relaxed sense of place
TRANSCRIPT
Relaxed Sense of Place Emotional Value of Universal Design
Kim Vanderland
May, 2013
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Universal Design is inclusive, attractive and never obvious; it integrates features that improve function and usability for everyone. (http://udsummit.net/)
Kim Vanderland Space Matters Consulting
May, 2013
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Relaxed Sense of Place Emotional Value of Universal Design
During the recent Universal Design Summit in St. Louis, I was able to participate in several
tours of residential spaces with different levels of universal design elements. My group was
lucky enough to have the schedule with sequential order of increasing levels of universal
design integration.
To give some context, the total group was ~20 people and we were separated into 2-3
smaller groups for each site tour. Each of my groups included a very diverse group of
people with varying levels of access needs, to include powered wheelchair, visual
impairments, larger and shorter statures, etc. During each tour, I felt and observed very
different emotional reactions and group dynamics that exposed the impact design can have
on individuals that may be highly applicable and needed in the business world.
Renovated Space – Added Accessibility:
The first location was a renovation project of a historic manufacturing building. The
building was designed to be home for local artists to include residential and studio spaces.
Because it was a renovation, there were many obstacles inherent to the building that could
not or were too costly to be corrected. The impact of these obstacles on our group such as
having to maneuver through narrow halls, backtracking around stairs, and low light
conditions became very obvious very quickly. Those people facing impediments quickly
showed strong levels of frustration, high tension, anxiety, and even anger. I felt high
anxiety as well, but also awkwardness, apprehension, and stress resulting from a sense of
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obligation to provide assistance to others (even if it wasn’t asked for). There was little
conversation during the tour with the tour guide other than how to work around or why
obstacles existed. There was even less conversation among the participants with each other.
It was a very uncomfortable visit.
Designed Community – Separate but Equal:
The next site visited was a community redevelopment project to revive an urban
neighborhood. The premise was to build a community with universally designed common
spaces to enable ease of use by all community members. The residential units included
sections of universally designed apartments as well as typically designed town houses.
Again, the tour group included a similar set of diverse access needs, but a few of the
individuals stepped away from the first group. I inquired to some why they changed groups
and they shared they had purposely avoided being in the same group because of the
uncomfortable experience on the first site tour.
We started the tour in a community room that was similar to a lobby in a hotel. It was
beautiful and far more modern feeling that the previous space. As we progressed out into
the community and through a residential unit, the group was clearly more relaxed. The
apartment was very attractive, with great finishes, comfortable feel, and thoughtful attention
to the variety of uses within the space. There were fewer obstacles to overcome; less
maneuvering needed to get from place to place. However, when one was discovered,
similar awkwardness and anxiety was noted. Areas like sidewalks not wide enough to allow
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people to pass each other comfortably. As we transitioned through doors, there was no
door opener, resulting in either needed assistance or struggles to open doors independently
by those in chairs or with weaker abilities. In addition, the group could not tour a
townhouse due to the physical obstacles, such as stairs to front doors, etc. This did raise
some frustrations and anxiety by some in the group, as well as some references to “separate
but equal” conditions.
Overall, the tour group seemed to have less negative emotions related to the physical space
than in the first site visit. The group was more conversational, asking questions of the tour
guides, but also sharing a bit more information with each other. The group seemed less
distracted by obstacles or negatives and more open to possibilities and learning. Seeking to
understand rather than primarily focused on their personal needs or avoiding those with
needs not being met. But, I admittedly thought about the accessible choices that I had
available to me that some of the others did not. I could see situations in which this
difference could be used to create separation, dependence, and even discrimination.
Intentional Ease of Use
The last site visited was an apartment building in which all of the units were constructed
using the same universal design standards. The tour started in the lobby similarly to the
community visited just prior. My group included a mix of individuals who had been
together on one or both of the previous tours, with similar variety of access needs as noted
before.
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The interior of the building was very modern, bright and beautiful. There were open spaces,
with clean lines and uncluttered designs. My group of ~10 people toured the external
parking lot, gym facilities, a first floor retail work/live apartment, as well as a 1 bedroom
apartment on an upper floor. As the tour progressed, I began to notice that I was actually
very relaxed, no anxiety and surprisingly, oblivious to the access needs of the individuals
around me. I felt absolutely no obligation to provide aide, which seemed to open me up to
connect with the person as a peer, rather than what I had experienced before.
Remember, these are the same people as on the previous tours. To be painfully honest, I
had already developed some fairly narrow assessments of the capabilities of some of my tour
mates. But in this space, it was much easier to focus on their words and ideas and not their
circumstances or physical actions. There were no physical obstacles to deal with, thus no
need for anxiety on how I was supposed to interact with the people on the tour. In fact, I
saw less difference among the group and saw more likeness, and had a desire to hear their
opinions and value their inputs. Overall, I had become more open to problem solving rather
than problem identification.
This relaxed emotional state seemed to be shared by others, as the group was very
conversational, seeking to learn more about each other, even raising controversial topics for
open debate. During this site visit, many people asked more questions of me and for my
business card (20+ times), which had really not happened on either of the two previous
tours.
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On the ride back, I thought about the corporate opportunity of this experience. How could
corporations benefit from the emotional value created through the universal design of space?
The So What…
This experience demonstrated to me that universal design could add tremendous value
through easing stressors and diminishing dependence (perceived or actual). By easing these
tensions, emotions and thinking can elevate to focus on similarities, relativity, and
possibilities; rather than differences, gaps, and obstacles. While this value statement has
existed within the Universal Design community for quite some time, I had not personally
experienced the impacts so clearly and effectively as I had during the site visits.
In these uncertain economic times, corporations need differentiators to improve their
profitability. This can be achieved through increased productivity, focused engagement and
heightened creativity of their workforce. For quite some time, corporations have been
seeking ways to leverage the diversity of their workforce to improve business results and
innovative solutions. Workplace strategists, like myself, continue to emphasize the
strengths of flexibility and mobility in the workplace. They pair it with intentional design
such as open plan spaces, with creative layouts and easy access to technology tools. Based
on my experiences during these universal design tours, along with many follow-up
Increase Equity in Use
of Place
Decreased Dependence
and Negativity
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discussions during the conference, I think we may be missing the mark by not also seeking
universal utility in addition to this flexibility and mobility.
Space usability is not about accessibility by reacting to ADA requirements. It is about
achieving the relaxed sense of place that enables the entire workforce to raise their focus
away from gaps and differences to higher level of thinking, to focus on relativity and new
ways to connect things together. As seen in the community tour, creating pockets of
accessibility by isolating ease of use to specific areas, will not be sufficient, to achieve the
required workplace cost efficiency and desired usability. As people shift locations or use
new technology tools, obstacles in the transition could result in the same rise of negative
emotions and squelch the positive emotions spatially created previously.
By using universal experience goals as a filter, corporations can develop intentional designs
to achieve workplace solutions that are cost effective but also support equitable use and
create that relaxed sense of place.
The desired universal experience goals will differ depending on the needs of the
organization, the maturity of their culture, and the nature of their business objectives. But,
the guiding principles for universal design are a sound road map to help corporations craft
design goals that mature and evolve naturally along with the organization. There are
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several strong examples of well-designed spaces that one can tour to gain first-hand
experience to take back to the corporate workplace. I encourage you to visit
http://www.udinstitute.org for more information on Universal Design as well.
Equitable usability (not just accessibility) within the workplace has the strong potential to
positively impact the workforce, lifting the focus from negative to positive, from gaps to
opportunities and ultimately improve productivity and profitability. I believe that the next
evolution of the workplace strategy will need to effectively incorporate these principles of
equity to deliver the greatest value to the organization and it’s workforce.
For more information or if you would like to discuss this topic in greater depth, please
contact me at [email protected].
Kim Vanderland
www.spacematters.us