Conference Theme: Equity, Accessibility and Social Inclusion

Effectively engaging diverse people or groups can be challenging; what works well for the majority may not work as well for some individuals or groups. This may especially be the case when we seek to engage people who have traditionally been excluded (for example, those subject to racial or ethnic discrimination), individuals with physical or mental disabilities, or persons who are socially excluded for a variety of reasons (such as people who are homeless or in a country illegally).

Because of history, social norms or other reasons, we may need different or distinct ways of approaching – and practicing – engagement with these individuals or groups in order to achieve success.

The Stakeholder Engagement 2010 Conference will focus on this critical area of engagement practice. Conference sessions will feature ‘lessons learned’ from around the globe focused on engagement for:

* Social / Environmental Justice that engages historically excluded or underserved groups

* Accessibility of people with physical or mental disabilities

* Social Inclusion of individuals who are socially excluded by geography, personal habits and appearance, class structure, income, education or religion

Four Kinds of Conference Activities
1. Conference sessions include case studies, panel discussions, research presentations or field trips in Second Life. Sessions may include may include video, slides or a combination thereof.

2. Conference Networking events include both formal and informal networking.

Networking Roundtables are organized discussions around topics or common interests. These will take place using computer audio / telephone.

Informal or casual networking will occur on your own via computer audio or telephone. You're encouraged to reach out to other registrants; all registrants have access to the Conference Attendees list and are able to contact fellow registrants before, during and after the conference.

See the Networking page for more details.

3. Field trips in Second Life showcase the latest in how immersive technology is being used for social inclusion, social/environmental justice and accessibility for individuals with physical or mental disabilities. See the PublicDecisions report from our 2009 conference on using virtual worlds for engagement in our Library.

4. This conference community is a means for interacting with other participants, for accessing conference presentations (recordings and slides) and for interacting in general with other registrants about social inclusion, social/environmental justice and accessibility. When you register, you become a member. You'll remain a member after the conference concludes and be able to access these materials and interact with others for at least six months.