Written by Alex, one of Designability’s Lived Experience Advisors
When I joined the Lived Experience Advisor panel for Designability I felt genuinely excited, and if I’m honest, a little surprised too!
Opportunities like this don’t come along every day and being able to help influence and co-produce something like The Unfair Index survey feels really meaningful to me.
The fact that my lived experiences, and the experiences of other disabled people, help shape tools and products that can tackle some of these injustices is something I care deeply about.
No single disabled person’s experience is the same
One of the biggest things I’ve taken from being on the panel so far is how powerful coproduction and collaboration is. Working alongside other Lived Experience Advisors has opened my eyes to how different everyone’s experiences of disability can be.
Listening to other people share their insights, challenges, and perspectives has been both interesting and motivating to try and ‘right’ some of these wrongs. It reminded me that no single disabled experience is the same, and that’s exactly why this kind of work matters so much.
Designability and The Unfair Index is for people who are neurodivergent, too
When I first applied, I wasn’t actually sure I would be selected. From the outside, Designability seemed to focus mainly on physical disabilities, and I wasn’t sure whether I would “fit” as someone who is Autistic and Neurodivergent. But since joining, it’s been really clear that I do belong, and more importantly that Designability actively wants to expand its work to include all disabilities. Being part of that shift towards broader inclusion is really important to me.
When I received the draft copy of The Unfair Index survey to look at, I nearly gave up. In its initial draft it didn’t feel like it fully reflected Autistic or Neurodivergent experiences. This is where being part of the panel has been so powerful as feedback from myself and others has seen the survey build and improve to its final version today. Seeing those changes happen has been incredibly validating and shows that lived experience input really is being listened to by Designability.
Looking forward to the potential impact of The Unfair Index
The survey launch feels very exciting; it means a lot to see people like me reflected in something like this. I really hope The Unfair Index helps highlight the real barriers disabled people face every day and helps drive meaningful change. Being part of this journey has felt like a real privilege, and I’m excited to see what impact it is going to have.
About the author:
Alex is one of Designability’s Lived Experience Advisors, a panel of disabled people who have been working with us to shape what The Unfair Index looks like and how we will use it to inform our future inclusive design projects. Alex is Autistic and wants to highlight some of the barriers Autistic people face in day-to-day life.