The Importance of Accessible Design Standards for Interpretation and Cartography

Approximately 36 million Americans have at least one disability—over 19 million have a mobility impairment, over 10 million have a hearing impairment, and about 7 million have a visual impairment. Individuals with disabilities are entitled to the same experiences as able-bodied individuals. Thus, it is of the utmost importance that cartographers and graphic designers practice universal and barrier-free design when creating maps and graphics in order to prioritize accessibility.

We have produced a Guide to Accessible Map Design to guide our internal process and to communicate with our clients and the general public the importance of accessible design. We want to give a special thanks to Olivia Otsuka for starting this project as an intern with Hamilton College.