In the past few years, Google has shifted the way that it thinks about accessibility, moving from grassroots advocacy to codified systems. Beyond making all its products accessible, the next big challenge is finding ways for its technology to help disabled people navigate the wider world.
Universal Design (UD) is an approach to design that increases the potential for developing a better quality of life for a wide range of individuals. It is a design process that enables and empowers a diverse population by improving human performance, health and wellness, and social participation (Steinfeld and Maisel, 2012). It creates products, systems, and environments to be as usable as possible by as many people as possible regardless of age, ability or situation.
