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The majority of ETH Zurich buildings are not yet barrier-free. In addition to a lack of automatic entrance doors or insufficient wheelchair-accessible toilet facilities, many buildings are not yet equipped with the new barrier-free signage. Two projects have started work and aim to make ETH barrier-free over the next twenty years.

How accessible is ETH Zurich? On the occasion of the ¡°Rights of Persons with Disabilities Action Days¡± taking place throughout Switzerland from mid-May to mid-June, Ulrich Weidmann, Vice President for Infrastructure, takes stock of the ¡°Barrier-free at ETH Zurich¡± programme and explains what still needs to be done.

Four projects in the ¡°Barrier-Free at ETH Zurich¡± program were successfully completed at the end of 2023. The quarterly reporting provides a comprehensive overview of all ongoing activities and results achieved in the 14 sub-projects. All projects have the common goal of making ETH Zurich's infrastructure accessible in accordance with the "Design for all" principle.

As part of the Disability Rights Action Days, ETH Zurich is presenting the "Design for all" campaign and organizing various events: learn sign language in the "Caf¨¦ des Signes", change your perspective in the newly designed awareness workshop or explore the ETH buildings with the new accessible navigation app "PolyMaps".

Since the autumn semester 2023, automatic subtitling of lecture recordings and further information on the topic of accessible videos have been offered for the first time. The accessible navigation app "PolyMaps" won the GIS Excellence Award 2023.

The ETH Library is offering new services contributing to a barrier-free learning environment. Moreover, the room acoustics in various meeting rooms have been improved. You are invited to a webinar on 24 October to learn more about the ¡°Principles of universal design (design for all)¡±.

You can attend workshops in October at which ETH is ¡®experienced¡¯ in a wheelchair or with a white stick and simulation glasses ¨C please register and come along! Furthermore, there are new directions to ETH buildings for visually impaired and blind people. And another sub-project has now been completed.

Accessibility remains an important issue for ETH Zurich. A new exhibition charts the progress made so far by the ¡°Barrier-free at ETH Zurich¡± programme, along with unresolved issues. In addition, the CHN building is being adapted to make it barrier-free, and a new website provides information about how to organise events that are accessible.

The ETH website needs to be accessible. According to the Disability Discrimination Act, this applies both to content and published documents. New, improved InDesign templates are available for ETH members.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) calls for an inclusive education system ¨C including at higher education level. At a panel discussion on 20 April, affected students, teaching staff and persons with expertise in the field of teaching talked about the possibilities and limitations of accessibility in education.

ETH Zurich does not yet offer a fully accessible environment. The university is therefore launching a new campaign in mid-April as part of its ¡°Barrier-free at ETH Zurich¡± programme. The ¡°Design for all¡± campaign includes clear goals such as ¡°Make architecture accessible to all!¡± and ¡°Break down the barriers to accessible teaching!¡±

In April and May, interested ETH members will have the chance to navigate the ETH campus in a wheelchair or with a white cane to gain a different perspective. This is one of the various events offered as part of the ¡°Design for all¡± awareness campaign. ETH has now also published an accessibility statement.

One of the aims of the ¡°Barrier-free at ETH Zurich¡± programme is to make events at ETH more accessible. A panel discussion addressing the topic of ¡°Accessibility and inclusion in higher education¡± is being held on 20 April. Come along and join the discussion!

Websites, Word documents, PowerPoint presentations: digital content needs to be created with more than just the visuals in mind. By following these seven rules, you can create content that is accessible to all users and thus play a role in addressing accessibility concerns.

From 27 August until 10 September, ETH Zurich will be holding its university-wide ¡°Rights of Persons with Disabilities¡± Action Days to raise awareness about disabled people¡¯s rights and accessibility at ETH. Take advantage of the opportunity to discover more about these topics.

This autumn, ETH is offering people the chance to navigate its campus in a wheelchair or with a white cane to gain a different perspective. In addition, there are more height-adjustable desks available for students in wheelchairs. These are two new developments from the ¡°Barrier-free at ETH Zurich¡± programme.