My top 3 favorite inclusive experiences
Gold : National Museum of African American History and Culture
Washington DC's most recent Smithsonian museum opened in 2016 featuring an in depth experience of African American History and Culture.
My Take: The NMAAHC provides a timeline of the African American experience from the pains of slavery to the triumphs of President Obamas' election. The combination of art, honesty and interactive experiences tap deep into a visitors' empathy. Exhibits like the Woolworth Sit-in Stools Interactive Lunch Counter, Emmett Till's coffin and Chuck Berry's cadillac are experiences that help form the narrative. DC natives and tourists alike should spend a day in the massive four floor structure and learn about the carefully crafted stories of the past.
Learn more at https://nmaahc.si.edu/
Bronze : Microsoft Inclusive Cities
"Designing for inclusion starts with recognizing exclusion" - Susan Goltsman
Goltsman the Founding Principal of MIG, Inc and an advocate for inclusive play is featured in a Microsoft video speaking about the varying ways children play.
My Take: While designing products for play environments Goltsman discovered that the more severe a childs' disability the more vicarious the mental play. Children were actually experiencing the playground in their mind, so she decided to require different types of behaviors to interact with her products.
Learn more about Microsoft's inclusion mission https://www.microsoft.com
Silver : Touching Masterpieces
A virtual reality (VR) experience at the National Gallery of Prague that allows visually impaired individuals to experience art through touch.
My Take: When you visit a museum their is usually a sign that says "Don't Touch". The National Gallery of Prague is flipping the rules and providing a new tactile experience that encourages sight impaired individuals imagination to creatively visualize art in their own way. Touching Masterpieces is just one example of how design and technology are using virtual reality and artificial intelligence to level the playing field for indivduals with from birth disablites, developed disablites and tempory disablites.
Learn more at www.touchingmasterpieces.com
Bonus : Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks about how his children's challenges taught him empathy.
In 2014 Satya Nadella became the new CEO of Microsoft and has had a big influence on the shift in culture for the tech giant. Over the past few years Nadella's focus on inclusion and risk taking has fostered new creative products and services for Microsoft. Listening to Nadella talk about his children gives you a look into his character and his real source of empathy for inclusion. He has been a crucial piece in fulfilling Microsofts mission of empowering every person on the planet to achieve more. The focus is now shifting from making sure every computer is running Windows to how can the company make a difference. This year Microsoft decided to invest $25 million in grants over 5 years to use AI to help people with disabilities.