Roger Coleman

Include 2003
inclusive design for society and business

An international conference at the
Royal College of Art, 25-28 March 2003
Supported by the Laura Ashley Foundation

It's time to take the inclusive design story to the wider world of business and opinion formers. That was the clear message from the Include 2003 conference at the Royal College of Art in London, which was attended by 160 delegates from 14 different countries around the world.

Eighty papers were presented alongside four workshops and 11 poster presentations, as researchers from Canada, the United States, UK, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, Israel, China, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Australia and Ireland came together to create a global inclusive design network embracing education, practice and industry.

Satoshi Kose and
Catherine Ejiogu

Welcoming delegates to the College, Rector Professor Sir Christopher Frayling said that Include 2003 participants had the opportunity to 'rewrite design history' and banish the doctrine of one size fits all.

Reporter-at-large, Earl Powell of the Design Management Institute in Boston, commented: 'We've seen wonderful research on how inclusive design works. Now the focus needs to turn to why businesses should adopt more inclusive strategies. It's very difficult to change corporate behaviour but this conference has succeeded in mobilising a collective intelligence to take the argument forward.' Jane Ashley of the Laura Ashley Foundation, which sponsored the conference, said her charity was honoured to be part of Include 2003: 'The research presented should ultimately benefit older and disabled people by including their needs in the design process.'

Dr Patrick Jordan of the Contemporary Trends Institute said: 'If there's one message Include 2003 delegates should take away from this conference, it is that every individual counts. We can all make a difference in our practice, teaching and research. Let's do it!'

Download further reports and the conference book