Universal design is often overlooked and underutilized in many many disciplines. Urban planners and by extension commercial architects are probably more exposed than most, but it’s core principles could make the world easier and better for us all. Universal design is the process of creating products that are accessible to people with a wide range of abilities, disabilities, and other characteristics. In layman's terms, it’s the process of designing things to be more accessible to everyone everywhere especially in terms of physical spaces. But how could those principles apply to
My friend once told me a story and struggle he had being one of the few minority designers at a design firm in Boston while we grabbed bears one day. He told a story of how he often had issues with the automated soap dispensers in the bathrooms because of his darker skin tone. When he described such a simple thing I thought it would be in the best interest to make sure that those are highly sensitive given their placement often, but learning it wasn’t something that had been considered gave me pause. An automated soap dispenser is a pretty ubiquitous item in bathrooms that serve large commercial and entertainment districts worldwide. It brings into question if the existing design could be improved to make it better for all of us.
While a soap dispenser is a simple example it’s indicative of how most design works today whether it’s digital or physical. Most websites and apps are not geared towards individuals who has visual or auditory impairments, which how most of the world accessing information and communicates today, which is scary to think about. Now universal design has seven design principles that are a part of it’s practice:
- Equitable Use.
- Flexibility in Use.
- Simple and Intuitive Use.
- Perceptible Information.
- Tolerance for Error.
- Low Physical Effort.
- Size and Space for Approach and Use.
These seem like very simple and common sense principles, but looking at a number of enterprise apps or even websites this is not something we are used to seeing. Many developers and companies make it harder to do things as the app or service grows instead making it stupid simple. It’s one of the reasons people love Apple’s design because often it’s intuitive and simple and is easier to use. What if everyone designed everything with these principles in mind? What would the world look like? Universal design applied to all design could be an amazing thing and is worth looking into as we embrace new technology and the world becomes more global. Think of ways to apply universal design principles you’re making.
