Inclusive Built Environment for Malaysian Heritage Mosque
Presenter: Nur Amirah, Lecturer, Centre for Innovative Architecture and Built Environment Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).
Poster Presentation
Mosque accessibility has been an issue for some time and it is still a problem that needs to be rectified in particular the heritage mosque in Malaysia, either national listed mosque or any historical heritage mosques. Heritage buildings have been coping with the demands of providing accessibility for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and mosque is a priority as mosque is one of the building typologies that is most visited and used by the public whether heritage listed or not. Making Malaysian heritage mosque accessible is an effort of its own as it will have modification and renovation barriers that contradicts with the heritage building planning policies and requirements. The aim is to identify the common accessibility obstacles and provide recommendations or innovation design solutions to accommodate access design that complement heritage preservation views. The challenge would be implementing access design according to Malaysian Standard MS1184 and at the same time complementing heritage design guidelines preservation concerns for the chance of social inclusion for any mosque environment and activities. As a summary, these efforts of making heritage mosque inclusive and accessible will benefit accessible tourism that will contribute to Malaysian economy as well as promoting inclusive Muslim cities.
Keywords: Mosque accessibility, heritage mosque, Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), access design and inclusive environment.