Civic Engagement for People with Disabilities

Design Research

This research project about—and for—People with Disabilities (PWD) was done in partial fulfillment of my requirements to complete my Master's degree in Strategic Design and Management at the Parsons School of Design in NYC.

 

What & Why

Civic engagement refers to activities that build on the collective resources, skills, expertise, and knowledge of people to improve the quality of life in their communities. In today's world full of VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) problems, this is a critical topic of discourse given the strength of any democracy—and its ability to withstand problems—depends on its people's participation.

The problem surfaces with a great part of the population (in the US and different parts of the world) having feelings of distrust, dissatisfaction, and disillusionment with their governments. Zooming into a specific segment of the population, for various reasons PWD experience a much more fragmented form of democracy compared to the rest of society, even with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in place.

Thus, armed with my:

  1. Passion for Accessibility and Inclusive Design;
  2. Utmost respect and concern for PWD; and
  3. Yearning to work in or with the public sector in the future;

I started my research into this topic. The presentation below represents my learnings about what the barriers are for PWD to become effectively engaged by those in government:

  • Project DetailsFirst part of my individual capstone project for my master's degree

    Second part of my capstone covering potential solutions are not included here

    Done between Aug - Dec 2022
  • Research MethodologyFocused on the US setting but hoping to extrapolate later on which opportunities could be applicable to my home country, the Philippines

    Cognizant that disabilities can be permanent, temporary, and situational, but focused on those with permanent disabilities due to the longer-term, systemic challenges they encounter

    In-depth interviews with 8 PWDs, 6 gov't employees, 4 civic design leaders and 1 special education teacher

    Observed and interviewed within the US Capitol in Washington, DC

    Observed a developmental disability organization’s monthly member meeting

    Joined conferences about civic empowerment

    Went through over 70 websites, white papers, and videos