Doaa Khattab
Doaa Khattab
Doaa Khattab

While studying Inclusive Design at OCAD U (MDes, 2016), Doaa Khattab became an expert in the field. Her goal was to investigate design that enables people to access, understand and use their environment to the greatest extent and in the most independent way. Her master’s research project, a comprehensive wayfinding system design for visually impaired shoppers in grocery stores, garnered her the Milliken Annual Design Research Award from the Interior Designers of Canada for demonstrating excellence and innovation in interior design. She was also awarded the Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal.

Khattab is now a senior interior designer, bringing her inclusive design insights, space planning and project management to Makow Associates Architects in Toronto, where she often designs spaces for clients who need accessible washrooms, kitchens and pathways.

“As a passionate interior designer, I believe that everyone deserves to live in an incredible space that brings supreme comfort, lasting value, beauty and innovation,” she says.

It’s a message she’s teaching to up-and-coming designers, too. She developed the Inclusive Design and Social Responsibilities course for a University of Toronto and Sheridan College joint program, together with a colleague, Julie Buelow. The course focuses on how human-centred inclusive design empowers people of all ages and abilities. It also analyzes products, buildings and communities from an inclusive perspective. “We look at how to develop form from function to increase the usefulness and responsiveness of our physical world for a wider and more diverse range of people,” she says.

Khattab is a frequent guest speaker in inclusive design classes at OCAD U, and sits on juries to help evaluate OCAD U student projects. She publishes papers on inclusive design topics in scholarly journals. She’s active and engaged in her field as a member of the Ontario Association of Architects, Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario, Interior Designers of Canada and Jordan Engineering Association; she’s also in the process of receiving her National Council for Interior Design Qualification in the U.S.

“Inclusive design is beyond accessibility,” she says. “It’s design that enables and empowers a diverse population by social participation, and improves human performance. Inclusive design makes our lives easier, healthier and friendlier.”

Find out more: makowarchitects.com

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