Publisher achieves Global Certified Accessible designation through eBOUND Canada’s Accessible Certification Program
Halifax, June 29th – Nimbus Publishing – the largest English-language publisher east of Toronto — is now a Benetech Global Certified Accessible™ (GCA) publisher. Benetech, a nonprofit that empowers communities with software for social good, issues this accreditation to those publishers who produce EPUBs that meet a full range of accessibility features required to support the needs of all readers, including those with disabilities and learning differences. Nimbus Publishing completed certification through eBOUND Canada, a not-for-profit that enables independent Canadian publishers to engage in the digital marketplace.
“We are honoured to receive the Global Certified Accessible designation.” says Terrilee Bulger, general manager and co-owner of Nimbus Publishing.
Nimbus Publishing produces born accessible non-fiction, adult and young-adult fiction. The company believes publications should be accessible and strives to meet and even exceed the standards of accessible content.
“All digital content can – and should – be born accessible,” said Brad Turner, Vice President and General Manager of Global Education and Literacy at Benetech. “Readers can select Nimbus Publishing’s Global Certified Accessible ebooks trusting that they meet a wide range of accessibility needs.”
Benetech’s GCA publisher certification program is the first-ever third-party EPUB certification program to verify ebook accessibility. All approved publishers consistently demonstrated success in producing files in accordance with Benetech’s GCA certification standard, meeting the EPUB Accessibility 1.0 Conformance and Discovery specification, and exceeding a publishing standard level of WCAG 2.0 AA. Benetech recognizes these publishers as creators of fully accessible EPUBs. eBOUND Canada, a GCA international partner, completed the evaluation.
“eBOUND believes that all content born digital, should be born accessible so that all people can have access to all content. As such, eBOUND is delighted to have formed a partnership with Benetech to support our Canadian independent publisher clients as they go through the important process of having all content born accessible. eBOUND’s goal is to have 80%+ of our publishing clients producing accessible content by 2024, supporting the goal of the Department of Canadian Heritage, whose generous support has made this work possible” said Deborah Nelson, CEO of eBOUND Canada.
Independent Canadian publishers interested in becoming a Global Certified Accessible publisher through eBOUND Canada’s accessible certification publishing program can visit: www.eboundcanada.org
To learn more about Benetech’s Global Certified Accessible Program visit: http://bornaccessible.benetech.org
About Nimbus
Nimbus produces more than fifty new titles a year on a range of subjects relevant to the Atlantic Provinces— children’s picture books and fiction, literary non-fiction, social and cultural history, nature photography, current events, biography, sports, and cultural issues. Nimbus publishes ambitious and impactful works that originate in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland.
About eBOUND
eBOUND Canada is a not for profit organization that works with Canadian independent publishers to help them navigate and compete in the digital landscape. Accessible content creation is foundational to the work eBOUND does.
About Benetech
Benetech is a nonprofit dedicated to reducing social and economic inequity in partnership with the communities that we serve through software for social good. Benetech’s initiatives are transforming how students, jobseekers, and older adults across the globe read, learn, and work. Benetech believes that access to information is a human right, and no person should encounter barriers to education, literacy, or employment due to differences or disability. Visit www.benetech.org