Cities must be designed for everyone — including persons with disabilities

A city reveals its values not through speeches or slogans, but through sidewalks, buses, corridors, crossings, and doorways.

- NIGHT OWL ANNA MAE YU LAMENTILLO

It reveals who it welcomes—and who it quietly leaves behind. And the uncomfortable truth is that far too many of our cities and municipalities are still built for only a portion of the people who live in them. Persons with disabilities remain afterthoughts in design, tolerated rather than enabled, accommodated rather than empowered.It does not have to be this way. In many parts of the world, persons with disabilities are not only consulted when public infrastructure is designed—they are part of the process. A person in a wheelchair contributing to the planning of a new transit route, a visually impaired commuter advising on station layouts, or a neurodivergent commuter shaping sensory-friendly spaces is not unusual; it is expected. These cities understand a simple truth: you cannot design an inclusive environment without including the people who depend on it most.