Inclusion study is funded
THE State Government is providing $250,000 for a new feasibility study into making Geelong a more accessible and inclusive city.
Geelong Labor MP Christine Couzens, representing Disability Minister Martin Foley, said the funding would enable Deakin University to explore ways to build social and economic inclusion in Geelong.
There will be a particular focus on universal design, the built environment and employment, Ms Couzens said.
The Accessible and Inclusive Geelong study project will be led by Deakin’s research hub HOME, which includes 30 researchers from across all four of the university’s faculties: Arts and Education; Business and Law; Health; and science, Engineering and Built Environment.
The hub works with local communities to deliver welldesigned, sustainable and connected communities.
A steering committee with representatives from City of Greater Geelong, the State Government, Deakin, and local disability organisations and businesses including GenU, Australian Federation of Disability Organisations and Vision Australia, will coordinate the project.
“The ultimate aim is a city designed to be accessed and used to its full potential by all people, regardless of age, and ability or disability,” project leader and Deakin’s Associate Head of School of Architecture and Built Environment, Associate Professor Richard Tucker said. “Our project seeks to create a pathway to that reality for all of us.”