On Monday, September 25, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM, we are organizing an ESCalator event in Rotterdam, focused on designing inclusive digital services. This event will be centered on systemic change and enhancing co-creation processes within UX design to structurally promote inclusion.
Digital inclusion is essential in a society that is increasingly dependent on digital services and technologies. However, many groups remain excluded due to the lack of accessibility in these services, creating physical, cognitive, and social barriers. The challenge is often systemic: inclusivity is still too often treated as an afterthought in the design process. This leads to inequality in access to critical digital services, such as government platforms, healthcare, and education.
This event is linked to the Digital Inclusion by Design KIEM project, where we explore how to ensure inclusion from the very beginning of the design process. We focus on systemic challenges such as the complexity of different user needs, the impact of regulations, and the role of accessibility guidelines in existing workflows.
Together with professor Tomasz Jaskiewicz from Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, Christel Thieme from New Future Lab, UX designers from companies like Level Level and Okapion, as well as experts, students, lecturers, and researchers, we will further explore how to improve systemic co-creation to tackle these challenges.
Location: Rotterdam, further details to follow.