Global Universal Design Educators
Monthly Online News
Produced and distributed monthly by Elaine Ostroff
Volume
3 Number 6,
June 2001
Contents
- Editor’s
Note
- News
from the Global Network
EDITOR’S
NOTE
The
June issue was also delayed for family health reasons, my continued
apologies. Watch for the next issue in the near future.
In
this issue you’ll find information of past and upcoming universal design
events; there is a link to the Proceedings from the recent Canadian
international conference Inclusion By Design; an invitation to participate
in a working group meeting in the United Kingdom, and a listing of several
United Nations-related conferences and activities. Enjoy the link to the
winning student work from the Royal Society of Art and -if you are a design
student from Europe - participate in their current competitions. You’ll
learn about a new book from Japan, a fast-track process for urban design in
Lebanon, and a competition and exhibit on cities as part of the 2002
Olympics in Utah. The US Access Board resources on electronic and
information technology for Section 508 are highlighted and there is a new
opportunity to share outdoor accessibility resources from the National
Center on Accessibility. Finally, check out the new entries in the Calendar
section.
Information
from the Monthly Online News may be freely copied and quoted
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NEWS
FROM THE GLOBAL NETWORK
CANADA
Inclusion
By Design Proceedings Now Available Online
The
Proceedings of Inclusion By Design, the international conference hosted by
the Canadian Council on Rehabilitation and Work, June 1-5, 2001, are now
online. 85 papers are included in the collection which is only available
online. The papers are organized alphabetically by author and are in a pdf
format. The Proceedings can be found at: <http://www.ccrw.org/worldcongress/proceeding.htm>.
JAPAN
Kawauchi’s
New Book Explains Differences - Universal Design vs Barrier Free
Yoshi
Kawauchi writes that his latest book, ‘Universal Design - Questions to
Barrier Free’ has been published, in Japanese. The book includes more than
60 interviews with universal design experts in the United States. Kawauchi
notes that he began the book in 1998, just after Ron Mace died. It includes
the history of the development of universal design, the differences between
barrier free, accessible, and universal designs, along with definitions of
the many related terms. He asserts that barrier free design does not work to
change discriminatory situations.
‘It includes my personal opinions and is a conceptual book with a comprehensive view,’ he says. ‘There is criticism of the book by people who are more familiar with barrier-free design; this criticism is based on superficial understanding. The intent of the book is: What is the goal we should aim at?’
Japanese colleagues believe
that this is a unique book and should be read by the US leaders in universal
design. (Ed Note: we with limited language proficiency are eager to read the
book and hope that it will be translated soon.) For information on how to
purchase the book, contact Kawauchi at: <BZH15277@nifty.ne.jp>.
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LEBANON
Devising
an Inclusive Design Approach to Urban Development
Riadh
Tappuni discusses his continuing work as a United Nations architect in the
reconstruction of Lebanon. The city of Aley, like Beirut where Tappuni
worked with Solidare, is also rebuilding its city center. Tappuni’s report
highlights the visual imaging approach that is enabling a fast track process
along with a participation of the community.
The
city of Aley has been a prominent tourist resort for Lebanon and neighboring
countries. However, a great deal of municipal infrastructure was destroyed
during the Lebanese conflict. In an effort to resume its role as center for
tourism, the municipality of Aley is currently renovating its city center.
The
United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA),
which has been asked for assistance in this effort, recognizes this
undertaking as an important opportunity to use community-based approaches to
test, evaluate and develop plans and designs that are inclusive for
everybody. Partners in the project are the board of directors of Aley
municipality and with the support of the Development Fund, through the
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
ESCWA,
in discussions with the Municipality, set a strategy on how to approach the
work. The project will target a section of the old marketplace (souks), and
the Seria, which is the most prominent public building, houses a number of
government offices with a great deal of public use, have been selected as
areas of intervention.
The
Souks stretch along two long streets where the main commercial and
recreational activities occur. Intervention here will require tackling the
issue of accessibility at an urban scale. Streets, walkways and crossings
will be adjusted by taking standards for accessibility into consideration.
Moreover,
ESCWA recognizes that such an intervention in the technical/design sphere of
action will not achieve its full potential if the public sphere is not
addressed. Hence, a series of meetings with different civil society actors
will be organized to promote public awareness and advocate issues of
universal design.
The
Visual Imaging Approach
The
upgrading of the town center started before ESCWA involvement, and the
municipality has adopted a hands-on approach that produces fast results,
minimizing the need for professional skills or office work. ESCWA devised an
approach to problem solving that used visual imaging for problem
identification and proposal of solutions, in addition to minimal technical
diagrammatic representation. It is hoped that this approach would be
inclusive in process as well as results:
-
Minimize the need for high professional skills.
-
Provide easy communication of information in the field.
-
Be easily understood by the public.
A report titled “Making the Sarai Building in Aley accessible” was completed and presented to the municipality. ESCWA is also finalizing a report on the upper part of the souks.
It is hoped that the project
in Aley will serve as a model of accessible culture and tourism. Such an
intervention could be initiated at a local level and could be replicated at
a national scale. The results of this project will be shared by means of a
sub-regional training workshop with interested neighboring countries and
authorities where there is great interest but limited national capacities to
develop accessible environments. For more information, contact Riadh Tappuni
at: <rtappuni@escwa.org.lb>.
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UNITED
KINGDOM
Royal
Society of Arts Student Design Awards 2000/2001
Susan
Hewer, Head of Design at the Royal Society of Arts reports that
Both
the New Design for Old and the innovative GENIUS Project received excellent
submissions this year. The GENIUS project encouraged multi-disciplinary
teams to submit solutions to gerontechnological issues and problems.
Interior design looked at issues of accessibility in theatre foyers and was
supported by the ADAPT Trust.
Next
Scheme
The
SDA 2001/2002 ‘call for entries’ website is now live at
Entries
from students from all EU countries are welcome. NOTE: There is now an
Australian SDA and details of this can be found at <http://www.sda-au.org>.
[ Back to Top ]
Salford
University Hosts Designing for Inclusivity Event
Marcus
Ormerod, Director of SURFACE (Salford Research Focus on Accessible
Environments) sends this announcement and invitation to participate in a
working group meeting.
This
is a call for papers and a notice of an event to be held at Salford
University in the United Kingdom on 2nd and 3rd
October 2001 on behalf of the international CIB working group W084 -
Building Non-Handicapping Environments.
The
theme of the event is ‘Designing for Inclusivity’ and papers on research
in this area will be welcomed. 20 minutes will be allowed per paper for
presentation. Also new researchers are encouraged to do poster sessions of
their emerging research ideas. The research papers, poster summaries and
other deliverables from the meetings will be published and will also be made
available on the web.
There
will also be key meetings of the Working Group and anyone interested in this
area of study are welcome to contribute to these meetings. The objectives
and scope of CIB WO84 are:
To
examine the process of achieving non-handicapping, user friendly built
environments from research to implementation in every day practice, by:
-
Understanding the cultural and political influences in each participating country
-
Identifying and investigating examples of good and bad practices
-
Acting as a dynamic focal point for the exchange of knowledge and experience.
For
more details on the Working Group and CIB activities please go to
Proposed
Itinerary
| Tuesday, 2nd October 2001 | |
|
12.00
|
Arrival and buffet lunch |
| 1.00 |
Welcome
address from WO84 Coordinator Keith Bright, Reading University
and Martin Betts, Head of School of Construction & Property |
| 1.30 | Presentation of papers |
| 3.00 | Break |
| 3.15 | Presentation of Papers |
| 4.00 | Working Group update meeting |
| 5.00 | Poster sessions and light cocktails |
| 6.00 | Close of day |
| 7.00 | Optional meal |
| Wednesday, 3rd October 2001 | |
|
9.00
|
Presentation of papers |
| 11.00 |
Break |
| 11.15 | Presentation of papers |
| 12.30 | Buffet lunch |
| 1.15 | Working Group action planning meeting |
| 2.30 | Optional tour and close of event |
Costs
This
event is being sponsored by SURFACE who are covering the conference
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UNITED
NATIONS
United
Nations Upcoming Educational Opportunities,
2001 - 2002
The
International Council for Caring Communities (ICCC) is an
June
1, 2001:
LAUNCHING INTERNATIONAL STUDENT
DESIGN COMPETITION
Project
deadline January 1, 2002. Winning projects will be exhibited at
December
6, 200:
“ MUSIC, RHYTHMS, HEALTH, TECHNOLOGY & CULTURE”
February
7, 2002:
ANNUAL CARING COMMUNITIES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY:
IMAGINING
THE POSSIBLE, International Conference, ‘Age of
February
4 - 28, 2002:
STUDENT DESIGN EXHIBITION ‘Integrated Communities: A
April
5-12, 2002:
STUDENT DESIGN EXHIBITION, ’Integrated Communities: A
For
further information contact: International
Council for Caring Communities (ICCC) by Fax: (212) 759-5893; Email: iccc@undp.org;
or see:
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UNITED
STATES
Access
Board Explains Law on Federal Information Technology
The
US Access Board has developed the standards for the accessibility
requirements for Federal electronic and information technology under Section
508 of the Rehabilitation Act. The following is an edited excerpt from an
Access Board article highlighting some of the provisions of the law. It was
published in Access Currents, a free newsletter issued by the Access Board
every other month by mail and e-mail.
As
of late June, this law is in force and is part of the Federal government’s
procurement regulations. These
standards, as issued by the Board last December, cover a variety of
products, including computer hardware and software, websites, phone systems,
fax machines, copiers, and similar technologies.
Provisions in the standards spell out what makes these products
accessible to people with disabilities, including those with vision,
hearing, and mobility impairments. The
Board included both technical criteria specific to various types of
technologies and performance-based requirements, which focus on a
product’s functional capabilities.
Section
508 and its enforcement provisions apply to products procured by Federal
agencies after the June 21st effective date. The law relies
primarily on the procurement process to ensure compliance with the new
standards. In April, the
Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council effectively folded the standards into
the regulations that govern Federal procurement.
The updated regulation will help Federal agencies comply with the
law. Compliance with the
standards is required except where it would pose an “undue burden” (as
defined in the standards) or where no complying product is commercially
available. Certain technologies related to national security are exempt.
The
law allows people with disabilities to file a complaint with the appropriate
Federal agency concerning access to products procured after the effective
date. Alternatively,
individuals may file suit against an agency.
These enforcement remedies do not apply to products procured before
the effective date, nor does Section 508 specifically require Federal
agencies to retrofit existing products.
However, other sections of the Rehabilitation Act make access to
existing products and those developed outside a procurement action a
relevant concern, though not necessarily to the degree required by the
Section 508 standards. The
Rehabilitation Act contains provisions that ban discrimination based on
disability in Federally funded programs and services (Section 504) and in
Federal employment and hiring practices (Section 501).
These sections require that “reasonable accommodation” be made
for the public or employees as necessary and are enforced through an
administrative complaint process similar to the one set up under Section
508. Such accommodations may
pertain to the accessibility of a Federal agency’s existing electronic or
information technology. In
general, the requirement for reasonable accommodation affords agencies
discretion in how access is achieved. In
making reasonable accommodations, Federal agencies will likely use the new
508 standards as a yardstick to gauge access in the absence of similarly
descriptive criteria in the 501 and 504 regulations.
While
Section 508 covers a broad range of technologies, a key concern among many
Federal agencies is access to websites, often the primary portal to an
agency’s information and services. The
provisions for websites in the 508 standards focus on the interaction with
various assistive products people with vision impairments use to access the
Internet and other computer-based information.
Common among these products are screen readers, which translate
what’s on a computer screen into automated audible output, and refreshable
Braille displays. The standards
seek to ensure that web pages and the information they contain are fully
available to the users of these assistive technologies.
For example, certain conventions, such as verbal tags or
identification of graphics and format devices, are necessary so that these
devices can “read” them for the user in a sensible way.
However, use of graphics or animation are not prohibited or
discouraged. Website provisions also address image maps, style sheets,
scripting languages, applets and plug-ins, and electronic forms.
In many cases, different sections of the Rehabilitation Act will
apply depending on how and when pages are developed for an agency’s
website. New pages or sites
developed after the effective date through a procurement action, such as a
contract with an outside firm, are fully subject to the 508 standards and
enforcement provisions. Existing
web pages and those developed or updated in-house by agency staff are not
covered by 508’s enforcement provisions, but access to the information
provided is important in view of an agency’s obligation to accommodate
people with disabilities, including employees, under the Rehabilitation Act.
The
Board has an extensive range of guidance material on section 508 and
[ Back to Top ]
National
Center for Accessibility - Making the Grade
“Making
the Grade” is a new feature of the National Center on Accessibility
Florida
State Parks Addresses Railing Treatment Issue
The
first project highlighted in the premier of “Making the Grade” is from
Visit
the NCA website to view the complete project description, photos and
Submit
a Project for “Making the Grade”
Professionals
are encouraged to submit accessibility projects and
To
submit a project for “Making the Grade” include the following:
-
Brief description of the project including the barrier and solution to achieve access
-
Photos (either digital photo, prints or slides)
-
Contact (name, address, phone, e-mail)
Projects
can be submitted by e-mail to nca@indiana.edu
or mail to:
Jennifer
Bowerman Director of Marketing & Special Projects
National Center on Accessibility
2805 East 10th St, Suite 190
Bloomington, IN 47408-2698
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Utah
Olympics to Judge Physical Fitness of Cities
An
international exhibition of significant practices in the design and planning
of cities is called: The Physical Fitness of Cities: Vision and Ethics in
City Building and will be held February 1, 2002 through March 30, 2002, Salt
Lake City, Utah.
The
Physical Fitness of Cities is a cultural program being held in
This
international exhibition will feature built projects that establish new
standards of resourceful design, ethical practice and far-reaching vision to
create, transform, and repair human settlements. These categories include:
-
Architecture, preservation and landscape architecture
-
Transportation systems and design for accessibility
-
Air, land and water management and reclamation programs
-
Housing, preservation and cultural infrastructure projects, and
-
Social and environmental justice interventions
The
exhibition will explore complex linkages within complex
This
program will highlight design excellence of such significance that it merits
celebration side-by-side with Olympic athletic achievements. As the Olympic
Games create a record of superior athletic performance, the Physical Fitness
of Cities exhibition will establish an exclusive record of the world’s
city-building achievements. A corresponding catalogue will be published,
including a complete record of the exhibition and essays on selected
symposium topics.
Location:
The
Exhibition will be assembled in the historic Salt Lake City
Submission
Details:
-
Only projects which are complete, built and in operation will be
-
The exhibition will be created from digital images.
-
You may enter in more than one category.
Please
submit up to ten visual images per entry.
All entries must include a maximum 500 word description, in English,
of the project’s details, for example: context, concepts, methods,
materials and long-range objectives.
Entry
Fee:
Please
include $75 US with each entry. Make checks payable to Salt
For
more information on formats for submission see: <http:www.fitcities.org>.
A
PDF application form to send in with your submission can be downloaded from
the site. Finalists will be notified and posted on our website by October 1,
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Global
Universal Design Educator’s Network
e-mail list
The
Trace Research and Development Center is the host of educator’s email
list.
To
subscribe send an email message to <listproc@trace.wisc.edu>,
and include the following in the body of the message: subscribe
UNIVERSALDESIGN-ED yourfirstname yourlastname.
The
purpose of the list is explained more fully at this link:
<http://trace.wisc.edu:8080/guest/info/UNIVERSALDESIGN-ED>
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CALENDAR
July
3- September 3, 2001: Architecture
for Education - Exhibition of Designs from the Chicago Public Schools Design
Competition at the Chicago Architectural Foundation, 224 S. Michigan Ave,
Chicago. See http://www.schooldesigncomp.org/
August
5-12, 2001: 1st
International Conference on “Universal Access in Human-
For
more information, see the conference website at:
August
12-14, 2001: Industrial Design
Society of America, National Education Conference, Mass College of Art,
Boston, MA. See <http://www.idsa.org/>
or contact <idsa@idsa.org>.
August
15-18, 2001: Designing Your Life, Industrial
Design Society of America, National Conference and Gallery, Park Plaza
Hotel, other locations, Boston, MA.
August
23-24, 2001: Accessible Practices Workshop:
Exhibitions
September
12-14, 2001: International Conference
on Technology and Aging in
September
14, 2001: Accessible Practices Workshop:
Facilities/Visitor Services
September
14-15, 2001: Audio Description
International (ADI) Conference at The John F. Kennedy Center For The
Performing Arts in Washington DC. Contact Joel Snyder -- 202 682-5591 (day),
(301) 270-0288 (evening) or via e-mail at jsnyder@artswire.org
or the Kennedy Center Accessibility Program --(202) 416-8727 (voice), (202)
416-8728 (TTY) or access@kennedy-center.org
September
24-28, 2001: Retrofitting for
Accessibility, Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
October
2-3, 2001: Designing for Inclusivity
Event, at Salford University, Salford, United Kingdom - a meeting of Working
Group W84, of the CIB. For information on presentations or attendance,
contact Marcus Ormerod at: m.ormerod@salford.ac.uk
October
19-20, 2001: Integrating Differences: Theories
and Applications
The
full program is online at:
November 1-2, 2001: Building for Tomorrow Today - Second Western Conference on Universal Design and Home Modifications, Braille Institute, San Diego. See http://www.interwork.sdsu.edu/sdudc/or contact 619 293 3500 ext. 383 (v) or 619 293 7757 (tty).
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Adding your information, questions to the Online News:
Send e-mail to elaine@ostroff.org by the 20th of each month for the next month's mailing. Articles should be limited to 600 words. If the issue is too full to include, and the timeliness of the article allows it, we may hold the item until the following month.
Elaine Ostroff, Founding Director, Adaptive Environments Center, Editor.
374 Congress Street, Suite 301
Boston, MA 02210
Tel 617 695 1225 x30
Fax 617 482 8099
elaine@ostroff.org
http://www.adaptenv.org/21century/
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