Geography
Accessibility, Disability, and the Socio-Spatial Construction of Exclusion
Quick fact
In the medical model, disability is a personal health problem to be fixed, but the social model shows that a person in a wheelchair is disabled by stairs, not by their legs—the environment creates the disability. For example, a curb cut meant for wheelchairs also helps parents with strollers and delivery workers, revealing how inclusive design benefits everyone.
Why this is interesting
You’ve probably felt excluded from a place—but what if the reason wasn’t you, but the design of the building and the attitudes of the people inside? How do we decide who belongs in public space?