Co-Designing the Accessibility: from Participatory Mapping to New Inclusive Itineraries Through the Cultural Heritage of Bologna

Accessibility is one of the greatest challenges facing Cultural Heritage sites today. Yet, experiencing culture means being part of our society, as it brings people together, and it should be universally granted. Departing from a participatory process focusing on engaging local stakeholders to regenerate the University District by promoting its Cultural Heritage and public spaces, this paper analyses how the City of Bologna has been able to bring accessibility at the centre of its development programme. Starting from the living lab (U-Lab) created within an European funded project (ROCK), Bologna is working to remove any physical, sensorial and cultural barrier that could impede or discourage the access to the area. In doing so, all the institutions and actors involved relied on the co-design method to create a service with the ultimate aim to make the University area a Cultural District universally accessible.