Universal Design projects' loss of NIDRR funding upsets advocates
WASHINGTON, DC, Oct. 4, 2004 --Recent funding decisions by the U.S. Dept. of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) have "dealt a severe blow" to the field of universal design, say activists. No funding was awarded to either the Center for Universal Design based in Raleigh, NC or the IDEA Center at SUNY/ Buffalo, NY. The lack of funding also threatens the existence of grassroots organizations like Concrete Change, the Georgia-based grassroots group whose founder, Eleanor Smith, developed the concept of "visitability" and work on Inclusive Home Design Act in Congress.