STEVE WRIGHT AND HEIDI JOHNSON-WRIGHT DAY IN THE CITY OF CORAL GABLES

 JULY 25, 2022 – THE EVE OF THE 32^ND ANNIVERSARY OF THE ADA

We were honored for creating and team teaching a groundbreaking Universal Design Course at University of Miami School of Architecture in the Spring semester of 2022.

Thanks to Commissioners Kirk Menendez and Rhonda Anderson for co-sponsoring the legislation honoring our hard work. We appreciate Commissioner Menendez’s kind reading of our accomplishments/bios into the official City Commission meeting record:

Steve Wright, an award-winning journalist and marketer, and Heidi Johnson-Wright, a lifelong public servant and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) expert, based the course on their three decades of expertise and advocacy. The 32nd anniversary of the ADA is tomorrow, July 26 – with a celebration at County Hall.

Johnson-Wright has used a wheelchair for mobility for 40 years and brings her practical experience as well as her 30+ years of professional expertise to the classroom. Wright is America’s go-to journalist for reporting on architecture, town planning, mobility engineering and urban policy – as they relate to people with disabilities and access for all.

The revolutionary full-credit course for graduate and undergraduate students reflected UM’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility for all.

Universal Design is extremely relevant because the United Nations has identified more than one billion people in the world have disabilities.  Centers for Disease Control research has proven that one in four people in the United States will experience some form of disability.

The Wrights have published more than 1,000 articles on best practices for planning, architecture, transportation engineering and urban design for people with disabilities.

They have lectured at national conferences across the United States and in Europe. This year, they have combined to appear on more than one dozen podcasts focusing on better housing, mobility, jobs, parks and quality of life for people with disabilities.

The Wrights donated 100 percent of their School of Architecture professor pay toward further outreach and education to support Universal Design on a global scale. Funds support travel and related expenses supporting pro bono presentations on “design for all” at major conferences and conventions.