Presentation at an OECD Meeting: The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Its Significance for an Inclusive Society
11 November, 2026
Inclusion, accessibility, and universal design were the focus of a lively expert discussion at the OECD meeting. Gerda Huber, a lecturer and researcher at UAS Technikum Wien, provided insights that linked the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities with practical design approaches.
On September 29, 2026, Gerda Huber, a senior lecturer/researcher from the Digital Enterprise & User Experience Competence Area, was invited to give a keynote presentation on universal design in the ballroom of the Austrian Control Bank (ÖKB).
The event was the 54th Meeting of Practitioners of the Working Party on Export Credits and Credit Guarantees, which brought together representatives from OECD member states.
In her 45-minute presentation titled “Barriers to Inclusion,” Gerda Huber addressed the question of how barriers arise and what impact they have on people with disabilities. A central idea here is that disability does not arise solely from individual limitations, but is created or exacerbated by barriers in our environment, our products, services, and digital systems.
Principles of Universal Design
Building on this perspective, Gerda Huber presented the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its significance for an inclusive society. Another key focus was the principles of Universal Design—that is, the approach of designing products, services, and environments from the outset so that they are as accessible and usable as possible for everyone.
From the perspective of user experience design in particular, it becomes clear how important it is to take different needs and usage scenarios into account right from the design process. Accessibility and inclusion are thus not merely afterthoughts, but can be understood as essential components of good design.
The subsequent Q&A session provided an opportunity for an in-depth exchange. Numerous interesting contributions to the discussion demonstrated how relevant the topics of accessibility, inclusion, and universal design are even beyond the traditional context of user experience.
The presentation made it clear: Good design begins with recognizing barriers—and placing the diverse needs of people at the center.
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