“Accessibility is not just for people with disabilities, but for all of us.”
Modern buildings and public infrastructure are now more advanced, safer and stronger than ever before. But not all of them are still good enough when it comes to accessibility for people with disabilities and others facing mobility issues such as the elderly and pregnant women.
To fix the problem, Tsinghua University’s Institute for Accessibility Development (ADI) has been promoting awareness and pushing for inclusive designs that make buildings and other infrastructure accessible to all, regardless of mobility challenges.
Accessibility is the basis of a sustainable inclusive society, the common denominator of the whole society, the basic condition of guaranteeing equality and dignity for all people, and also an important part of science, technology and art, according to the institute.
As the number of people with disabilities is increasing around the world due to population ageing and a rise in chronic health conditions, Shao Lei, president of the institute, says enhancing barrier-free access to buildings and other facilities has never been more crucial.
Tsinghua’s Institute for Accessibility Development serves as an accessible technology innovation platform, which has been playing a crucial role in building a barrier-free campus environment at Tsinghua.
The barrier-free ramp at the entrance of a student apartment after renovation
More and more campus facilities are now becoming barrier-free and as accessible as possible. The Teaching Building No. 4 is the first teaching building in the university to realize a barrier-free transformation fully. Accessible ramps have been installed outside the entrance on each floor to ensure those in need can easily access to other spaces.
Besides, many new facilities were installed, including barrier-free toilets, external barrier-free elevators with braille buttons and voice floor broadcast, and the configuration of sound amplifier interfaces for hearing-impaired students in classrooms. Barrier-free toilets and elevators have been added to provide basic protection for teachers and students in need.
The university has also begun upgrading existing on-campus facilities such as playgrounds, libraries, landscape parks, entrances and exits of departments, martyrs' monuments and other areas and facilities to make them barrier-free. The moves highlight Tsinghua’s social commitment to building an inclusive campus where the universal concept of accessibility is fully recognized.
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“The international communication is a window for the development of China's accessibility field”
Off-campus, Tsinghua’s Accessibility Development Institute has actively participated in several large-scale national projects, all the while sharing China's success stories in building a barrier-free society on the international stage.
Recently, Shao Lei, Sun Liyang, and other faculty members of the institute served as the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games "distinguished accessibility experts".
They participated in all kinds of barrier-free environment construction consultation work, providing barrier-free facility design and related services of expert diagnosis and demonstration, and participated in the barrier-free acceptance and review work of each competition venue. The optimization suggestions put forward by them were concretely implemented, with organizers installing barrier-free facilities and other related services at the competition venues for the Games.
They were involved in formulating the Beijing 2022 Olympics and Paralympics Winter Games barrier-free guide, which laid out specific actions for creating a barrier-free environment for the Games.
They also lead the Olympic stadium design team to improve the barrier-free design of concrete projects. Their work has been fully recognized by the China Disabled Persons' Federation, the Winter Olympic Organizing Committee and the host city.
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“Let everyone study,
work and live independently and equally”
Like the institute, the Student Accessibility Research Association at Tsinghua has been carrying out a range of activities to promote accessibility for people facing mobility challenges.
Jin Anyuan, head of the Student Accessibility Research Association in Tsinghua says, “After being involved with the disability community, I realized that the promotion of accessibility and inclusivity requires the active involvement of people from all walks of life. Through the association, I got to know a lot of friends and conduct valuable research on the issue.”
Aimed to “let everyone study, work and live independently and equally,” the Student Accessibility Research Association has been working on three aspects: the publicity of the concept of accessibility, the barrier-free environment construction and promotion, and cooperation and exchanges with organizations working on barrier-free access.
“Accessibility doesn’t particularly involve complicated processes or technologies. A change in mindset is the most important first step,” Jin says.
The association has cooperated with other universities to hold academic salons and students’ accessibility forums. Besides, it supports middle schools in setting up youth missions and participating in accessibility promotion.
“The power of students is infinite. I believe that every successful seed is planted in one's heart today, and there will be one more person with an inclusive mind to develop in the future,” says she.
The association has also been pursuing interdisciplinary collaboration, bringing up new ideas and solutions to promote barrier-free access for people with disabilities.
“It is an important issue of social inclusion and sustainable development,” Jin says.