INDUSTRIAL DESIGN: A HUMAN APPROACH FOR INCLUSIVE DESIGN

Abstract

The purpose of the following article is to reflect upon the human approach that governs the
foundations of industrial design and transforms it into a key tool for the inclusion and participation of
people with disabilities in society. To this end, the article presents a brief history of the origin of the
discipline to identify its nature of service and social responsibility, which configures the industrial
designer as an agent of change over the evolving needs of society. Among the contents, Learning
and Service, along with Participative Design methodologies are highlighted, which lay the foundations
for Inclusive Design, Assistive Technologies, and Universal Design, which then result in the
configuration of methodologies, models, and artifacts of Industrial Design, as instruments of social
justice since the demands of Design are transformed into demands for equity.