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Welcome to the October 2021 issue of the ACM SIGACCESS newsletter. In the first article Keke Wu provides an actionable summary of the 2021 CHI best paper, discussing the challenges towards cognitive accessible visualizations. For the second article, Ringland and Wolf reflect on their ASSETS 2016 best paper (which is now 5 years old!) and discuss what has happened since and what to look towards for the future.

Towards a Universal Cognitive Tool: Designing Accessible Visualization for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
In this article, Keke Wu discusses actionable steps towards turning data visualization into a universal cognitive tool for people with varying cognitive abilities. This article follows Keke et al. best paper at CHI 21 “Understanding Data Accessibility for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities”.

Creating Assistive Technology in Disabled Communities, Five Years on: A Reflection of Neurodivergency and Crafting Accessible Social Spaces
In this article, Kathryn E. Ringland and Christine T. Wolf reflect on their ASSETS 2016 best paper “Would You Be Mine: Appropriating Minecraft as an Assistive Technology for Youth with Autism” discussing their journey, what has happened in the field, and what to look towards.

Download: Get the full October 2021 Issue