Universal Design 2021

Download or read book Universal Design 2021 written by Ira Verma and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This special issue combines 32 articles from the 5th International Conference on Universal Design (UD2021) organized by SOTERA, the Research Group for Health and Wellbeing Architecture, at Aalto University, Finland. We are celebrating 150 years of Art, Design and Architecture education in 2021, and inclusiveness is one of the major themes. Previous Universal Design conferences have been organized every two years, starting in Norway and followed by Sweden, England, and Ireland, but the 2020 conference was first postponed by a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, and was finally organized online in 2021. The conference offered the possibility to share knowledge and best practice, and to network with people from all over the world. The current situation has highlighted the importance of web accessibility and the user-friendliness of interfaces and easy to use remote connections, and many of us have moved seamlessly into remote work. At the university, new ways of teaching and learning may also have benefited those with dyslexia or other sensory limitations which may cause difficulties with participating in lectures. However, we have all also experienced the limitations of current technology and seen the need for its development from the point of view of users. The EU directive on Design for All (2016) and the standard (2019) encourage the design and construction of websites and mobile applications to make them more accessible to all users, in particular those with disabilities, but everyone benefits from easy to use solutions and wider access to services, and persons with disabilities and older people will also be better integrated in society as a result. The EU has also recognized that Universal Design has potential for both innovation and economic growth"--Publisher's description