion, which includes $220 billion of discretionary spending. Worldwide, there are more than 500 million people with disabilities. Extending the reach of the Internet, with its commercial and educational opportunities via the World Wide Web, to half a billion people has a tremendous impact on the global economy. Simply put, the global aspect of accessibility enhances companies and organizations of all sizes. It also increases their customer base and improves their relationships with all customers, including those who have disabilities.