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Overview Individual accommodation and inclusive design are important concepts related to accessibility which ensures equal opportunities for all individuals. In today’s diverse and inclusive environments, understanding and implementing individual accommodation and reasonable adjustment is crucial. These practices ensure that everyone, regardless of their unique needs or circumstances, has equal access to opportunities and resources. Individual accommodation refers to tailored support provided to individuals to help them overcome specific barriers. This can include modifications in the workplace, educational settings, or public services to meet the unique needs of a person with disabilities or other challenges. Reasonable adjustment involves making changes to policies, practices, or physical environments to prevent or reduce disadvantages experienced by individuals. These adjustments are considered “reasonable” if they do not impose undue hardship on the organization or ent...

Introduction In every society, the measure of justice begins at its margins. The way we safeguard those most at risk, people living with disabilities, often overlooked or excluded, reveals not only our compassion but our capacity to build systems that serve everyone. Policies born from protecting the vulnerable are not acts of charity; they are architectural blueprints for resilience. When governments legislate for accessibility, when courts uphold the dignity of those with limited capacity, when communities design safeguards against hate crime, they are not only defending a minority; they are laying foundations for a safer, more inclusive society. From the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to the UK’s Equality Act of 2010, disability-focused reforms have consistently rippled outward, reshaping the broader landscape of justice. What begins as a ramp for one becomes a pathway for all; what starts as protection against targeted violence becomes a framework for universal victim support. T...

Overview Writing about universal design implies tracing back to the origin of the concept. In the 1970s, architect Ron Mace came up with the idea of universal design. Taking from his lived experience, as a wheelchair user, he understood the difficulties faced by people with disabilities as they try to move around buildings, roads, and public transport systems to mention but a few. He came up with the term “universal design” to characterize the importance of creating products and services that are beautiful, usable, and enjoyable by everyone, regardless of ability, age, or status in life. To continue his work, in 1997, The Center for Universal Design at North Carolina State University expanded Mace’s vision of the importance of designing inclusive environments for everyone. Universal design aims to create inclusive and equal access to resources, technology, or spaces for all users. How inclusive is universal design? To answer this question, we must examine the overall effect of...

Overview Have you ever thought about any design strategy that lifts the lid? A well-thought-out design strategy can remove or eliminate accessibility barriers for everyone. This strategy can be described as a concurrence of fundamental notions of design, principles of design, the 10 commandments of design, and design elements. The question now becomes: how does a designer implement this strategy? To explore this, these contents will be examined: Fundamental Notions of Design Design Principles Nielsen’s 10 Commandments of Design Elements of Design Design is an interesting discipline that brings together imagination and reality. It imagines the interaction between an individual and the man-made environment as it interprets and considers factors, such as society, aesthetics, function, context, experience, and culture. Any design aims to create useful arrangements of elements that will benefit the user to achieve identified goals. Some fundamental notions of desi...