News

November 16, 2022 | New York – Everyone should have access to buildings where they can participate, prosper, and reach their full potential. To achieve this, we must recognize that we don’t all experience the built environment in the same way.

Across our industry, building designers use a variety of human-centered approaches to address aspects of social justice and equity–but this is only the first step. More research is needed to understand how to advance equity within the built environment.

Steven Winter Associates, Inc. (SWA) is excited to announce that our accessibility team has launched an equity research initiative. This portfolio of work will include the introduction of a new industry framework for embedding equity in building design and exploring outcomes.

Our long-term goal is to reshape our understanding of building performance. We see a future where weight is applied equally to building data, such as water and energy usage, and to aspects of human experiences—including physical, mental, and emotional health, and feelings of belonging, pride, and joy—that are related to equity.

Our research initiative is led by Victoria Lanteigne, who has returned to SWA as the Principal of Research based in our New York City office and is currently completing her PhD in design at North Carolina State University. Previously, Victoria led SWA’s inclusive design services out of our Washington, DC office.

“SWA has a longstanding history of providing unparalleled research in the building performance arena,” Victoria said. “I am thrilled to bridge my portfolio of equity-centered research with SWA’s deep knowledge of accessibility, sustainability, and efficiency.”

This initiative marks an expansion of SWA’s efforts to support equity through our research, consulting, and advisory work. SWA was an early adopter of inclusive design as a pathway to support the needs of people across disability, gender, culture, LGBTQIA+ identity, language, and other factors of human diversity. Additionally, SWA supports the development of healthy and sustainable affordable housing—including Betances, a supportive residence for formerly homeless and low-income seniors in the Bronx.

Inclusive design serves as one of many pathways to achieve equity in the built environment.

“SWA’s accessibility team has recently repositioned our inclusive design services to support our broader equity initiative,” said Peter Stratton, Managing Director of Accessibility Services. “Specifically, we’ve adopted a research-driven approach to inclusive design that prioritizes community and end-user engagement at every stage of the design process.”

Our approach to addressing equity in the built environment has and will keep evolving to meet the demands of our industry and, most importantly, the communities and individuals who will inhabit these environments long after project completion.

Visit our Research and Publications page to read our latest inclusive design research reports.