Putting safety first Universal Design Academy is hoping to inspire architects and designers to make buildings more accessible and secure published : 10 May 2021 at 04:30 5 Assoc Prof Trirat Jarutach, head of the Center of Excellence in Universal Design, Faculty of Architecture Chulalongkorn University. Photo courtesy of Assoc. Prof Trirat Jarutach Phiangkwan Phanthumphan, a fourth-year student at the Faculty of Architecture, Kasetsart University, blindfolded herself and held a cane while carefully walking down the stairs. Even with a cane, she was worried about her safety since the stairs were not designed for the visually impaired. Phiangkwan's experimental experience is part of a course, "Universal Design Academy", which is preparing infrastructure design for housing, hospitals, tourist attractions, department stores, educational institutions, public transportation, pathway overpasses, to name a few, to be accessible for everyone. Universal Design Academy is a programme organised by the Thai Health Promotion Foundation, the Center of Excellence in Universal Design and the Universal Design Center. The latest programme was attended by 45 professionals from various fields such as architects, real estate developers, interior designers and building managers from the Airport of Thailand, the Marine Department, the Property Management of Chulalongkorn University, and the Thai Red Cross Society and other professionals such as dentists and physicians.