Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media, Law & Policy
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media, Law & Policy

Peter Blanck Meets Ecuadorian President, Ministers to Proclaim First UD Building in Ecuador for People with Disabilities

Thursday, January 17, 2019, By Martin Walls
Share
accessibilityBurton Blatt Instituteuniversal design
two men seated shaking hands

BBI Chairman Peter Blanck, left, meets with Ecuadorian President Lenín Moreno on Jan. 14, 2019. Moreno has used a wheelchair since he was shot in a robbery attempt in 1998.

On Jan. 14, Syracuse University Professor Peter Blanck, chairman of the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) and the Global Universal Design Commission (GUDC), met with Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno, the first lady and Ecuadorian ministers to develop collaborative programs toward an inclusive country for Ecuadorians with disabilities. Blanck also presented to the Ecuadorian and Quito City governments the first recognition in Ecuador of GUDC principles for universal design (UD, aka “Design for All”).

“It is a great privilege and honor on behalf of BBI and the GUDC to acknowledge the world leadership of President Moreno and many others in Ecuador to further the inclusion of people with disabilities into society,” Blanck says.

GUDC is a not-for-profit corporation established to develop Universal Design (UD) standards for buildings, products and services. GUDC is developing UD voluntary consensus standards for commercial and residential buildings, which will expand access to buildings for all people, regardless of physical stature and varying abilities.

BBI and GUDC have longstanding ties in Ecuador. Ecuadorian Ambassador to the United Nations Luis Gallegos Chiriboga is honorary chairman of the GUDC Board of Directors, and Ecuadorian leader Maria Teresa Donoso is a GUDC representative.

While in Ecuador, Blanck also will meet with Ecuador’s Minister for Total Life, which oversees inclusive services for persons with disabilities, older adults and children, and with Xavier Torres, president of the Ecuadoran National Council for Equality of Disabilities. Torres is a leader of disability rights in Ecuador and was representative of Ecuador and Latin America for the UN Committee for Surveillance of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

On Jan. 18, Blanck will give a public address to celebrate the opening of the Metropolitan Convention Center of Quito, the first GUDC-certified building in Ecuador and Latin America. During this visit, Blanck will discuss future collaborations among Ecuador, BBI and GUDC with Minister of Tourism Rosy de Holguin, Quito Secretary of the Environment Veronica Arias, and former Quito Mayor Paco Moncayo.

In his public remarks, Blanck will promote accessible “tourism for all,” particularly for persons with disabilities and older adults to all parts of Ecuador. “Ecuador is a uniquely rich country in its natural beauty, from its beaches, to mountains and jungles, to the Galapagos Archipelago. I have been very lucky indeed to visit diverse cities, the Amazon and the amazing Galapagos Islands.”

 

  • Author

Martin Walls

  • Recent
  • Syracuse Stage Presents ‘Annapurna’ March 17 Through April 4
    Monday, March 8, 2021, By Joanna Penalva
  • Graduate Student Works With Food Policy Council to Combat Rising Food Scarcity Due to COVID
    Monday, March 8, 2021, By Brandon Dyer
  • Online Master of Social Work Opens Doors to Career Changers, Working Professionals
    Monday, March 8, 2021, By Ellen de Graffenreid
  • Turning Gratitude Into Opportunity
    Friday, March 5, 2021, By Dan Bernardi
  • University Selected to Host Hult Prize Regional Competition
    Friday, March 5, 2021, By Cristina Hatem

More In Media, Law & Policy

‘Intelligence Strategy Highlights Workforce’

Corri Zoli, associate teaching professor in the College of Law and director of research for the Institute for Security Policy and Law, and Brian Holmes, dean of the Oettinger School of Science and Technology Intelligence at the National Intelligence University…

‘Black Content Needs: Black Capital and Control?’

J. Christopher Hamilton, assistant professor of television, radio and film in the Newhouse School, wrote an op-ed for LA Progressive titled “Black Content Needs: Black Capital and Control?” Hamilton, who is also an attorney and executive producer, has spent his…

‘Is Election Disinformation Free Speech or Defamation? Courts Will Decide’

Roy Gutterman, associate professor of magazine, news and digital journalism and director of the Tully Center for Free Speech in the Newhouse School, wrote an op-ed for Syracuse.com titled “Is election disinformation free speech or defamation? Courts will decide.” Gutterman,…

Hilda A. Frimpong Becomes the First Black Student to Lead Syracuse Law Review

Second-year College of Law student Hilda A. Frimpong has been elected by her peers as the next editor in chief of Syracuse Law Review. When she assumes her duties for Volume 72 (2021-22), Frimpong will be the first Black student…

‘8 Tips for Grad Students for Planning in 2021’

Timur Hammond, assistant professor of geography and the environment in the Maxwell School, wrote an op-ed for Inside Higher Ed titled “8 Tips for Grad Students for Planning in 2021.” Hammond also serves as a faculty liaison for the Future…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2021 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.