May 27, 2026 • 28 mins
Lizzie Eastham and Sam Rickard present Studio 1 - Vision Australia Radio’s weekly look through a different lens.
On this week’s show
“Roundtable”
This week the show was recorded at the 2026 Roundtable on Information Access for People with Print Disabilities in Adelaide.
Lizzzie and Sam talked to, among others, Dr Agata Mrva-Montoya (Roundtable President) Di Bennett; Aasha Rose and Elise Longsdale. They also bring highlights from day 2 and 3 of the conference.... except for their own presentation.
Studio 1 welcomes any input from our listeners. If you have any experience or thoughts about issues covered in this episode or believe there is something we should be talking about.
You may also be interested in joining our choir of angels and telling your story.
EMAIL: studio1@visionaustralia.org or leave comment on the station’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/VARadioNetwork
A special thank you to all contributors to the 2026 Roundtable and particularly to Jane Wagner who facilitated the inclusion of Studio 1 this year into the program.
Find out more here: https://printdisability.org/
This program was made possible with support from the Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more at https://cbf.org.au/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:14):
This is studio One with Sam Rickard and Lizzy Eastham
on Vision Australia Radio.
S2 (00:25):
Hello, I'm Sam and I'm Lizzy and this is studio One,
your weekly look at life through a different lens here
on Vision Australia Radio.
S3 (00:32):
This week we're coming to you from the Round Table
conference on information access for people with print disabilities.
S2 (00:38):
We bring you highlights from the conference and interviews with
some of the attendees and presenters.
S3 (00:44):
As we always say at this point, please do get
in touch with the show, whether you have experience of
any of the issues covered on this week's episode of
Studio One, or if you think there's something we should
be talking about. You never know. Your story and insight
may help someone who's dealing with something similar.
S2 (00:59):
Please contact us via email studio one at vision australia.org.
That's that's studio number 1@australia.org.
S3 (01:07):
Or of course, you can drop us a note on
our Facebook page by going to facebook.com/radio network.
S2 (01:17):
All right. So, dear listener, it is 830 in the
morning on a Sunday. Don't usually see this side of
a Sunday. It's way too early for me. What about you, Lizzie?
S3 (01:25):
Yeah, I usually see this side of a Sunday. I'm
usually getting up and getting ready to go to church.
S2 (01:30):
Hello? Are you.
S4 (01:31):
How are you, Sam?
S2 (01:32):
I am good. We have, uh, Erica and Greg with us.
S4 (01:36):
Yes. I don't know, Lizzie. I know her from a podcast. Hi. Hi.
I'm Erica and Greg from birth. Oh, hello.
S5 (01:46):
Are you up first? Yes, we're up at 11, I
think it is. And 1045. Yeah.
S4 (01:52):
After morning tea.
S2 (01:56):
Agata, maybe you can tell us who you are.
S6 (01:58):
So my name is Agata Montoya, and I am a
senior lecturer at the University of Sydney in the discipline
of media and communication. And I'm also the president of
the Round Table.
S2 (02:09):
Okay, so how has the preparation gone for this year's
Round Table?
S4 (02:13):
Very well.
S6 (02:14):
We are a well oiled machine, so the conference has
been going for a number of years. We've got a
brilliant team on the executive committee and it all went
really well.
S2 (02:23):
So one of the tempting things, usually when you're in
the disability community, is to expect that everybody out there
knows exactly what everybody else does. So maybe in nice,
simple language so someone like me can understand, you can
explain what exactly the round table is and what it does.
S4 (02:37):
So it's a peak disability.
S6 (02:38):
Body comprising of various organisations including disability sector of course
alternative format producers. Um but we also have um publishers,
we also have Australian Publishers Association, we've got some libraries
and the idea is to provide guidance on guidelines and advocacy.
And I think this is something that I would like
(02:58):
to do more, um, in my tenure as the president.
S2 (03:02):
So what was your background prior to all this?
S4 (03:04):
Well.
S6 (03:05):
I'm an archaeologist by training, I think I know, and
then I became a publisher. So I worked for a
number of years for Sydney University Press, and this is
how I got interested in accessibility. I led the introduction
of accessible publishing practices at the press. From there, I
started teaching and I started researching accessibility, and I got
(03:25):
recruited to be part of the committee. And yeah, and
now I'm a lecturer and a researcher in accessible publishing practices.
S2 (03:32):
So as a relative outsider, is there anything that particularly
surprised you coming into all of this?
S6 (03:37):
How much I could learn. So before getting involved with
the Round Table and accessibility, I really didn't know anything
about the sector. So I started we started producing accessible
books without me understanding what am I doing? I was
really interested in in following best practice. And it's only
(03:57):
through my work with Next Sense and, and getting involved
that I understand what's required and why accessible publishing is
so important.
S3 (04:06):
So how long have you been the president of the
Round Table?
S6 (04:09):
I've only started um, last year, so I was selected
in um the last conference. So this was my last year.
So my first, you know, half not her first year.
S3 (04:19):
And can you tell us about some of the sessions
and the workshops that are on the program for the
next three days?
S6 (04:25):
There's how many I counted yesterday. I think we've got
over 30 presentations and I think seven workshops. So there'll
be a workshop on on accessible galleries. We've got some
presentations on AI, of course, and technology. We've got presentations
on Braille. Um, we've got a trip to Sasb which
should be really exciting. We also have presentations on the
(04:47):
use of public libraries and what Vision Australia has done
to reach out to public libraries. So it's like, um,
as usual, there's a whole variety of programs. And we
also have a presentation on um, making chemistry labs accessible
to people with disabilities. Yeah. So we've got an academy professor,
Ziggy Schmidt from the University of Sydney, talking about his
(05:08):
work in making labs accessible.
S2 (05:11):
Well, Agatha, I look forward to, um, most of it.
So we'll be in and out, of course, making a
nuisance of ourselves and, uh, recording what we can.
S6 (05:18):
You're very welcome. It's a pleasure.
S4 (05:19):
To have you here.
S7 (05:26):
So, uh, first of all, welcome to the 2026 Round
Table Conference on Information access for people with disabilities. So
it's a pleasure to welcome everyone here to Adelaide. Uh,
for this year's conference, I was doing a little bit
of research. I think the last time there was a
conference here was 2012.
S6 (05:44):
Now, I would like to.
S4 (05:45):
Begin by.
S6 (05:46):
Acknowledging that Guyana people, the traditional custodians of the land
on which we gather this morning. Now, dear esteemed delegates,
friends and speakers, it is with immense pleasure and honor
that I welcome you all here this morning. This year's theme, innovation,
Collaboration and Empowerment Gateway to Information Access, holds profound significance
(06:09):
for the Round Table community. It reflects our shared commitment
to practical solutions, collaborative learning and partnership across the sectors
and in our collective mission to ensure that all individuals
have equal access to information, enabling them to participate fully
(06:30):
in society and lead empowered lives. In a world where
information is power, equitable access to that information is the
fundamental rights. Welcome to Adelaide and welcome to the 2026
Round Table Conference. I hope you enjoy every moment of
it and make lots of new connections. Thank you very much.
S2 (06:59):
So this presentation.
S8 (07:00):
Is going to have a lot of facts and figures.
Trigger warning. Um, so, um, for the entire presentation I'm
going to just say a number and then everyone's going
to clap and cheer. So let's, let's practice uh 500 000. 11,089.
(07:23):
We are all learning so much together. My presentation today
is about understanding the cohort. So really the question of
how many people are there with a vision impairment in Australia.
Why is this question important? Well it's important for vision
(07:44):
2020 in particular because we as an organization have two purposes.
One of them is to ensure the independence and participation.
People who are blind or have low vision, but the
other one is to prevent avoidable blindness and vision impairment
in Australia. And understanding how many people are around is
(08:05):
a great way to track the efficacy of preventative health measures.
I think we need to think really carefully about the
unique challenges of being a very small cohort within big
systems like the NDIS, which is one of the many
reasons why we often have trouble with plans and things
(08:26):
like that, because we're encountered so rarely by the NCAA
that they are often, you know, they've never encountered one
of us before. And when you think that we're only 2%,
you can kind of understand why that might be.
S9 (08:39):
Talk about talk about ooh, baby.
S1 (08:44):
This is studio one on Vision Australia radio.
S9 (08:49):
Gotta move on.
S2 (08:52):
We have Guy Bennett. Maybe you can tell us what
you do.
S10 (08:55):
I am the coordinator at Statewide Vision Resource Center of
our support skills program. I run our assistive technology library
for students in Victoria or in the education department, and
I do a bit of tech training and outreach technology
training for students across the state of Victoria.
S3 (09:13):
Can you tell us what the Statewide Vision Resource Centre is?
S10 (09:17):
Absolutely. We provide the support for students in all across
the state of Victoria for alternative programs, professional learning for
visiting teachers across the state, and a community of practice for.
Also for visiting teachers in all sectors across the state
of Victoria.
S3 (09:34):
And how long have you been in your in your
current role for.
S10 (09:37):
Since 2019.
S3 (09:40):
Of course, that's like seven years. Yes. Amazing.
S10 (09:42):
Yes. Thank you.
S2 (09:43):
What got you started in this whole section? Section of existence,
as it were?
S10 (09:48):
Well, I started as a, I, I trained as a
primary teacher, but never wanted to be a primary teacher
and wanted to work in special education. So back in, uh,
when I completed my degree in 1991, I had an
option of doing hearing impairment, which is the field I
actually wanted to go into. Um, I only took ten students.
And then the second choice was vision. And that's where
(10:09):
I landed and have been ever since.
S2 (10:11):
So we were your second choice. So are we supposed
to be happy that you settled for us? Or, uh,
a little disappointed?
S10 (10:17):
I think you should be happy. Because I've loved the field,
and Braille has been my passion since I started learning
Braille back in the early 90s. And I love the
love the the whole Braille field.
S3 (10:29):
So what is it that you most enjoy about your role?
Well well well well, if you stay with it.
S6 (10:35):
You.
S2 (10:35):
Stay still. We have a, uh, a slight traffic traffic
problem with guide dogs involved.
S3 (10:41):
So back to my question. What is it that you
most enjoy about your role at statewide?
S10 (10:45):
The diversity of my days. So I can be doing
anything from running the technology library, getting out equipment, troubleshooting
assistive technology that's come back into us, um, planning the
program for the students into individualizing the program for the students. Yeah,
the breadth and the changes every day. So every day
is different. Um, and supporting over 40 visiting teachers across
(11:12):
the state of Victoria, which also includes the Catholic sector
in Victoria. We don't have visiting teachers for the independent
schools unless the schools employ that unicorn and, um, pay
for their services. I say unicorn because there's not enough
of them, and really there's no one to to do
(11:33):
it in the independent sector. And for our Catholic sector,
we only have two across the state of Victoria. And
for those of you that know, Victoria is, um with
a couple in regional areas.
S6 (11:52):
Yeah. I guess as we know, you know, growing up
in the 80s and 90s was something really that was
stigmatised and it was often slurs used to describe, uh,
disabled people. Uh, it wasn't until I, um, actually decided
to have children that I really noticed the discrimination that
(12:12):
I faced because I was told that I shouldn't become
a parent. And, uh, that that really affected me because
I do have a 50% chance of passing on my disability. Um,
but it made me realize that there is just so
many barriers when it comes to, um, being disabled. And
(12:33):
so I started then to, I guess I got really
fired up and realized that the media could change the
narrative when it came to disabled people. Yeah. I guess
as we know, you know, growing up in the 80s
and 90s was something really that was stigmatized and it
often slurs used to describe disabled people. Uh, it wasn't
(12:56):
until I, um, actually decided to have children that I
really noticed the discrimination that I faced, uh, because I
was told that I shouldn't become a parent. And, uh, that,
that really affected me because I do have a 50%
chance of passing on my disability. Um, but it made
(13:19):
me realize that there is just so many barriers when
it comes to being disabled. And so I started then to,
I guess I got really fired up and realized that
the media could change the narrative when it came to
disabled people.
S11 (13:35):
I am going to use my pulpit because I'm missing
my wand to take all of us to South Africa.
It's May 2026 and and for those who cannot see me,
I'm waving the wand at front squat and turning him
into a six year old child. So today I'd like
to talk to you about Braille literacy, although I feel
(13:57):
like I'm preaching to the converted, as Francis said, we
know that it's something deeply connected to so many of
us in this room. We know it's connected to dignity,
to participation, and to the right to live fully. This
presentation does draw on my PhD research and focuses on
one central idea.
S3 (14:20):
Well, I am here with Asher Rose at the Round
Table conference. Asher, how are you?
S10 (14:24):
Oh, I'm relieved that I've done my presentation. Lizzie.
S3 (14:28):
Brilliant. Yes. And we did hear your presentation this morning.
So we had you on the show for International Braille Day,
where you talked to us about what your research entails
and tell us how it's been going.
S12 (14:41):
Thanks, Lizzie. It's been going really well. I've now developed
two complementary tools for for measuring Braille in classrooms, but
also at a population level. And that's so these tools
can be used with children or adults, which is exceptionally exciting.
I've managed to validate them and they are reliable as well.
S3 (15:02):
Fantastic. So, um, your presentation was called Measuring What Matters,
I believe. Why does it matter to measure Braille literacy
and how do you measure it?
S12 (15:13):
Well, I think it's really important to measure Braille literacy
because without measurements, we can't advocate for Braille. So if
we don't know how many Braille users we have, for example,
or what their lifelong needs are, how do we argue
to policymakers and resource providers to say, hey, this is
what the Braille community needs?
S3 (15:33):
Absolutely. 100%. Well, this is day two of the Round
Table conference. Uh, I assume you've come to to both
days so far.
S12 (15:42):
Yes, I certainly have. And would you believe this is
my first ever round table? I feel so blessed to
have finally gotten here. And I think I'll come to
one every year from now on.
S3 (15:52):
Yeah, this is also my first round table. So what
presentations or exhibits have you seen that have been really
insightful or really surprised you?
S12 (16:01):
I really loved Francois's presentation yesterday when he talked about
access procurement. I really want to investigate that some more.
I went to Karen Cook. Sorry, Karen Kroc's presentation today.
And she talked about the research that she's done with
adult Braille learners in terms of their experiences of being
(16:24):
Braille in schools. And there were parts where I laughed
and there were parts where I wanted to cry when
she talked about Braille lists in so-called inclusive settings. Feeling
shame about being Braille. We've got so much work to
do in this field.
S3 (16:41):
So do we have any laws in this country about
Braille being a right or a part of our education system,
so to speak?
S12 (16:49):
I think there are international laws, and there's certainly the
Spivvy work that was done in 2020 for around Braille
being a right. And and not just something, something that
should be done because we feel like it. I don't
know how we go from having those laws to making
them impactful parts of education.
S3 (17:12):
So once you've published all your research and you've finished
up with your surveys, because I think the surveys are
still going. What do you hope your research will lead to,
or what's the big aim for you?
S12 (17:23):
First and foremost, yes, the survey is still going. So
if you haven't gotten sick of listening to me and
this is the first time you've heard me, please, um,
investigate that survey. I'd love to know more about Braille
across Australia, but my focus from there will really be
about what do we what can we do with policy
makers and those resource areas to start getting people to
(17:47):
listen about how important Braille is to our community and
what resources need to be put in place to make
sure that every Braille has the opportunity to access Braille.
S3 (17:59):
Well, thank you, Asha, for speaking with us. You're currently
housed at the C differently exhibit at the Round Table Conference,
aren't you?
S12 (18:06):
I sure am, yes.
S3 (18:08):
Brilliant. Well, thank you for joining us and enjoy the
rest of your conference experience.
S12 (18:12):
Thanks, Lizzie. And you.
S1 (18:18):
This is studio one with Lizzie and Sam on Vision
Australia Radio.
S11 (18:28):
Inclusive education has expanded access to mainstream schooling, but inclusion
without appropriate measurement risks creating invisibility rather than equity. When
Braille literacy cannot be seen or documented, it becomes easier
to overlook, to undervalue, or worse still, to replace. These days,
(18:50):
most students who use Braille are educated in mainstream schools.
Their classroom teachers, as we all know, often have limited
or no Braille training and rely on intermittent specialist support.
In this context, assessment practices can and do default to
design tools for sighted learners. when we don't center Braille
(19:14):
in the mainstream, then curriculum, pacing and assessment time frames
aren't always adapted for Braille lists and do not reflect differences.
As a result, a mismatch occurs between student capability and expectations,
and this difference is sadly often interpreted as underperformance of
students reading and writing ability.
S6 (19:42):
The first iteration of our readers were, as followed standard
Braille paper bound at the top, with each page having
a bright, colourful, enlarged image from the same page as
the printed reader. The first page of the reader showed
any heart words such as and the, etc. in grade
one Braille. Then we move to contracted Braille. Our books
(20:05):
did not have a title, and this was for a
very specific reason. This became part of the game for
our student At the end of reading each book, the
student was encouraged to guess the title of the book
or to make up their own. They would then have
enough room on the front where they could braille their
chosen title, and they would also have time to draw
(20:26):
their own title picture. This was another activity that they
really loved to do as the student progressed. We increased
the amount of contractions and word signs with the aim
of being completely contracted, which is where we are today.
S13 (20:40):
I captioning has made a huge difference in accessibility. It
provides real time access to spoken words. Another big advantage
is speed. What used to take hours with manual transcription
can now be done almost instantly. So from efficiency perspective,
AI is really strong helper. Here are some of the
(21:03):
tools available that supports AI with the captions and transcription.
So for live environment we have PowerPoint Teams Zoom and
Google Meet. Now going to PowerPoint. You're experiencing the live
transcription right now. So Round Table is using the PowerPoint
called subtitle option. And for recorded content we've got YouTube
(21:29):
and those who are video editors and using Adobe Premiere Pro,
you can also easily create captions within the program itself.
Social media platforms are also starting to include it. For example, LinkedIn, Facebook,
and Instagram now provides automatic captions for video content as well.
(21:53):
So once you have uploaded any sort of video, um,
in LinkedIn, for example, there's an option where it's, um,
enabled by default where the automatic captioning would start.
S8 (22:06):
The leading causes. This is really important the leading causes
of bilateral vision impairment in Australia are for Indigenous Australians
were uncorrected refractive error with 38% cataract, 34% diabetic retinopathy, 15%
age related macular degeneration, 5% and glaucoma 4% and other 4%.
(22:32):
And then the leading causes of bilateral vision impairment for
non-Indigenous Australians were uncorrected refractive error with 42% cataract of 29%
AMD with 17% other 5% glaucoma, 4%, and diabetic retinopathy 3%.
So one of the things that's important is significantly more
(22:54):
diabetic retinopathy in Indigenous Australians. So 15% we're seeing there and, uh,
less glaucoma in and AMD, uh, in First Nations Australians.
Now that's an interesting and complicated news story there because
actually what's happening is that First Nations Australians are not
(23:15):
are not living long enough to hit those marks of
getting more of those things.
S3 (23:26):
Well, we are at the Round Table Conference 2026, just
eating our lunch. And I'm sitting with the amazing, the wonderful,
the exceptional, the brilliant Elise Lonsdale. Hello.
S2 (23:37):
Hi. I've never had such a huge dust in my life.
S3 (23:40):
Yeah, well, you have now. Now. Um, first and foremost,
I will thank you publicly because a lot of the
stuff that I've recorded today has been thanks to you.
So thank you.
S2 (23:49):
It's been a pleasure. It's lovely to pitch in and
help out. Thank you.
S3 (23:52):
Right. So we're on day two of the conference. Which
presentation or exhibit has been the most insightful to you
and why?
S2 (24:02):
Well, for day two, I think the buyer was, um, yeah,
especially when I made the point about the, you know,
we've got to get rid of the site first policy,
you know, kids who had been denied Braille and looking
at ways to have Braille. Also to children's. And because
it has a profound effect on literacy and there's plenty
(24:22):
of information out there that proves that Braille readers get
jobs easier and have a far better, um, far better
experience when it comes to education. And of course, there
are children out there who, who don't read Braille because
they have enough sight. Well, that's fine if they do,
but there are many people who have missed out on
both because they haven't had the sight and it just
hasn't been offered to them. There have been other presentations
(24:44):
today with the, uh, with the, um, with beyond speech in,
into AI that was done by both on the quantum
feeble and a few others that where there was, um,
also a brilliant presentation yesterday with front by Joe Booth.
It was a brilliant presentation yesterday with Jonathan Craig speaking
(25:07):
about how the NDIS was such a small cohort within
the NDIS because NDIS has to deal with all disabilities.
So often when a patient comes across a person with
a vision impairment or who is crying and they've never
met before, so they honestly don't know what to do.
So there's a lot of information about this conference and
many other things that have stood out to me in
(25:27):
the presentations thus far.
S3 (25:29):
So everything then?
S2 (25:31):
Pretty nice. Everything. Yeah. I think the whole, um, the
whole conference is great. We get a night, we get
an opportunity to network, we get an opportunity to catch
up with cares, professionals, acquaintances, friends, people at all levels.
We even get an opportunity to make new friends. Which
of these conferences. So, you know, it's been really it's
a great experience. And this would be about my fifth
(25:51):
consecutive conference and I love it in my middle.
S3 (25:55):
So have you filled out the exhibitors quiz for the
dinner tonight?
S2 (26:00):
I filled out most of. I think I had the
problem with one question, and I think when we finished
the interview, I might be able to do it. Have
you filled yours out?
S3 (26:07):
I wasn't planning on doing it.
S2 (26:08):
Oh, okay. Full mouthful. I've got mine just about to
fill that. I think I'm a bit vague on many questions,
so we might have to look at that after this.
S3 (26:17):
Brilliant. Well, Elise, thank you so much for joining us.
And again, thank you so much for your help and
support today.
S2 (26:23):
It's been a pleasure and thank you. And keep up
the wonderful work. Oh, I must say, one other presentation
that I really enjoyed was yours.
S3 (26:31):
Oh thank you, thank you.
S8 (26:33):
That's a wrap for this week. A big thank you
to the contributors and organizers at the Round Table. And Lizzy,
there's somebody else in particular. Yes.
S3 (26:40):
I'd like to thank Elise Lonsdale for her help and
support helping me to get recordings on the Monday.
S8 (26:46):
You are welcome. And thank you to Jane Wagner for
helping us to attend and produce this show.
S3 (26:52):
And of course, a big thanks to you for listening.
And that includes our listeners on the Reading Radio Network
or wherever you may be listening to us from. You
can find a podcast of this program, plus some extra
content from time to time on Apple, Spotify, Google, or
your favorite podcast platform.
S8 (27:08):
Next week, the budget has come down and big changes
are being made to the NDIS.
S3 (27:13):
People with Disability Australia president Jeremy Hope fills us in
on how the cutbacks affect us and what we can
do about it.
S8 (27:20):
But between now and then, please do get in touch
with the show. Whether you have experience of any of
the issues covered on this week's episode of Studio One,
or if you think there's something we should be talking about.
You never know. Your help and insight may help somebody
else who is dealing with something similar.
S3 (27:34):
You can contact us via email at studio 1@australia.org. That's
studio number one at vision australia.org. Or of course, you
can find us on Facebook or Instagram by searching for
VA Radio Network. We want to hear from you.
S8 (27:49):
Bye for now.
S1 (27:50):
Studio one was produced in the Adelaide Studios of Vision
Australia Radio. This show was made possible with the help
of the Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more@cbsnews.org.au.
This is studio One with Sam Rickard and Lizzy Eastham
on Vision Australia Radio.
S2 (00:25):
Hello, I'm Sam and I'm Lizzy and this is studio One,
your weekly look at life through a different lens here
on Vision Australia Radio.
S3 (00:32):
This week we're coming to you from the Round Table
conference on information access for people with print disabilities.
S2 (00:38):
We bring you highlights from the conference and interviews with
some of the attendees and presenters.
S3 (00:44):
As we always say at this point, please do get
in touch with the show, whether you have experience of
any of the issues covered on this week's episode of
Studio One, or if you think there's something we should
be talking about. You never know. Your story and insight
may help someone who's dealing with something similar.
S2 (00:59):
Please contact us via email studio one at vision australia.org.
That's that's studio number 1@australia.org.
S3 (01:07):
Or of course, you can drop us a note on
our Facebook page by going to facebook.com/radio network.
S2 (01:17):
All right. So, dear listener, it is 830 in the
morning on a Sunday. Don't usually see this side of
a Sunday. It's way too early for me. What about you, Lizzie?
S3 (01:25):
Yeah, I usually see this side of a Sunday. I'm
usually getting up and getting ready to go to church.
S2 (01:30):
Hello? Are you.
S4 (01:31):
How are you, Sam?
S2 (01:32):
I am good. We have, uh, Erica and Greg with us.
S4 (01:36):
Yes. I don't know, Lizzie. I know her from a podcast. Hi. Hi.
I'm Erica and Greg from birth. Oh, hello.
S5 (01:46):
Are you up first? Yes, we're up at 11, I
think it is. And 1045. Yeah.
S4 (01:52):
After morning tea.
S2 (01:56):
Agata, maybe you can tell us who you are.
S6 (01:58):
So my name is Agata Montoya, and I am a
senior lecturer at the University of Sydney in the discipline
of media and communication. And I'm also the president of
the Round Table.
S2 (02:09):
Okay, so how has the preparation gone for this year's
Round Table?
S4 (02:13):
Very well.
S6 (02:14):
We are a well oiled machine, so the conference has
been going for a number of years. We've got a
brilliant team on the executive committee and it all went
really well.
S2 (02:23):
So one of the tempting things, usually when you're in
the disability community, is to expect that everybody out there
knows exactly what everybody else does. So maybe in nice,
simple language so someone like me can understand, you can
explain what exactly the round table is and what it does.
S4 (02:37):
So it's a peak disability.
S6 (02:38):
Body comprising of various organisations including disability sector of course
alternative format producers. Um but we also have um publishers,
we also have Australian Publishers Association, we've got some libraries
and the idea is to provide guidance on guidelines and advocacy.
And I think this is something that I would like
(02:58):
to do more, um, in my tenure as the president.
S2 (03:02):
So what was your background prior to all this?
S4 (03:04):
Well.
S6 (03:05):
I'm an archaeologist by training, I think I know, and
then I became a publisher. So I worked for a
number of years for Sydney University Press, and this is
how I got interested in accessibility. I led the introduction
of accessible publishing practices at the press. From there, I
started teaching and I started researching accessibility, and I got
(03:25):
recruited to be part of the committee. And yeah, and
now I'm a lecturer and a researcher in accessible publishing practices.
S2 (03:32):
So as a relative outsider, is there anything that particularly
surprised you coming into all of this?
S6 (03:37):
How much I could learn. So before getting involved with
the Round Table and accessibility, I really didn't know anything
about the sector. So I started we started producing accessible
books without me understanding what am I doing? I was
really interested in in following best practice. And it's only
(03:57):
through my work with Next Sense and, and getting involved
that I understand what's required and why accessible publishing is
so important.
S3 (04:06):
So how long have you been the president of the
Round Table?
S6 (04:09):
I've only started um, last year, so I was selected
in um the last conference. So this was my last year.
So my first, you know, half not her first year.
S3 (04:19):
And can you tell us about some of the sessions
and the workshops that are on the program for the
next three days?
S6 (04:25):
There's how many I counted yesterday. I think we've got
over 30 presentations and I think seven workshops. So there'll
be a workshop on on accessible galleries. We've got some
presentations on AI, of course, and technology. We've got presentations
on Braille. Um, we've got a trip to Sasb which
should be really exciting. We also have presentations on the
(04:47):
use of public libraries and what Vision Australia has done
to reach out to public libraries. So it's like, um,
as usual, there's a whole variety of programs. And we
also have a presentation on um, making chemistry labs accessible
to people with disabilities. Yeah. So we've got an academy professor,
Ziggy Schmidt from the University of Sydney, talking about his
(05:08):
work in making labs accessible.
S2 (05:11):
Well, Agatha, I look forward to, um, most of it.
So we'll be in and out, of course, making a
nuisance of ourselves and, uh, recording what we can.
S6 (05:18):
You're very welcome. It's a pleasure.
S4 (05:19):
To have you here.
S7 (05:26):
So, uh, first of all, welcome to the 2026 Round
Table Conference on Information access for people with disabilities. So
it's a pleasure to welcome everyone here to Adelaide. Uh,
for this year's conference, I was doing a little bit
of research. I think the last time there was a
conference here was 2012.
S6 (05:44):
Now, I would like to.
S4 (05:45):
Begin by.
S6 (05:46):
Acknowledging that Guyana people, the traditional custodians of the land
on which we gather this morning. Now, dear esteemed delegates,
friends and speakers, it is with immense pleasure and honor
that I welcome you all here this morning. This year's theme, innovation,
Collaboration and Empowerment Gateway to Information Access, holds profound significance
(06:09):
for the Round Table community. It reflects our shared commitment
to practical solutions, collaborative learning and partnership across the sectors
and in our collective mission to ensure that all individuals
have equal access to information, enabling them to participate fully
(06:30):
in society and lead empowered lives. In a world where
information is power, equitable access to that information is the
fundamental rights. Welcome to Adelaide and welcome to the 2026
Round Table Conference. I hope you enjoy every moment of
it and make lots of new connections. Thank you very much.
S2 (06:59):
So this presentation.
S8 (07:00):
Is going to have a lot of facts and figures.
Trigger warning. Um, so, um, for the entire presentation I'm
going to just say a number and then everyone's going
to clap and cheer. So let's, let's practice uh 500 000. 11,089.
(07:23):
We are all learning so much together. My presentation today
is about understanding the cohort. So really the question of
how many people are there with a vision impairment in Australia.
Why is this question important? Well it's important for vision
(07:44):
2020 in particular because we as an organization have two purposes.
One of them is to ensure the independence and participation.
People who are blind or have low vision, but the
other one is to prevent avoidable blindness and vision impairment
in Australia. And understanding how many people are around is
(08:05):
a great way to track the efficacy of preventative health measures.
I think we need to think really carefully about the
unique challenges of being a very small cohort within big
systems like the NDIS, which is one of the many
reasons why we often have trouble with plans and things
(08:26):
like that, because we're encountered so rarely by the NCAA
that they are often, you know, they've never encountered one
of us before. And when you think that we're only 2%,
you can kind of understand why that might be.
S9 (08:39):
Talk about talk about ooh, baby.
S1 (08:44):
This is studio one on Vision Australia radio.
S9 (08:49):
Gotta move on.
S2 (08:52):
We have Guy Bennett. Maybe you can tell us what
you do.
S10 (08:55):
I am the coordinator at Statewide Vision Resource Center of
our support skills program. I run our assistive technology library
for students in Victoria or in the education department, and
I do a bit of tech training and outreach technology
training for students across the state of Victoria.
S3 (09:13):
Can you tell us what the Statewide Vision Resource Centre is?
S10 (09:17):
Absolutely. We provide the support for students in all across
the state of Victoria for alternative programs, professional learning for
visiting teachers across the state, and a community of practice for.
Also for visiting teachers in all sectors across the state
of Victoria.
S3 (09:34):
And how long have you been in your in your
current role for.
S10 (09:37):
Since 2019.
S3 (09:40):
Of course, that's like seven years. Yes. Amazing.
S10 (09:42):
Yes. Thank you.
S2 (09:43):
What got you started in this whole section? Section of existence,
as it were?
S10 (09:48):
Well, I started as a, I, I trained as a
primary teacher, but never wanted to be a primary teacher
and wanted to work in special education. So back in, uh,
when I completed my degree in 1991, I had an
option of doing hearing impairment, which is the field I
actually wanted to go into. Um, I only took ten students.
And then the second choice was vision. And that's where
(10:09):
I landed and have been ever since.
S2 (10:11):
So we were your second choice. So are we supposed
to be happy that you settled for us? Or, uh,
a little disappointed?
S10 (10:17):
I think you should be happy. Because I've loved the field,
and Braille has been my passion since I started learning
Braille back in the early 90s. And I love the
love the the whole Braille field.
S3 (10:29):
So what is it that you most enjoy about your role?
Well well well well, if you stay with it.
S6 (10:35):
You.
S2 (10:35):
Stay still. We have a, uh, a slight traffic traffic
problem with guide dogs involved.
S3 (10:41):
So back to my question. What is it that you
most enjoy about your role at statewide?
S10 (10:45):
The diversity of my days. So I can be doing
anything from running the technology library, getting out equipment, troubleshooting
assistive technology that's come back into us, um, planning the
program for the students into individualizing the program for the students. Yeah,
the breadth and the changes every day. So every day
is different. Um, and supporting over 40 visiting teachers across
(11:12):
the state of Victoria, which also includes the Catholic sector
in Victoria. We don't have visiting teachers for the independent
schools unless the schools employ that unicorn and, um, pay
for their services. I say unicorn because there's not enough
of them, and really there's no one to to do
(11:33):
it in the independent sector. And for our Catholic sector,
we only have two across the state of Victoria. And
for those of you that know, Victoria is, um with
a couple in regional areas.
S6 (11:52):
Yeah. I guess as we know, you know, growing up
in the 80s and 90s was something really that was
stigmatised and it was often slurs used to describe, uh,
disabled people. Uh, it wasn't until I, um, actually decided
to have children that I really noticed the discrimination that
(12:12):
I faced because I was told that I shouldn't become
a parent. And, uh, that that really affected me because
I do have a 50% chance of passing on my disability. Um,
but it made me realize that there is just so
many barriers when it comes to, um, being disabled. And
(12:33):
so I started then to, I guess I got really
fired up and realized that the media could change the
narrative when it came to disabled people. Yeah. I guess
as we know, you know, growing up in the 80s
and 90s was something really that was stigmatized and it
often slurs used to describe disabled people. Uh, it wasn't
(12:56):
until I, um, actually decided to have children that I
really noticed the discrimination that I faced, uh, because I
was told that I shouldn't become a parent. And, uh, that,
that really affected me because I do have a 50%
chance of passing on my disability. Um, but it made
(13:19):
me realize that there is just so many barriers when
it comes to being disabled. And so I started then to,
I guess I got really fired up and realized that
the media could change the narrative when it came to
disabled people.
S11 (13:35):
I am going to use my pulpit because I'm missing
my wand to take all of us to South Africa.
It's May 2026 and and for those who cannot see me,
I'm waving the wand at front squat and turning him
into a six year old child. So today I'd like
to talk to you about Braille literacy, although I feel
(13:57):
like I'm preaching to the converted, as Francis said, we
know that it's something deeply connected to so many of
us in this room. We know it's connected to dignity,
to participation, and to the right to live fully. This
presentation does draw on my PhD research and focuses on
one central idea.
S3 (14:20):
Well, I am here with Asher Rose at the Round
Table conference. Asher, how are you?
S10 (14:24):
Oh, I'm relieved that I've done my presentation. Lizzie.
S3 (14:28):
Brilliant. Yes. And we did hear your presentation this morning.
So we had you on the show for International Braille Day,
where you talked to us about what your research entails
and tell us how it's been going.
S12 (14:41):
Thanks, Lizzie. It's been going really well. I've now developed
two complementary tools for for measuring Braille in classrooms, but
also at a population level. And that's so these tools
can be used with children or adults, which is exceptionally exciting.
I've managed to validate them and they are reliable as well.
S3 (15:02):
Fantastic. So, um, your presentation was called Measuring What Matters,
I believe. Why does it matter to measure Braille literacy
and how do you measure it?
S12 (15:13):
Well, I think it's really important to measure Braille literacy
because without measurements, we can't advocate for Braille. So if
we don't know how many Braille users we have, for example,
or what their lifelong needs are, how do we argue
to policymakers and resource providers to say, hey, this is
what the Braille community needs?
S3 (15:33):
Absolutely. 100%. Well, this is day two of the Round
Table conference. Uh, I assume you've come to to both
days so far.
S12 (15:42):
Yes, I certainly have. And would you believe this is
my first ever round table? I feel so blessed to
have finally gotten here. And I think I'll come to
one every year from now on.
S3 (15:52):
Yeah, this is also my first round table. So what
presentations or exhibits have you seen that have been really
insightful or really surprised you?
S12 (16:01):
I really loved Francois's presentation yesterday when he talked about
access procurement. I really want to investigate that some more.
I went to Karen Cook. Sorry, Karen Kroc's presentation today.
And she talked about the research that she's done with
adult Braille learners in terms of their experiences of being
(16:24):
Braille in schools. And there were parts where I laughed
and there were parts where I wanted to cry when
she talked about Braille lists in so-called inclusive settings. Feeling
shame about being Braille. We've got so much work to
do in this field.
S3 (16:41):
So do we have any laws in this country about
Braille being a right or a part of our education system,
so to speak?
S12 (16:49):
I think there are international laws, and there's certainly the
Spivvy work that was done in 2020 for around Braille
being a right. And and not just something, something that
should be done because we feel like it. I don't
know how we go from having those laws to making
them impactful parts of education.
S3 (17:12):
So once you've published all your research and you've finished
up with your surveys, because I think the surveys are
still going. What do you hope your research will lead to,
or what's the big aim for you?
S12 (17:23):
First and foremost, yes, the survey is still going. So
if you haven't gotten sick of listening to me and
this is the first time you've heard me, please, um,
investigate that survey. I'd love to know more about Braille
across Australia, but my focus from there will really be
about what do we what can we do with policy
makers and those resource areas to start getting people to
(17:47):
listen about how important Braille is to our community and
what resources need to be put in place to make
sure that every Braille has the opportunity to access Braille.
S3 (17:59):
Well, thank you, Asha, for speaking with us. You're currently
housed at the C differently exhibit at the Round Table Conference,
aren't you?
S12 (18:06):
I sure am, yes.
S3 (18:08):
Brilliant. Well, thank you for joining us and enjoy the
rest of your conference experience.
S12 (18:12):
Thanks, Lizzie. And you.
S1 (18:18):
This is studio one with Lizzie and Sam on Vision
Australia Radio.
S11 (18:28):
Inclusive education has expanded access to mainstream schooling, but inclusion
without appropriate measurement risks creating invisibility rather than equity. When
Braille literacy cannot be seen or documented, it becomes easier
to overlook, to undervalue, or worse still, to replace. These days,
(18:50):
most students who use Braille are educated in mainstream schools.
Their classroom teachers, as we all know, often have limited
or no Braille training and rely on intermittent specialist support.
In this context, assessment practices can and do default to
design tools for sighted learners. when we don't center Braille
(19:14):
in the mainstream, then curriculum, pacing and assessment time frames
aren't always adapted for Braille lists and do not reflect differences.
As a result, a mismatch occurs between student capability and expectations,
and this difference is sadly often interpreted as underperformance of
students reading and writing ability.
S6 (19:42):
The first iteration of our readers were, as followed standard
Braille paper bound at the top, with each page having
a bright, colourful, enlarged image from the same page as
the printed reader. The first page of the reader showed
any heart words such as and the, etc. in grade
one Braille. Then we move to contracted Braille. Our books
(20:05):
did not have a title, and this was for a
very specific reason. This became part of the game for
our student At the end of reading each book, the
student was encouraged to guess the title of the book
or to make up their own. They would then have
enough room on the front where they could braille their
chosen title, and they would also have time to draw
(20:26):
their own title picture. This was another activity that they
really loved to do as the student progressed. We increased
the amount of contractions and word signs with the aim
of being completely contracted, which is where we are today.
S13 (20:40):
I captioning has made a huge difference in accessibility. It
provides real time access to spoken words. Another big advantage
is speed. What used to take hours with manual transcription
can now be done almost instantly. So from efficiency perspective,
AI is really strong helper. Here are some of the
(21:03):
tools available that supports AI with the captions and transcription.
So for live environment we have PowerPoint Teams Zoom and
Google Meet. Now going to PowerPoint. You're experiencing the live
transcription right now. So Round Table is using the PowerPoint
called subtitle option. And for recorded content we've got YouTube
(21:29):
and those who are video editors and using Adobe Premiere Pro,
you can also easily create captions within the program itself.
Social media platforms are also starting to include it. For example, LinkedIn, Facebook,
and Instagram now provides automatic captions for video content as well.
(21:53):
So once you have uploaded any sort of video, um,
in LinkedIn, for example, there's an option where it's, um,
enabled by default where the automatic captioning would start.
S8 (22:06):
The leading causes. This is really important the leading causes
of bilateral vision impairment in Australia are for Indigenous Australians
were uncorrected refractive error with 38% cataract, 34% diabetic retinopathy, 15%
age related macular degeneration, 5% and glaucoma 4% and other 4%.
(22:32):
And then the leading causes of bilateral vision impairment for
non-Indigenous Australians were uncorrected refractive error with 42% cataract of 29%
AMD with 17% other 5% glaucoma, 4%, and diabetic retinopathy 3%.
So one of the things that's important is significantly more
(22:54):
diabetic retinopathy in Indigenous Australians. So 15% we're seeing there and, uh,
less glaucoma in and AMD, uh, in First Nations Australians.
Now that's an interesting and complicated news story there because
actually what's happening is that First Nations Australians are not
(23:15):
are not living long enough to hit those marks of
getting more of those things.
S3 (23:26):
Well, we are at the Round Table Conference 2026, just
eating our lunch. And I'm sitting with the amazing, the wonderful,
the exceptional, the brilliant Elise Lonsdale. Hello.
S2 (23:37):
Hi. I've never had such a huge dust in my life.
S3 (23:40):
Yeah, well, you have now. Now. Um, first and foremost,
I will thank you publicly because a lot of the
stuff that I've recorded today has been thanks to you.
So thank you.
S2 (23:49):
It's been a pleasure. It's lovely to pitch in and
help out. Thank you.
S3 (23:52):
Right. So we're on day two of the conference. Which
presentation or exhibit has been the most insightful to you
and why?
S2 (24:02):
Well, for day two, I think the buyer was, um, yeah,
especially when I made the point about the, you know,
we've got to get rid of the site first policy,
you know, kids who had been denied Braille and looking
at ways to have Braille. Also to children's. And because
it has a profound effect on literacy and there's plenty
(24:22):
of information out there that proves that Braille readers get
jobs easier and have a far better, um, far better
experience when it comes to education. And of course, there
are children out there who, who don't read Braille because
they have enough sight. Well, that's fine if they do,
but there are many people who have missed out on
both because they haven't had the sight and it just
hasn't been offered to them. There have been other presentations
(24:44):
today with the, uh, with the, um, with beyond speech in,
into AI that was done by both on the quantum
feeble and a few others that where there was, um,
also a brilliant presentation yesterday with front by Joe Booth.
It was a brilliant presentation yesterday with Jonathan Craig speaking
(25:07):
about how the NDIS was such a small cohort within
the NDIS because NDIS has to deal with all disabilities.
So often when a patient comes across a person with
a vision impairment or who is crying and they've never
met before, so they honestly don't know what to do.
So there's a lot of information about this conference and
many other things that have stood out to me in
(25:27):
the presentations thus far.
S3 (25:29):
So everything then?
S2 (25:31):
Pretty nice. Everything. Yeah. I think the whole, um, the
whole conference is great. We get a night, we get
an opportunity to network, we get an opportunity to catch
up with cares, professionals, acquaintances, friends, people at all levels.
We even get an opportunity to make new friends. Which
of these conferences. So, you know, it's been really it's
a great experience. And this would be about my fifth
(25:51):
consecutive conference and I love it in my middle.
S3 (25:55):
So have you filled out the exhibitors quiz for the
dinner tonight?
S2 (26:00):
I filled out most of. I think I had the
problem with one question, and I think when we finished
the interview, I might be able to do it. Have
you filled yours out?
S3 (26:07):
I wasn't planning on doing it.
S2 (26:08):
Oh, okay. Full mouthful. I've got mine just about to
fill that. I think I'm a bit vague on many questions,
so we might have to look at that after this.
S3 (26:17):
Brilliant. Well, Elise, thank you so much for joining us.
And again, thank you so much for your help and
support today.
S2 (26:23):
It's been a pleasure and thank you. And keep up
the wonderful work. Oh, I must say, one other presentation
that I really enjoyed was yours.
S3 (26:31):
Oh thank you, thank you.
S8 (26:33):
That's a wrap for this week. A big thank you
to the contributors and organizers at the Round Table. And Lizzy,
there's somebody else in particular. Yes.
S3 (26:40):
I'd like to thank Elise Lonsdale for her help and
support helping me to get recordings on the Monday.
S8 (26:46):
You are welcome. And thank you to Jane Wagner for
helping us to attend and produce this show.
S3 (26:52):
And of course, a big thanks to you for listening.
And that includes our listeners on the Reading Radio Network
or wherever you may be listening to us from. You
can find a podcast of this program, plus some extra
content from time to time on Apple, Spotify, Google, or
your favorite podcast platform.
S8 (27:08):
Next week, the budget has come down and big changes
are being made to the NDIS.
S3 (27:13):
People with Disability Australia president Jeremy Hope fills us in
on how the cutbacks affect us and what we can
do about it.
S8 (27:20):
But between now and then, please do get in touch
with the show. Whether you have experience of any of
the issues covered on this week's episode of Studio One,
or if you think there's something we should be talking about.
You never know. Your help and insight may help somebody
else who is dealing with something similar.
S3 (27:34):
You can contact us via email at studio 1@australia.org. That's
studio number one at vision australia.org. Or of course, you
can find us on Facebook or Instagram by searching for
VA Radio Network. We want to hear from you.
S8 (27:49):
Bye for now.
S1 (27:50):
Studio one was produced in the Adelaide Studios of Vision
Australia Radio. This show was made possible with the help
of the Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more@cbsnews.org.au.
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