Universal Design

Universal Design is the process of designing a product for users with a wide range of abilities and in a wide range of situations. Think of it as a one-size-fits-all approach. Designers propose a solution for everyone. The problem is that when you focus on creating one solution for all, the designs lose their effectiveness. It's often difficult to achieve any goals with your product when you have so many intended users. Do not meet the needs of every user!

keywords
• #universaldesign
• #onesize
• #onesolution
• #norequirements

Inclusive Design

Focuses on finding solutions that meet diverse needs. Inclusive design means making design decisions that take into account personal characteristics such as ability, race, economic status, language, age, and gender. Inclusive design involves researchers and designers from traditionally excluded populations in the process so that they can bring their unique perspectives to all stages of the design process. If universal design is a one-size-fits-all solution, then inclusive design can be described as a solution for one that extends to many.

With inclusive design, you solve a problem for one type of user, and the benefits of that solution can extend to many other types of users. Our goal as designers is to create experiences that are accessible to users with a wide range of abilities.

In other words: No one should be excluded from using a product we have designed because we did not consider their needs in the design process. In inclusive design, there is no such thing as normality. There is no average person or target group that we should design for.

keywords
• #inclusivedesign
• #diverse
• #characteristics
• #problemsolver
• #extendable

Equity-Focused Design

Instead of designing products for groups of people who are currently excluded, which is the goal of inclusive design, equity-focused design aims to design products that meet the needs of specific people in groups that have been excluded in the past.

Equity-focused design goes a step further than inclusive design. It asks designers to focus on the needs of groups that have been underrepresented or ignored in the past when developing products. The goal of Equity-focused Design is to promote groups that have been excluded in the past.

To develop design with equity in mind, we must first know the difference between equity and justice. The two words sound similar, but they are actually two different concepts.

Equality means providing the same opportunities and support to all segments of society. In other words, everyone gets the same thing.

Equity means providing a different level of opportunity and support for each person to achieve fair outcomes.

Start by identifying a product you want to build. Then think about the groups that have not been served by this type of product in the past. Finally, draft your design, prioritizing the groups that have been identified as underrepresented

It's important to keep in mind that equity-focused design does not solve all problems, any more than inclusive design and universal design do. The key point is that these are all different approaches to solving problems of underrepresentation and designing for a more equitable future.

keywords
• #equityfocused
• #exclusion
• #underrepresentation
• #equality
• #equity