Design Research Society DRS Digital Library DRS Biennial Conference Series DRS2018 - Catalyst Jun 25th, 12:00 AM Responding to Diversity Including Disability René Sørensen Overby Aalborg University Camilla Ryhl Aalborg University Follow this and additional works at: https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/drs-conference-papers Citation Sørensen Overby, R., and Ryhl, C. (2018) Responding to Diversity Including Disability, in Storni, C., Leahy, K., McMahon, M., Lloyd, P. and Bohemia, E. (eds.), Design as a catalyst for change - DRS International Conference 2018, 25-28 June, Limerick, Ireland. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2018.524 This Research Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Conference Proceedings at DRS Digital Library. It has been accepted for inclusion in DRS Biennial Conference Series by an authorized administrator of DRS Digital Library. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Responding to Diversity Including Disability SØRENSEN OVERBY René* and RYHL Camilla Aalborg University e-mail:
[email protected] doi: 10.21606/drs.2018. 524 This paper constructs a framework for understanding how notions of disability influence the discourse on accessibility and Universal Design as well as the present understanding of the user role in Denmark. Implications are that the understanding of disability and design of architecture are not mutually opposed to one another. Instead they are closely interwoven in the fabric of designing for diversity. Through the perspectives of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Disabled People's Organisations Denmark and the practicing Architects, the paper discusses three notions of disability. Initial findings of the PhD research project “Generating Inclusive Built Environments through User Driven Dialogue in the Architectural Design Process” along with qualitative research conducted at the Danish Building Research Institute frame former and current thinking, and discusses the scope of reviewing impairment as a condition of human variety in the architectural design process.