Date: 11 November 2025
Location: Valencia, Spain
Event: International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation (ICERI 2025)
Session: Special Education (1) – Room Andalucía 3
Presenter: Laura Ruiz Minguet (COCEMFE, Spain)
Design2Freedom Takes the Stage at ICERI 2025
The Design2Freedom consortium proudly presented its work today at the International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation (ICERI 2025) — one of Europe’s leading academic events on innovation and inclusion in higher education.
Representing the consortium, Laura Ruiz Minguet from COCEMFE (Spain) introduced the paper titled:
“Person-Centered Inclusive Design in Higher Education: A Case Study from the Design2Freedom Project.”
The presentation took place within the Special Education (1) session chaired by Catherine Comfort from The Open University (UK).
A European Project for Inclusive and Participatory Education
Design2Freedom is an Erasmus+ project (2023–2026) bringing together five partners from Spain, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Belgium — including universities, NGOs, and creative organisations.
Its mission is to promote person-centered and participatory design in higher education, ensuring that people with disabilities are not passive beneficiaries but active co-creators in shaping learning and social environments.
Through a combination of capacity building, university pilots, and open educational resources, the project develops tools and methodologies that make inclusion tangible and replicable across Europe.
Highlights from the Presentation
During the session, Laura Ruiz Minguet presented the results of the pilot activities implemented at the partner universities:
Innovative teaching approaches based on active learning, collaborative work, and the social model of disability.
Co-design processes involving students with and without disabilities, teachers, and local NGOs.
Concrete outcomes including the Design2Freedom Toolkit, MOOC, Good Practice Guide, and Map of Experiences.
The presentation illustrated how inclusive design can enhance both teaching quality and student engagement, while strengthening collaboration between academia and civil society.
Academic Visibility and Long-Term Impact
Participating in ICERI 2025 marks a key milestone for Design2Freedom’s dissemination strategy, bringing its innovative methodologies to the international academic community.
The paper demonstrates how person-centered design can bridge education, technology, and inclusion — aligning with the New European Bauhaus values of beauty, sustainability, and inclusion.
By sharing these results at ICERI, the consortium reinforces its contribution to building more accessible, equitable, and human-centered universities.
Read More
All project results — including the MOOC, Toolkit, and Good Practice Guide — are freely available on our website:
👉 www.design2freedom.eu
Follow us on social media for updates and upcoming events #Design2Freedom
