4. JICA Inclusive Makeathon “Improve the Work Environment for Our Blind Colleague”¶
Related Link:
“視覚障害があっても働きやすい職場をつくる（チーム１）”, Fabble
“【こんなのいかがです？】視覚障害を持つ職場の同僚の執務環境をちょっと改善する”, note
Background¶
When I was still an open-ended staff of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), I spent my last two fiscal years being the Task Team Leader for the mainstreaming digital fabrication in the international development cooperation. The main objective of the task force was to sensitize the JICA staff with the power of digital fabrication and the global FabLab network, expecting them to enter into the collaboration with the FabLab in their neighborhood and prototype solutions locally and achieve the objectives of their projects.
But I hereby confess that this mission was not easy to achieve in a short time. It was difficult to attract wider audience across the whole organization. We discussed the measures for breakthrough among the task team members and agreed to restart with focusing on 3D-printed assistive devices.
This worked and we succeeded in tapping the small and specific audience. In JICA, the staff working on disabilities and development expressed their interest in the devices customized to the requirements of a specific person with disability. Nowadays, the JICA staff who understand most about the power of digital fabrication are probably those who work on the above agenda.
In order to further enhance their skills and knowledge, we decided to host a hands-on workshop “Makeathon” to prototype assistive devices for a specific PwD. In the community of practice on rehabilitation, such persons with disabilities are called “need-knower”.
Design¶
The meakeathon was held on the afternoons of February 28 and March 1, 2024, at the JICA HQs. There were 10 participants, including myself, and they were divided into two groups. The need-knower was a JICA staff visually impaired and hired in the HQ building.
After the interview and observation tour with the need-knower inside the building, my group decided to focus on the embossed signage that show on which floor the need-knower is staying. Also, we designed the stickers on the handrail of the evacuation staircase. Every morning, when she arrives at the HQ building, she use the staircase to walk up to the floor her section is located.
Both the signboards on the elevator hall and the stickers on the staircase have the floor numbers embossed so that the need-knower could touch and see what they are. However, while we colored white the floor number and direction blocks to keep harmony with the color to show the direction and make them acceptable for the other staff, the stickers on the handrail were kept low-key so that they could not be taken away. Also, the signage in the elevator hall could be put on the flat wall, but the stickers are placed on the pipe. Therefore, we used flexible filament to 3D-print the stickers.
Contact¶
If you are interested in the makeathon and want to know more about the event, please contact me at LinkedIn.