Universal Design

This message has been cross posted to the following Discussion Forums: Young Architects Forum and Universal Design .
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I want to call attention to the session that has been added to the schedule at the AIA conference in New Orleans on May 12 from 2:00 to 3:30:
Designing for All: Social Sustainability and Universal Design

Here's a brief description:

Architects are poised to engage in a new, more holistic understanding of "sustainability." Over the past 20 years, the values of environmental sustainability have reached the mainstream, and we have acquired the perspective to begin an examination of a broader framework that encompasses social, economic, and environmental sustainability within our ideals of design excellence. We are ready to seek out additional, complementary models for thinking about design, and Universal Design is certainly one of these models. This program introduces the tenets of Universal Design and explores the significant and growing overlap between Universal Design principles and the values inherent to the concepts of environmental and social sustainability. Case studies and examples of successful Universal Design strategies representing a variety of scales and settings will be presented. Architects strengthen their practices and their communities by recognizing needs and providing creative solutions. Promoting elegant, intuitive, and accessible design which anticipates and celebrates the diversity of human ability enables all of us to influence community development in order to meet the needs of all citizens and to contribute to an enriched making of place.

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Gunnar Baldwin
Water Efficiency Specialist
TOTO USA, Inc.
Thornton NH
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