Title :
Accessible City - Generating inclusive solutions through design thinking and participation

Place:
University of Bielsko-Biała

As part of the BB__Design Lab project, a seminar combined with participatory workshops called "Accessible City - Generating inclusive solutions through design thinking and participation" was held at the University of Bielsko-Biała, the aim of which was to initiate solutions that increase accessibility and inclusion in Bielsko-Biała. The workshops began with a lecture explaining what universal design is and what principles we should follow when creating accessible solutions. It discussed how to design solutions that increase accessibility in various areas of Bielsko-Biała's functioning. Design thinking techniques were used to generate accessible innovations, the best of which have a chance of making it onto the city's development agenda. At the end, they experienced a variety of experiences using simulators. This was to increase awareness of the barriers our users of the universal design process may encounter.

Event goals:
Familiarizing participants with the issue of universal design
Clarification of key concepts and unification of Participants' knowledge in the area of ​​accessibility
Familiarizing participants with the principles of universal design using case studies as an example
Developing a model process for co-creating accessible urban initiatives
Developing hypotheses for urban activities that take into account accessibility
Integration of Participants through workshop work
Familiarizing Participants with ergonomic research methods (including presentation of the GERT suit)

Recipients:
Employees of Bielsko-Biała city offices and institutions
City activists and community workers
Leaders of the socio-economic environment interested in accessibility
Students, designers, architects and other urban solution creators interested in accessibility
All those who have an idea for urban innovations focused on accessibility and integration

Topics covered:
Introduction to Universal Design - Nomenclature Explained
A Historical Sketch of Universal Design
The 7 principles of universal design explained with examples
Introduction to Iterative Design Methods
Introduction to Conducting Accessible Usability Testing
Introduction to Indirect Research Using Disability Simulators