Last Updated: November 2025
Contact: info@ihtimam.org
1. Purpose and Scope
At İhtimam, we view accessibility not merely as a legal requirement, but as a fundamental component of human rights and care. Our goal is to ensure that all stakeholders can access our content, events, and digital spaces in an equitable and dignified manner, regardless of physical, sensory, cognitive, or technological barriers.
2. Our Commitments and Ongoing Efforts
This document does not represent a guarantee of perfection. Rather, it outlines the standards we continuously strive toward and use as a guide in our work.
A. Digital Accessibility and the Web
We aim to make our digital spaces understandable and usable for everyone.
Standards: When developing our website and digital products, we use the WCAG 2.2 AA Guidelines as a reference point and work toward meeting these standards within our technical capacity.
Visual and Audio Content: We strive to provide meaningful alternative text (alt text) for images. We aim to make subtitles a standard practice in our video content and seek sign language interpretation whenever project resources allow.
Technical Accessibility: We consider color contrast, keyboard navigation, and screen-reader compatibility as integral parts of our design and development processes.
B. Physical Spaces and Event Accessibility
When organizing in-person gatherings, we strive to choose the most inclusive venues available.
Venue Selection: We prioritize venues with ramps, elevators, and step-free access. When events take place in historic or alternative venues with accessibility limitations, we seek to provide additional support measures, such as volunteer assistance, to facilitate participation.
Accessible Restrooms: We make every effort to prioritize venues that include accessible restroom facilities.
Parents and Caregivers:
We seek to provide baby-care or privacy spaces (such as breastfeeding areas) whenever physical conditions allow.
We aim to create child-friendly environments where participants attending with children do not feel like a burden.
In online meetings, we make space for home realities, children’s voices, caregiving interruptions, and care-related breaks.
C. Neurodiversity-Friendly Practices
We seek to recognize and accommodate different ways of thinking, processing, and participating.
Cognitive Accessibility: We strive to use clear, straightforward, and accessible language in our written materials and presentations whenever possible.
Predictability: To reduce uncertainty and anxiety, we aim to share event agendas, break schedules, and information about environmental conditions (such as noise levels or crowd size) in advance.
Sensory Considerations:
Whenever possible, we seek to provide a Quiet Space or Rest Area during in-person events.
In online gatherings, we remind participants that camera use is optional and support participation in whatever format feels most comfortable and accessible to them.
D. Event Planning Process
Understanding Access Needs: In our registration forms, we ask participants, “Is there anything we should know to make your participation easier?” We aim to understand access needs and make reasonable efforts to meet them within our available resources and budget.
Time Management: We strive to design sessions with human attention spans in mind (45–60 minutes) and to include regular breaks.
E. Communication and Alternative Formats
Communication Style: When offering support, we aim to be inviting rather than prescriptive. We respect personal boundaries and avoid touching mobility aids, assistive devices, or personal equipment (such as wheelchairs) without permission.
Formats: We strive to provide content in multiple formats whenever possible, including accessible PDFs, audio summaries, large-print versions, and other alternative formats.
3. Feedback and Solidarity
This document does not represent a completed achievement, but an ongoing commitment. There may be barriers, oversights, or shortcomings that we have not yet identified. We welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas that can help us improve.
Contact: info@ihtimam.org
We view feedback not as criticism, but as guidance. We aim to respond within 48 hours on business days and to work toward practical solutions whenever possible.