ACCESS SERVER

ACCESS SERVER is a speculative prototype email server that anonymizes, collects and financially compensates access requests that disabled people send towards cultural institutions. Access requests explain what a disabled person needs to attend spaces, be they online or physical. The project is currently in the conceptual and prototyping stage.As a digital arts tool, ACCESS SERVER disrupts systematically ableist cultural institutions in Europe. The project is threefold: For disabled people, it offers email templates and 20€ per email to account for the labor of asking for access such as closed captions, alt texts, sign language and scent-free spaces. All emails routed through the server will link to the website in the footer, and automatically cite previous access requests to the same institution. For institutions, it provides information on how to make spaces, events and websites more accessible and how to respond to access requests. In events called ACCESS SPARKS nondisabled and disabled people can share and learn about access

ACCESS SERVER establishes a transparent and accountable system for requesting accessibility accommodations, challenging ableism within cultural institutions.Tech Literacy & Accessibility: ACCESS SERVER provides a structured system for disabled individuals to request access accommodations at cultural institutions, creating templates and compensating users for the labour involved. This tool increases tech literacy for disabled individuals by making institutional access processes transparent and actionable. Reducing Harm in New Media: ACCESS SERVER reduces harm by standardizing accessibility requests and making it clear to institutions how to respond. By documenting requests, it creates accountability and challenges ableist practices within cultural institutions. Data & Knowledge Stewardship: This project establishes a record of access needs and responses, preserving data that reflects the needs of disabled individuals, and ensuring this data remains accessible and actionable within the community.

1. How does ACCESS SERVER shift the responsibility of accessibility from individuals to institutions?2. What are the long-term impacts of financially compensating disabled individuals for their labor in requesting access?3. How could the ACCESS SERVER model be expanded to address other intersectional barriers, such as language access or socioeconomic inequities?4. In what ways can nondisabled allies support initiatives like ACCESS SERVER while centering disabled leadership?