Accessible Documents Initiative

Accessible Documents for students with blindness
Global South Universities

Document remediation

The Accessible Documents Initiative is an affordable document accessibility service for higher education institutions in the Global South. We turn inaccessible documents into screen-reader-ready and Easy-Read versions, including PDFs, Word files, EPUBs, presentations, and in-house communications such as posters.

Capacity-building partnership

For institutions that want to be self-sustained on this work and avoid dependency on external paid services, we conduct training, set up the pipeline in-house, and hand over the process at no cost. Only travel and logistics are charged at cost-recovery, waivable on need.

Start a conversation See our tools

Tools

Web tools that support accessibility remediation work. The tools below are in early stages. You can try, test, and email feedback.

  • Open, ready to use

    Screen reader experience demo

    A guided walk through how a blind student reads a document, with eleven side by side comparisons. Each example has a real screen reader voice at full speed and a slower companion clip so a sighted listener can follow. Built for talks, workshops, and self study.

    Open the demo  |  Facilitator notes

  • Early access, in pilot

    AltBridge

    A subject expert review tool for all images in STEM documents. Upload the whole PDF; AltBridge extracts every figure with section context, drafts alt text per figure, and produces one shareable review URL. Faculty review in the browser; output is a Word file with embedded figures and accepted alt text.

    Try AltBridge with your own PDF  |  Learn more

  • Early preview

    Document Accessibility Checker

    A free accessibility audit for the documents your students rely on. Plain language for non-experts, compliance-grade for procurement. Last-mile remediation by the Accessible Documents Initiative if needed.

    Try the demo  |  Sample report  |  Sample audit (Word)

  • Early preview

    AccessMitra

    Free accessible PDF conversion. Drop a PDF, receive an accessible PDF, an accessible Word file, and an EPUB by email. Free for individuals and educational use. Institutions get a low-cost subscription that includes onboarding support and staff training.

    Try AccessMitra

  • Open, ready to use

    Font Auditor

    A free font check for any PDF. Some fonts cause text to disappear, garble, or fail screen reader software. The Font Auditor reads your file, lists every font it uses, and tells you which ones are safe and which to replace before sharing or compressing.

    Open Font Auditor

  • Open, ready to use

    Accessibility-Safe Compressor

    A free PDF compressor that makes files smaller without breaking screen reader access. Most compressors strip embedded fonts or drop tags. This one recompresses images and re-packs streams while never touching the structure tree, fonts, alt text, RoleMap, language tags, or bookmarks.

    Open Accessibility-Safe Compressor

Services for higher education institutions

Six service tracks from per-document remediation through training, STEM accessibility, and a community of practice. Select any card for full detail.

Are you a student with a print disability and need a document remediated? Get help with a document.

Why this exists

Most academic documents used in higher education across the Global South are not formatted for screen readers or other assistive technologies. Commercial remediation is expensive and out of reach at the scale universities need. The people doing the actual remediation work are typically underpaid, with no credentials and no career pathway. The Accessible Documents Initiative closes that gap by remediating documents directly for institutions that need it, building in-house capacity for institutions that want this work long-term, and creating professional standing for remediators.

Read the transparency report.

Working with us

If you represent a university, library, disability-services office, or publisher and want to discuss a partnership, email deepa@equitabledocs.org or start with the partnership page. First response within three working days.

Partner Universities

We are in conversation with universities, libraries, and educational institutions across India and the wider Global South. Partners will be listed here as they join.

Who we are looking to partner with
  • Universities with established disability-services offices or inclusive-education units.
  • Academic and specialist libraries committed to accessible collections.
  • Government-run institutions in low-resource settings.
  • Open and distance-education providers serving students across wide geographies.
  • Non-profit publishers and educational trusts producing academic content.

Email us to start a partnership conversation.

About

The Accessible Documents Initiative is based in India, serving universities and educational institutions across the Global South. The service is free for students with print disabilities, always. For institutions, per-document remediation is offered at affordable pricing. For institutions that want to bring this work in-house and avoid dependency on external paid services, training and pipeline setup are at no service fee; only travel and logistics for trainers are at cost-recovery, waivable on need. The work maps to your obligations under RPwD Act 2016, UGC Accessibility Guidelines, NIRF Outreach and Inclusivity, NAAC Criteria 4 and 7, and GIGW. Read more about the initiative.