scholarly journals Designing Collective Access: A Feminist Disability Theory of Universal Design

2013 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aimi Hamraie

<p>Universal Design (UD) is a movement to produce built environments that are accessible to a broad range of human variation. Though UD is often taken for granted as synonymous with the best, most inclusive, forms of disability access, the values, methodologies, and epistemologies that underlie UD require closer scrutiny. This paper uses feminist and disability theories of architecture and geography in order to complicate the concepts of "universal" and "design" and to develop a feminist disability theory of UD wherein design is a <em>material-discursive</em> phenomenon that produces both physical environments and symbolic meaning. Furthermore, the paper examines ways in which to conceive UD as a project of collective access and social sustainability<em>,</em> rather than as a strategy targeted toward individual consumers and marketability. A conception of UD that is informed by a politics of interdependence and collective access would address the multiple intersectional forms of exclusion that inaccessible design produces.</p><p>Keywords: universal design; collective access; interdependence; built environment; feminist theory</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p>

Author(s):  
MANUELA PIRES ROSA ◽  
GERMANA SANTIAGO DE MELLO

 O Projeto de Investigação ACCES4ALL focaliza-se em interfaces modais projetadas de acordo com o conceito de “Design Universal”. Tem como objetivo principal desenvolver um estudo piloto de uma paragem de autocarros acessível, inteligente e sustentável, a localizar numa interface multimodal. Num contexto de sustentabilidade social, os ambientes construídos inclusivos têm de garantir acessibilidade universal. Assim, as pessoas com deficiência visual necessitam de pavimentos táteis e/ou com diferenciação cromática que forneçam orientação e informação sobre os espaços e os meios de transporte. Com esta comunicação pretende-se apresentar exemplos internacionais de sistemas de encaminhamento, através de pavimentos táteis, em paragens de autocarro, tendo-se recorrido a pesquisa bibliográfica e realizado desenhos técnicos. Os resultados indicam que existe uma grande diversidade de soluções técnicas de encaminhamento tátil no ambiente construído, recomendando-se a necessidade de harmonização de soluções podotáteis no mundo, considerando um contexto de Turismo Acessível.Palavras-chave: Turismo Acessível. Acessibilidade universal. Ambiente construído. Paragens de autocarro. Pavimentos táteis. Pessoas com deficiência visual. Tactile Floors at Bus StopsABSTRACTThe ACCES4ALL research project focuses on modal interfaces designed according to the concept of "Universal Design". Its main objective is to develop a pilot study of an accessible, smart and sustainable bus stop to be located at a multimodal interface. In a context of social sustainability, inclusive built environments must guarantee universal accessibility. Thus, people with visual disability need tactile and/or chromatically differentiated pavements that provide orientation and information about spaces and means of transport. This paper intends to present international examples of guiding systems, through tactile surfaces, at bus stops, having resorted to bibliographic research and technical drawings. The results indicate that there is a great diversity of technical solutions for tactile routing in the built environment, recommending the need for harmonization of podotactile solutions in the world, considering an Accessible Tourism context. Keywords: Accessible Tourism. Universal accessibility. Built environment. Bus stops. Tactile surfaces. People with visual disability.


2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 134
Author(s):  
Nangkula Utaberta ◽  
Mahsa Dabbagh Niya ◽  
Azmal Bin Sabil

<span lang="EN-US">Malaysia to become seeks to become a fully developed country by 2020. Among nine central challenges demonstrated in the body of the “Vision 2020” is “the challenge of establishing a fully caring society” (WAWASAN 2020). Along with developed societies overcoming such dysfunctional built environments has become under consideration in Malaysia as well to remove barriers and provide equal access of people with disabilities (PWDS) to all public services. Notwithstanding practical steps taken, there are still dissatisfactions from the members of public toward public buildings which cause restriction in PWDS daily life. Previous studies has also raised claims against inaccessibility of mosque buildings as well.<span>  </span>In order to realization of a barrier-free built environment for a huge portion of Malaysia population, this research aimed to investigate accessibility and usability of Malaysian mosques for PWDS. Masjid Negara was selected for the purpose of this study. The most recent revision of available Malaysian Standard of MS 1184:2014, “Universal Design and Accessibility in the Built Environment - Code of Practice”, became the reference in this study. A comprehensive evaluation checklist was constructed for the purpose of a systematic observation including 162 checkpoints under 22 items of accessibility.</span>


Author(s):  
Joseph John Hobbs

This paper examines how the architectural, social, and cultural heritage of the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf countries may contribute to better development of this region’s lived environment. Modern urbanism has largely neglected heritage in architectural design and in social and private spaces, creating inauthentic places that foster a hunger for belongingness in the UAE’s built environment. The paper reviews recent urban developments in the UAE and the Gulf Region, and identifies elements of local heritage that can be incorporated into contemporary planning and design. It proposes that adapting vernacular architectural heritage to the modern built environment should not be the principal goal for heritage-informed design. Instead we may examine the social processes underlying the traditional lived environment, and aim for social sustainability based on the lifeways and preferences of local peoples, especially in kinship and Islamic values. Among the most promising precedents for modern social sustainability are social and spatial features at the scale of the neighborhood in traditional Islamic settlements. Interviews with local Emiratis will also recommend elements of traditional knowledge to modern settings. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanan Liu ◽  
Dujuan Yang ◽  
Harry J. P. Timmermans ◽  
Bauke de Vries

AbstractIn urban renewal processes, metro line systems are widely used to accommodate the massive traffic needs and stimulate the redevelopment of the local area. The route choice of pedestrians, emanating from or going to the metro stations, is influenced by the street-scale built environment. Many renewal processes involve the improvement of the street-level built environment and thus influence pedestrian flows. To assess the effects of urban design on pedestrian flows, this article presents the results of a simulation model of pedestrian route choice behavior around Yingkoudao metro station in the city center of Tianjin, China. Simulated pedestrian flows based on 4 scenarios of changes in street-scale built environment characteristics are compared. Results indicate that the main streets are disproportionally more affected than smaller streets. The promotion of an intensified land use mix does not lead to a high increase in the number of pedestrians who choose the involved route when traveling from/to the metro station, assuming fixed destination choice.


Author(s):  
Jennifer Forestal

Designing for Democracy addresses the question of how to “fix” digital technologies for democracy by examining how the design of the built environment (whether streets, sidewalks, or social media platforms) informs how, and whether, citizens can engage in democratic practices. “Democratic spaces”—built environments that support democratic politics—must have three characteristics: they must be clearly bounded, durable, and flexible. Each corresponds to a necessary democratic practice. Clearly bounded spaces make it easier to recognize what we share and with whom we share; they help us form communities. Durable spaces facilitate our attachments to the communities they house and the other members within them; they help us sustain communities. And flexible spaces facilitate the experimental habits required for democratic politics; they help us improve our communities. These three practices—recognition, attachment, and experimentalism—are the affordances a built environment must provide in order to be a “democratic space”; they are the criteria to which designers and users should be attentive when building and inhabiting the spaces of the built environment, both physical and digital. Using this theoretical framework, Designing for Democracy provides new insights into the democratic potential of digital technologies. Through extended discussions of examples like Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit, it suggests architectural responses to problems often associated with digital technologies—loose networks, the “personalization of politics,” and “echo chambers.” In connecting the built environment, digital technologies, and democratic theory, Designing Democracy provides blueprints for democracy in a digital age.


Author(s):  
Jeremy T. Gibberd

Despite a growing awareness of climate change, there is little evidence that this is being addressed in cities and built environments. Events such as flooding in Houston, USA; landslides in Free Town, Sierra Leone; and water shortages in La Paz, Bolivia and Cape Town in South Africa demonstrate that it is increasingly important that climate change is understood and addressed in built environments to ensure that they become more resilient. This chapter introduces climate change and outlines the implications of this for built environments. It describes measures that can be incorporated into built environments to enable them to adapt to projected climate changes. Understanding climate change and preparing for this by developing built environments that are more resilient will be an increasingly valuable and important skill. Reading this chapter will support the development and refinement of skills and knowledge in this area and it is an essential reference for built environment students and practitioners.


3D Printing ◽  
2017 ◽  
pp. 361-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Filippucci ◽  
Fabio Bianconi ◽  
Stefano Andreani

Drawing has always been the most powerful instrument for the conceptualization, interpretation and representation of spaces and forms. Today, the computer screen complements the eye-brain telescope with an additional lens that increases the ability to understand, visualize and ultimately design the built environment. Computational design is dramatically shifting not only established drawing and modeling practices, but also ? and perhaps most importantly ? design thinking processes in the very conception and morphogenesis of forms and of their complex relationships in space. Specifically parametric modeling allows to understand geometry and manipulate shapes in dynamic, articulated and yet intuitive ways, opening up unprecedented design opportunities but also diminishing the importance of the design process for the sake of formal complexity. This chapters offers some insights on the incredible design opportunities offered by new computational instruments, as well as highlighting circumstances in which the act of ‘modeling' takes over the ‘design.'


Author(s):  
Marco Filippucci ◽  
Fabio Bianconi ◽  
Stefano Andreani

Drawing has always been the most powerful instrument for the conceptualization, interpretation and representation of spaces and forms. Today, the computer screen complements the eye-brain telescope with an additional lens that increases the ability to understand, visualize and ultimately design the built environment. Computational design is dramatically shifting not only established drawing and modeling practices, but also ? and perhaps most importantly ? design thinking processes in the very conception and morphogenesis of forms and of their complex relationships in space. Specifically parametric modeling allows to understand geometry and manipulate shapes in dynamic, articulated and yet intuitive ways, opening up unprecedented design opportunities but also diminishing the importance of the design process for the sake of formal complexity. This chapters offers some insights on the incredible design opportunities offered by new computational instruments, as well as highlighting circumstances in which the act of ‘modeling' takes over the ‘design.'


Author(s):  
Melody Smith ◽  
Rebecca Amann ◽  
Alana Cavadino ◽  
Deborah Raphael ◽  
Robin Kearns ◽  
...  

Children’s independent mobility is declining internationally. Parents are the gatekeepers of children’s independent mobility. This mixed methods study investigates whether parent perceptions of the neighbourhood environment align with objective measures of the neighbourhood built environment, and how perceived and objective measures relate to parental licence for children’s independent mobility. Parents participating in the Neighbourhood for Active Kids study (n = 940) answered an open-ended question about what would make their neighbourhoods better for their child’s independent mobility, and reported household and child demographics. Objective measures of the neighbourhood built environment were generated using geographic information systems. Content analysis was used to classify and group parent-reported changes required to improve their neigbourhood. Parent-reported needs were then compared with objective neighbourhood built environment measures. Linear mixed modelling examined associations between parental licence for independent mobility and (1) parent neighbourhood perceptions; and (2) objectively assessed neighbourhood built environment features. Parents identified the need for safer traffic environments. No significant differences in parent reported needs were found by objectively assessed characteristics. Differences in odds of reporting needs were observed for a range of socio-demographic characteristics. Parental licence for independent mobility was only associated with a need for safer places to cycle (positive) and objectively assessed cycling infrastructure (negative) in adjusted models. Overall, the study findings indicate the importance of safer traffic environments for children’s independent mobility.


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