Contemporary Living: Bringing a Universal Design Principle Into the Mix

Ron Mace (1941–1998) was a pioneer in bringing what is referred to as universal design (UD) to the forefront of our thinking about how we create our built environments and the multitude of objects that are designed and used within them. Living with polio, he was a student of architecture and a professor at North Carolina State University where he was instrumental in bringing an awareness of the need for rethinking how we design, build, and create environments that are intended to be used by all individuals, meeting all needs. Two decades ago, he led a team of individuals in the development of these seven principles that guide universal design: 1. Equitable Use, 2. Flexibility in Use, 3. Simple and Intuitive Use, 4. Perceptible Information, 5. Tolerance for Error, 6. Low Physical Effort, and 7. Size and Space for Approach and Use (The Center for Universal Design, n.d.). Mace argued in his last speech that although the term and meaning of barrier free design generally has served as a description to denote the removal of architectural barriers to enhance use for people with disabilities, what makes UD different from barrier free design is that the focus does not lie within a specific group of people, but applies to all people (Mace, 1998). As such, the principles of UD recognize the needs of the young, of the old, and of those in between, as well as every user of designed objects and space.