Invisible barriers: excluding accessibility from the field of interest of architecture and urban planning in Poland

Abstract

The aim of this article is to blow the whistle on the upcoming decline in quality and accessibility of the built environment in Poland following a reform currently underway in higher education and research that has placed accessibility outside the field of interest of architecture and urban planning. In consequence of the major changes in the government evaluation that will define the future funding of all academic institutions, studies on the needs of people with disabilities will no longer be in the interest of the institutions to which architects and urban designers are affiliated. This will add yet another barrier to the numerous existing ones limiting accessibility.