On Thursday, 26 February 2015, Puntodis renewed its commitment to the School of Architecture’s Postgraduate Programme in Accessibility and Design for All, which will begin its fifth edition in October. The signing of the renewal agreement was attended by Jon Imanol Ibarra, the Director of Puntodis, Dr. Pere Alavedra, the UIC Rector, and the architect Enrique Rovira-Beleta, who is also the Director of the programme.
This postgraduate programme is the first formal academic initiative to consider accessibility from all angles and explore it within a multidisciplinary context. The programme is of great value to ensure that design for all is both universal and versatile, given that accessibility requirements are different in each country.
“This programme represents an opportunity to discover the abilities of the disabled and show that accessibility is not just a need of the disabled, but an advantage for everyone”, explained Rovira-Beleta. “We need to use this approach to develop cities, buildings, homes, modes of transport and communication systems that are convenient and safe for everyone, especially those with reduced mobility and/or communicative abilities, while maintaining a standardized design for all”, he continued.
The programme combines theory and practice and offers interactive online work sessions that enable participants to study from anywhere in the world. It is taught by academics that hail from a variety of different countries and are renowned professionals in the field of design for all and its related disciplines. Contributions are also made by representatives of organizations for disabled people and institutions that provide services related to universal accessibility.
