RESNA drives technology conversations

ARLINGTON, Va. – RESNA’s upcoming virtual annual conference will focus on emerging technologies, particularly in transportation, and will feature a keynote speech by Kevin Malta, a product manager at Waymo, an autonomous driving technology development company. 

Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet, the parent company of Google, operates a commercial self-driving taxi service in the greater Phoenix area called Waymo One. 

“He’s an engineer and he’s in charge of the driver experience for the car, and he has been working for many years now with people with disabilities,” said Andrea Van Hook, executive director of RESNA. “People with disabilities are often not able to get around. Autonomous driving would give them much more autonomy and independence, where they don’t have to rely on others for their transportation needs.” 

Here are several more reasons not to miss the upcoming conference, which takes place July 13-15, according to Van Hook. 

Learn about a social model of disability 

The conference will also feature a keynote speech by Prof. Thomas William Shakespeare, co-director of the International Centre for Evidence in Disability at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. In addition to his hundreds of scientific publications and work with the United Nations, his background includes performing stand-up comedy and winning a popular TV quiz show. 

“He’s very much about people with disabilities having the same opportunities as everyone else to live a full and rich life,” said Van Hook. “One of his concepts is a social model of disability vs. a medical model of disability, and answering the question, how does society benefit from having everyone be able to participate and be involved?” 

Rounding out the keynote speeches: Janice Miller Polgar, BScOT, MAOT, PhD, recently retired professor at Western University in London, Ontario, who is the co-author of the definitive textbook on assistive technology, “Assistive Technology: Principles and Practice.” She is currently working on the 6th edition of the book. 

Hear the state of the state 

In addition to education covering everything from autonomous driving systems for people with cognitive impairments to wheelchair skills training, the conference will include a Certification Town Hall to provide the “state of the state” on RESNA’s three certification programs, including the ATP. 

“We’re hoping by the conference that we’ll have a good update on our partnership with the DMERT Group to develop new pathways for ATP certification and announce some news about other partnerships we’re exploring,” Van Hook said.