Yeongdeungpo-gu 'AAC Sotongmaeul' Development

KMI Korea Medical Institute's Social Contribution Project Launches 'Open AAC Communication Village'... Developing Pictograms to Assist Communication for Disabled People, Free Distribution to Local Public Institutions

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Yeongdeungpo-gu (District Mayor Chae Hyun-il) is set to actively promote the "Open AAC Communication Village" project to enhance communication and mobility convenience for people with disabilities.

The "AAC" in "Open AAC Communication Village" stands for Augmentative and Alternative Communication, which refers to methods that help people who have difficulty with conventional conversation to supplement or replace speech in order to convey messages.

The main components of this project are ▲ development of pictograms ▲ expansion of barrier-free convenience facilities, initiated with the aim of broadly guaranteeing the communication and mobility rights that people with disabilities rightfully deserve.

In December 2019, KMI Korea Medical Institute donated 30 million KRW to the district as a social contribution, marking the first step of this project.

Since then, the district formed a TF team together with the Yeongdeungpo Disabled Welfare Center, completing the development of pictograms for the names of various internal facilities through a review process involving people with disabilities themselves. Fluorescent sticker pictograms for disaster-related posters and fire extinguishers are currently under development.

The developed pictograms will be distributed free of charge to related local organizations in line with their public and non-profit nature. The Yeongdeungpo-gu Lifelong Education Center for People with Developmental Disabilities, opened in July, is the first case to apply these pictograms.

The district plans to spread the use of pictograms commonly across public institutions, welfare facilities, and businesses within the area to establish the "AAC Communication Village" in the future.

Additionally, they have expressed an ambitious goal to develop this as a specialized project of the district and present it as a pioneering model to other local governments.

Alongside this, communication aid picture boards developed and produced by the speech therapy institution "Saramgwa Sotong" will be distributed to community service centers and police substations, with training provided to increase usage frequency among visiting people with disabilities.

The expansion of barrier-free convenience facilities will also be actively promoted starting in August. This involves installing ramps to facilitate access for wheelchairs and strollers, with support targeted at local organizations and small-scale stores.

Chae Hyun-il, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu, stated, "The right to free communication and mobility must be equally guaranteed to everyone, regardless of whether they have disabilities or not," adding, "Through the creation of the AAC Communication Village, we will build an open Yeongdeungpo where all residents can live happily together."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.