San Diego, California – February
28, 2002 – Pangea Foundation today
is releasing “Abilities Networks”,
a new technology that makes it easy for nonprofit
organizations in California to create accessible
Web sites and Web applications for people with
disabilities. Abilities Networks, developed by
Pangea Foundation with assistance from Microsoft,
also provides a one-stop source of online information
about community services and resources throughout
the state.
“We are thrilled to be releasing this technology,
because it will make the Internet more accessible
and more useful to people with disabilities,”
says Kristin Berry, Founder and Executive Director
of the San Diego-based Pangea Foundation. “The
Web was designed as a tool that would be universally
accessible, but today a large segment of the population
is locked out and can’t access it. Abilities
Networks will help unlock that door.”
Abilities Networks will empower nonprofit and
community organizations to create and maintain
Web content and online applications that meet
the highest level of accessibility—but without
the need for professional Web programming skills.
Qualified organizations will receive free access
to the Web tools and the opportunity to post information
on the Abilities Networks Web site, which will
serve as both a central online resource of information
about community services and a portal to each
organization’s individual site.
All Web hosting, as well as testing and further
development of this innovative technology, will
take place at the Southern California Next-Generation
Internet Applications Center (CaINGI) let by the
San Diego Supercomputer Center at the University
of California, San Diego.
We’re delighted to support Pangea Foundation
in this worthy endeavor,” said Mike Vildibill,
Director of CAINGI. “The Abilities Networks
Web site will be an asset to the people of California.”
Abilities Networks was developed using Microsoft
Visual Studio .NET, which allowed Pangea Foundation
to make maximum use of accessibility features
already included in popular computer operating
systems and assistive technologies used by people
with disabilities. Berry notes that Microsoft
VS.NET is ideal for creating and using applications
in an Internet environment, because it allows
applications to communicate and share data over
the Internet regardless of the operating system,
end-user device or programming language.
Steve Gardner, a Microsoft Sales Executive in
San Diego says, “Pangea Foundation’s
Abilities Networks fits well with Microsoft’s
overall mission and our vision of what technology
can do: empower people to create, discover and
pursue opportunities. Abilities Networks is using
our software and the Internet to help people access
the multitude of resources available to them through
the broad community of the Internet.”
According to Mike Paciello, author of the international
best seller Web Accessibility for People with
Disabilities, “The accessibility of the
Web to people with disabilities is no longer an
ideology. Rather, it is a vital reality that ensures
a place for users of all abilities in the Digital
Age. I applaud the creation of Abilities Networks
by Pangea Foundation and Microsoft and look forward
to its contribution to the vision of a pervasive
accessible Web.”
Lead funding for this project was provided by
the State of California, through the Division
of Science, Technology and Innovation of the California
Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency, and in
association with CommerceNet. Their financial
assistance, combined with Microsoft’s collaboration,
enabled Pangea Foundation to develop Abilities
Networks.
“Pangea Foundation and Microsoft are creating
a toolbox that enables community organizations,
with minimal effort and expense, to put their
information on the Web in a form that is more
universally accessible,” says William Stothers,
Deputy Director of the Center for an Accessible
Society. “That’s a terrific idea.”
Pangea Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit
organization that develops technology solutions
to ensure all segments of the community can
enjoy the vast benefits of technology. In addition
to Abilities Networks, the organization has
several other programs aimed at bringing technology
to underserved communities. For more information,
please visit: www.pangeafoundation.org.
About Pangea Foundation
Pangea Foundation was created with one goal in
mind: To bring state-of-the-art technology to
community organizations. These groups are historically
among the last to receive breakthrough technologies.
Our goal is to change that. Since its inception
in 1996, Pangea Foundation has developed
ASP.NET software for nonprofits
that ensure all segments of the community
enjoy the vast benefits of technology, particularly
those underserved by traditional institutions.
We work closely with community organizations to
implement technology solutions that strengthen
their efforts to serve their communities. For
more information, please visit www.pangeafoundation.org.
