Designing for Access
From: New York Times - 12/14/2017
By: Allison Arief

Many recent technological advancements seem more ominous than optimistic:
Alexa eavesdropping on water cooler conversations at work, automation taking
our jobs, autonomous vehicles crashing into taco trucks. Or they’re more
frivolous than helpful (for example, automated dental floss dispensers). But
“Access+Ability,” an exhibition opening Friday at the Cooper Hewitt design
museum in Manhattan, fills one with real optimism: It highlights the
beneficial ways design and technology are transforming the lives of people
with different physical, cognitive and sensory abilities.

The show also reveals the challenge of bringing empathy to the marketplace:
Most of the more than 70 products on display were initiated by someone who
either has a disability or has a family member who does. Frustrated by the
lack of solutions created by others, these people were motivated by their own
experience and need.

Read the entire article at:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/14/opinion/design-disability-accessibility-cooper-hewitt.html

Links:
Cooper Hewitt Presents “Access+Ability” with More Than 70 Empowering Designs
https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2017/11/27/cooper-hewitt-presents-accessability-featuring-more-than-70-inclusive-designs

Designs for Independent Living
https://www.moma.org/documents/moma_press-release_327496.pdf

Institute of Making
http://www.instituteofmaking.org.uk

Design for the Mind: How Can Design Address the Needs of those Living with
  Alzheimer’s Disease?
https://www.pratt.edu/news/view/design-for-the-mind-how-can-design-address-the-needs-of-those-living-with-a

Innovative Magical Bridge Playground in Palo Alto Featured at Cooper Hewitt,
  Smithsonian Design Museum Access+Ability Exhibition
http://magicalbridge.org/innovative-magical-bridge-playground-palo-alto-featured-cooper-hewitt-smithsonian-design-museums-accessability-exhibition

Related:
Shane's Inspiration
http://shanesinspiration.org/playgrounds

Submitted by Olenka Villarreal