Center for Inclusive Design & Innovation

FREE web event! The State of Georgia ADA Coordinator's Office is holding "The 2025 Virtual ADA Conference for State and Local Governments" on June 3-5. CEs are available. Learn more and register: https://lnkd.in/eAyhwsDb

Want to keep up with the latest at CIDI? Join our mailing list for CIDI Connect, our monthly newsletter that details the monthly happenings. Sign up and start receiving it in your inbox once a month: https://lnkd.in/e5DQjrHH

TODAY: Webinar on ergonomics in the workplace for people with disabilities. Register ?? https://lnkd.in/eZQ67rz4

Extremely pleased to share the incredible impact of AT Act Programs. Grateful to lead our dynamic Georgia program, Tools for Life, and work with an outstanding group of state and community partners. Center for Inclusive Design & Innovation, Georgia Institute of Technology

CIDI Connect's March Issue - Spotlight on Tactile Media & Accessibility! Tactile media is transforming accessibility, empowering individuals who are blind or have low vision with meaningful ways to engage with information. This month, we highlight: Braille Challenge at Georgia Academy for the Blind – Our Braille team served as judges, celebrating Braille literacy and student excellence. Design for Tactile and Embodied Learning Workshop – A collaboration with the School of Industrial Design to explore innovative tactile learning experiences. CIDI Joins the Tactile Media Alliance – Advancing research and applications of tactile media in education and communication. Research on Disability & Aging – Examining the challenges and opportunities for aging individuals with disabilities. Upcoming Ergonomics Webinar – Tools for Life & Work ACCESS host a session on workplace ergonomics for individuals with physical disabilities. Join us in celebrating accessibility innovations! Read the full newsletter here: https://lnkd.in/d8ppmqKb #InclusiveDesign #AssistiveTechnology #Braille #TactileMedia #Accessibility #CIDI #Ergonomics

"We are interested in finding locally relevant, sustainable solutions for people with disabilities. That’s why we are visiting disabled organizations and trying to understand how we can work together to design and build assistive technologies." - CIDI Interim Executive Director Zerrin Ondin-Fraser, UXC, PhD Check out the collaborations students and faculty from CIDI, Georgia Tech College of Design, and Georgia Institute of Technology are making with the Masaka Resource Center for the Blind in Rwanda ?? https://lnkd.in/eFDmHvXD

??? Building Global Connections ?? The Dean is in...Rwanda! Ellen Bassett has been exploring local markets to gather supplies for an upcoming workshop on assistive technology. She is joined by Georgia Institute of Technology students and instructors?Zerrin Ondin-Fraser, UXC, PhD (CIDI)?and?Tony Giarusso (CURA)?as part of our ongoing efforts to support inclusive design and disability services. We have been learning and collaborating with local organizations like the?CHECHE Foundation?which supports children with disabilities in the Ntarama Sector, Bugesera District. More info on their important work here: https://lnkd.in/gQG6gNUX We’re excited to continue this work, learning from and with our Rwandan partners to create meaningful, inclusive design solutions. #GeorgiaTechDesign #AssistiveTechnology #InclusiveDesign #DisabilityInclusion

WEBINAR: Ergonomics in the Workplace for People with Physical Disabilities Join us on March 12 from 2-3pm as we discuss the main goals of ergonomics and share simple solutions that anyone can use to improve their work area. Register ?? https://lnkd.in/eZQ67rz4

Many of CIDI’s research and service units were created in response to or because of legislation around disability. ??? One of CIDI’s direct predecessors, AMAC, was created by Georgia’s Board of Regents to centralize several important disability services mandated by federal law under one roof, thus saving the state resources and money. Let’s review some of the most impactful pieces of disability legislation and discuss how CIDI interacts with or can support compliance with these laws ?? https://lnkd.in/eqY4q6Rj

Co-Design in Rwanda! I am currently traveling in Rwanda with GT students and my fellow VIP instructors, Zerrin Ondin (CIDI) and Tony Giarusso (CURA). In our first visit, Spring 2024, we started to learn about the landscape around disability services and assistive technologies in Kigali. One of the groups we met and have started to work with is the CHECHE Foundation. See:? https://lnkd.in/eeXXXqDr.? CHECHE stands for Children in Education, Cultural and Health Environment. This group supports children with disabilities in a peri-urban district, not far from Kigali. It also has a center in which daycare is provided for a mix of children, both those with and those without disability. Last year we learned about appropriate-technology chairs that they manufacture to support children with physical disabilities arising from conditions such as cerebral palsy.??(The chairs aid children to sit straight and support their necks, amongst other benefits.) Two of our talented ID students (who make chairs annually!) are pictured with the chairs, which are made from cardboard and glue, in the upper left.??Moving these chairs and managing energetic children, however, is quite a physical challenge for mothers and other caregivers so this semester the students designed a wheeled chassis to hold the chair securely while making it easy to move. The pictures are design in action from today!??Congratulations to the great, multi-disciplinary Yellowjacket team that made the design and the whole group that came together (harambee style, look it up!) to manufacture the chairs.?The mother and child were ecstatic, and I believe this design solution will go a long way in improving their quality of life (AKA the human condition!)