COLORADO SPRINGS, June 09, 2020 --
A total of 500 adults with developmental disabilities will receive full access to Windows software designed to provide timely COVID-19 training and much-needed tools for communication and independence at home.
The Emergency Response Desktop Suite (ERDS) is a collaborative effort among AbleLink Smart Living Technologies, the Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities at the University of Colorado, and the Colorado Developmental Disabilities Council.
Joelle Brouner, Director of the Colorado Developmental Disabilities Council, shared
“Our commitment at the Colorado DD Council is to be proactive and innovative by providing accessible tools to foster effective communication and promote access to important information on COVID-19 in a dynamically changing world for all our constituents throughout the state.”
Based on AbleLink’s Smart Living Desktop software, originally released in 2017, the ERDS is a highly customized version that provides access in the following key areas:
● Safe and simple web browsing, including links to news and other community updates
● Picture and audio button navigation
● Voice recording and text-to-speech email
● Step-by-step task instruction, including COVID-19 related guidance and safety training
● Weekly health surveys
“Social connectedness and accessing important online information have never been more important. Our Smart Living Desktop Suite enables individuals with IDD to stay in touch with family and friends, as well as independently access recreational and educational activities available through the Internet.”
-Dan Davies, AbleLink Founder and President
The ERDS was released in May 2020 and is available to Coloradans with developmental disabilities who are living independently, have been displaced by the Coronavirus, are living with family members or are members of the state self-advocacy network. To use the software, individuals will need an email address, an internet connection, and a computer running Windows 10. An engagement form can be requested by contacting CDDC’s
Joelle Brouner or the Coleman Institute’s
Shea Tanis.
“A beautiful collaboration between public, private, and advocacy organizations, this new and exciting software provides much-needed access to technology solutions for people with IDD and their families during these uncertain times. The Colorado Emergency Response Desktop builds social capital through customizable communication tools; it empowers people with IDD by providing them with cognitively accessible information about the Coronavirus and tools on how to respond effectively, and it encourages health and wellness through diverse interactive videos and tutorials curated from national and international resources on topics such as mindfulness, exercise, recreation, and leisure. The software also promotes self-determination through weekly interactive probes, self-advocacy opportunities, and step-by-step guides to home-living tasks. But most powerful is that the Colorado Emergency Response Desktop provides people with IDD opportunities to engage in the digital/virtual community that has been systemically and culturally denied. During a pandemic this software promotes dignity and equity and can literally be life-saving.”
-Shea Tanis, Coleman Institute Co-Director for Policy and Advocacy
