Hi, my name is Hoby Wedler, and I recently
graduated with my PhD in Organic Chemistry
from Dean Tantillo's group here at UC Davis.
What I do as a chemist is what I've done all
the way through since my childhood as a blind
survivor and a blind traveler.
Everything is a visual in my mind.
I think about how things fit together, such
that I can make mental maps in my mind.
So the thought of getting from here to the
Memorial Union to get a cup of coffee, for
instance, is not that different from than
thinking about Friedel–Crafts isolation,
adding an ACL group to a benzene ring and
how that mechanism works and where the electrons
go.
So many people when they try to request accommodations
and advocate for themselves do it with an
iron fist and are very forceful about it.
My advice is to do it with zen and pizazz
and a very calm, almost meditative way of
bringing people together to know what it is
that you need.
And my catchphrase for productive accommodation
is: Educate, Don't Litigate.
Be a calm teacher.
So my theory and my thought about accessibility
is that it has historically been given a negative
connotation, a negative light.
But accessibility really is, in my mind, a
very positive thing.
It's exciting to think how we can make the
world more accessible to both blind and sighted
and all kinds of people.
