Design Week features “We are Enabled by Design” event

Tue, 15 Jun 2010 | By Angus Montgomery

Organisation Enabled by Design is holding an event at London’s Design Museum on Thursday which will focus on the principle of ‘design for all’. 

This is a design philosophy that promotes the development of products, services and systems which can be used by as many people as possible without the need for adaptation.

Enabled by Design, which was co-founded by Denise Stephens and Dominic Campbell, promotes the principle of design for all and the good design of assistive equipment. The organisation was set up by Stephens following her diagnosis with multiple sclerosis in 2003 and experiences of using assistive equipment.

Stephens says, ‘Enabled by Design is passionate about design for all and how it can by harnessed to make the world a more accessible and inclusive place.’

She adds, ‘We want to help reframe the ageing and disability debate, so rather than focusing on impairments, we want to concentrate on people’s abilities and the products and services that can help support them to live as independently as possible, as well as making life that little bit easier and more manageable. For us, design for all means accessibility for the masses.’

The We Are Enabled by Design event will examine the potential for using design for all in areas including product design, service design, urban design and the workplace.

Speakers will include Wayne Hemingway, Julia Cassim of the Royal College of Art’s Helen Hamlyn Centre, and Cassie Robinson and Ella Britton from Think Public. The event is also supported by the Future Perfect Company.