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WAI: Strategies, guidelines, resources to make the Web accessible to people with disabilities

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W3C Home

Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Home

1. Getting Started
2. Designing for Inclusion
3. »Guidelines & Techniques
   • Web Content (WCAG)
   • Authoring Tool (ATAG)
   • User Agent (UAAG)
   • WAI-ARIA (Rich Applications)
   • Indie UI
   • Evaluation Language (EARL)
   • Reseach Topics
   • Technical Papers
   • Referencing & Linking
   • Development Process
4. Planning & Implementing
5. Evaluating Accessibility
6. Tutorials and Presentations
7. Getting Involved with WAI

WAI Guidelines and Techniques

WAI develops a series of accessibility standards and guidelines that are introduced in Essential Components of Web Accessibility and listed below:

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Overview, WCAG 2.0
How to Meet WCAG 2.0 (Quick Reference)

Addresses the information in a Web site, including text, images, forms, sounds, and such.

Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) Overview, ATAG 2.0

Addresses software that creates Web sites.

User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) Overview, UAAG 2.0

Addresses Web browsers and media players, and relates to assistive technologies.

Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) Suite Overview

Defines a way to make dynamic web content and web applications developed with Ajax, DHTML, and other Web technologies more accessible.

Independent User Interface (Indie UI)

Defines a way for user actions to be communicated to web applications.

Evaluation and Report Language (EARL) Overview

Defines a way to express Web site evaluation test results in a platform independent format.

WAI Technical Papers

Links to technical papers, including the W3C Note on Inaccessible Captcha and proceedings from research and development symposia.

Referencing and Linking to WAI Guidelines and Technical Documents

Provides guidance on references and links, along with WCAG links for policies, tools support, and others.

How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process: Milestones and Opportunities to Contribute

Introduces how WAI works through a process designed to ensure broad community input and encourage consensus development.

See also:

• Web Accessibility Tutorials - Provides guidance on how to create specific components of websites to meet WCAG 2.0.
• Essential Components of Web Accessibility - Shows how Web accessibility depends on several components of Web development and interaction working together, and how the WAI guidelines (WCAG, ATAG, UAAG) apply.
• Web Content Accessibility and Mobile Web: Making a Web Site Accessible Both for People with Disabilities and for Mobile Devices
• Developing Websites for Older People: How Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Applies

Document Information

Status: Updated 19 March 2015