Devcember Industry Stars: Advocacy & Accessibility

Our first bright bunch of Industry Stars for Devcember are being celebrated for their work in advocacy and accessibility…

We asked you to nominate people from across the games industry to be celebrated this Devcember as Industry Stars – people who’ve made this year a little brighter! With so many stand out examples of kindness, kinship, and compassion, it’s been a real challenge to pick just 24 stars from all the nominations we’ve received.

Today we’re celebrating Stars who champion accessibility and advocate for improved diversity across the games industry. Many of the nominations received had these qualities, which is a joy to see. Creating opportunities and removing barriers to encourage new talent and fresh perspectives is such invaluable work. So, we’re thrilled to recognise and celebrate the achievements of today’s Industry Stars!

Cari Watterton

Cari is an accessibility designer at Rebellion, and her enthusiasm for accessible games is electric! Cari has been attending and even hosting public accessibility events, most recently in Brighton where she organised for a number of accessibility speakers to share invaluable insights with the industry.

It’s her proactive attitude that makes her one of our Industry Stars. Creating safe space to raise concerns, brainstorm solutions, and then sharing that experience with other devs, makes Cari an asset to her team, and our industry. Described as an “incredibly compassionate, empathetic and insightful cheerleader”, we’re thankful that Cari is Team Accessibility!

Harriet Frayling

Harriet has been making waves as an accessibility expert and a fierce advocate for inclusivity in games. It’s her generosity that makes Harri one of our shining Industry Stars – a generosity of time, energy and spirit! Harriet gives so much, volunteering as Accessibility Lead via Limit Break, as a member of the BAFTA Disability Advisory Group, on Impact with Many Cats, and more.

Her role as a mentor has provided young, aspiring developers a toolkit to get started in the industry, and navigate the challenges of breaking into games (especially for neurodivergent people). We celebrate how freely she shares her lived experience, and her expertise, to make our industry a more accessible, and more compassionate place.

Reema Ishaque

Reema is an invaluable voice in the games industry, and a true Industry Star! As Operations Manager at Code Coven, Reema is described as “one of the most kind people you will meet in games”.

She works tirelessly to provide opportunities to marginalised game developers, advocates fiercely against social injustice, and still makes time to be one of the most reliable colleagues – checking in on the team, making sure nobody is overworking, always offering support and celebrating the achievements of others!

So, it’s time we celebrate Reema, and thank her for the kindness and light she brings to this industry.

Sadie Tasker

Sadie Tasker, or Jarvs, has been a force of nature in games this year. Creating a thriving Discord community, Dev Social, she’s offered developers a safe space to share resources, find support, and join in social activities. Jarvs has been volunteering her time, while juggling the responsibilities of being a new parent, to help share insights into games accessibility from her own lived experience.

She’s been a familiar, friendly face to many, at events like EGX, WASD, and Nothing Without Us, and is a passionate advocate for more online access to industry events, making networking more accessible for all. Jarvs puts the star in Star Trek, and makes it on to our list of Industry Stars for the bravery and compassion she’s shown this year!

We’ll be celebrating more Industry Stars this month, so stay tuned for more.