Advancing Accessibility and Drupal CMS Development

The previous article on Zoocha's contributions at DrupalCon Barcelona 2024 detailed the sessions by Hannah O'Leary and Will Huggins. The sessions dealt with client pitching and cookieless future respectively. This second part features two standout sessions emphasizing accessibility by the Zoocha team. These sessions showcased Zoocha's commitment to making digital experiences more inclusive and accessible. Paul Sebborn emphasized the need for a whole-team approach to accessibility, offering practical tips for content editors, while Gareth Alexander outlined the progress in developing accessibility tools for Drupal CMS, driven by community feedback and research. 

Accessibility Beyond Compliance

Paul Sebborn dived into the human side of accessibility, moving past WCAG checklists and offering tips and tools for Drupal editors to create genuinely inclusive content and user experiences. Paul emphasized that accessibility should be viewed as a shared responsibility across the entire team, rather than something confined to developers.

"Accessibility is a whole-team responsibility, not one confined to devs. With the European Accessibility Act coming into force next year (28 June 2025), accessibility is more and more important - public and private sectors will have to build for accessibility."

Paul provided practical tips for content editors, noting that integrating accessibility early into their workflows can lead to quicker and easier results compared to making fixes later. He highlighted simple tools that can help streamline this process, encouraging teams to think about accessibility from the outset. The presentation also touched on the ongoing work by Gareth Alexander at Drupal Starshot aka Drupal CMS, demonstrating how accessibility principles are being integrated into innovative projects.

The audience responded with thoughtful questions, including whether it is possible to achieve 100% accessibility. Paul candidly explained that full accessibility is not a static goal due to the evolving nature of user needs. He stressed the importance of listening to users to ensure that accessibility remains relevant. Another speaker, accessibility advocate John Lockhart, recommended Purple A11y, an open-source accessibility testing tool, to further assist teams in their efforts.

Key takeaways from the presentation included the reminder that accessibility is not just about accommodating screen readers but involves considering the broader human element. Paul encouraged content creators to avoid using vague phrases like “click here” or “read more” in links and suggested steering clear of PDFs whenever possible, though this recommendation sparked some debate among clients. The presentation underscored the importance of fostering a team-wide commitment to producing accessible, inclusive work that everyone can be proud of.

Drupal Core Initiative Leads

As part of the Starshot Initiative Leads Keynote at DrupalCon Barcelona, Gareth Alexander, the Track Lead for Accessibility Tools, shared his journey to becoming a leader in accessibility and described how the community’s feedback is shaping the future of Drupal CMS. Gareth discussed the results of a community accessibility survey and a thorough module evaluation process, which have both been instrumental in driving the development of a new proposal focused on enhancing accessibility tools within Drupal.

The accessibility tools track is making significant progress, with extensive research culminating in a proposal and a "recipe" for tools that will soon be added to Drupal CMS. This effort is seen as essential, given that a staggering 95.9% of the top 1 million websites fail to meet accessibility standards. Gareth emphasized the urgent need to do better, particularly as the demand for more accessible web solutions continues to grow. He also posed an important question: How can Drupal CMS position itself as a leading choice for accessibility, especially for content editors and marketers?

The keynote session attracted a packed audience, as accessibility remains one of the most talked-about topics at DrupalCon. Gareth's message resonated strongly with attendees, who were eager to learn how they could contribute to this vital cause. He stressed that the goal is to support content editors in ensuring compliance with accessibility standards while also improving their overall experience within Drupal CMS. To make this vision a reality, more community involvement is needed, and Gareth shared numerous ways to participate in the accessibility track.

In his closing remarks, Gareth called for community members to join the accessibility efforts and help Drupal continue its journey toward becoming a more accessible and inclusive platform.