System Design Integration: Accessible Tourism

Written by: Emma Prushan, VCD, ’25

“Studies show that more and more disabled people have an appetite for travel. Families with neurodiverse children, honeymooners with mobility scooters, trekkers with guide dogs, baby boomers with hip replacements; thrill seekers with two-thirds body paralysis; it is a diverse and nuanced community that is 1.3-billion strong.” As Sophie Morgan writes, “When it comes to travel, total satisfaction can be hard—if not impossible—for disabled people to find.”

In our senior-level course, System Design Integration, students work on two large- scale projects. For their first project, students were asked to focus on the unique needs of travelers with disabilities. They learned how accessibility considerations belong in every part of the design and development process — how visual communication design can play a critical role in not only improving accessibility, but also, by being accessible itself. Once a week, occupational design doctoral students attended the course and participated in studio critiques. 

Ashley Anousaya ‘24 – Loop

Ashley Anousaya (Visual Communication Design ‘24) created loop. loop is a tool whose goal is to foster an easier form of communication in nightlife for people with a hearing impairment, which ultimately benefits everyone in the club. The goal is to create connections and keep all parties and stakeholders in the loop by networking with clubgoers, staff members, d j’s, etc. loop is a bracelet connected to a digital app that helps make ordering easier, find your friends faster, and even connects to external applications such as uber and lyft. Everyone in the club receives a loop bracelet to avoid any feelings of exclusion to create an empathetic approach to support everyone involved. It also has a sign language component to give an educational opportunity for club goers and staff to learn popular and frequently used sign language to avoid any discomfort or misunderstandings among people who sign to communicate.

Aidan Roe ‘ 24 – Skål

Skål is a company creating new ways to experience beer and beer festivals for visually impaired people. This project is a comprehensive tactile system that doesn’t rely on Braille. Each beer has their own pattern with a raised print which is exhibited on the beer cans. The beer flight is fully customized to increase ease of use for a visually impaired person at a beer festival. The colored coasters in the flight have tap technology to bring beer festival attendees to an app where they can learn more about beer. The app is accompanied by a screen reader assistant for the visually impaired.

Aidan Received Honorable Mention in the 2024 Graphis New Talent Student Design Competition!