0:00:03.237,0:00:06.228
So, stepping down out of the bus,

0:00:06.228,0:00:08.220
I headed back to the corner

0:00:08.220,0:00:11.454
to head west en route to a braille training session.

0:00:11.454,0:00:13.594
It was the winter of 2009,

0:00:13.594,0:00:15.924
and I had been blind for about a year.

0:00:15.924,0:00:17.980
Things were going pretty well.

0:00:17.980,0:00:19.886
Safely reaching the other side,

0:00:19.886,0:00:21.641
I turned to the left,

0:00:21.641,0:00:24.029
pushed the auto-button for[br]the audible pedestrian signal,

0:00:24.029,0:00:25.998
and waited my turn.

0:00:25.998,0:00:27.950
As it went off, I took off

0:00:27.950,0:00:29.854
and safely go to the other side.

0:00:29.854,0:00:31.810
Stepping on to the sidewalk,

0:00:31.810,0:00:34.227
I then heard the sound of a steel chair

0:00:34.227,0:00:38.599
slide across the concrete sidewalk in front of me.

0:00:38.599,0:00:40.469
I know there's a cafe on the corner,

0:00:40.469,0:00:42.269
and they have chairs out in front,

0:00:42.269,0:00:43.943
so I just adjusted to the left

0:00:43.943,0:00:45.664
to get closer to the street.

0:00:45.664,0:00:49.215
As I did, so slid the chair.

0:00:49.215,0:00:51.109
I just figured I'd made a mistake,

0:00:51.109,0:00:52.976
and went back to the right,

0:00:52.976,0:00:56.517
and so slid the chair in perfect synchronicity.

0:00:56.517,0:00:58.622
Now I was getting a little anxious.

0:00:58.622,0:01:00.557
I went back to the left,

0:01:00.557,0:01:02.246
and so slid the chair,

0:01:02.246,0:01:04.300
blocking my path of travel.

0:01:04.300,0:01:06.733
Now, I was officially freaking out.

0:01:06.733,0:01:08.887
So I yelled,

0:01:08.887,0:01:11.717
"Who the hell's out there? What's going on?"

0:01:11.717,0:01:14.060
Just then, over my shout,

0:01:14.060,0:01:17.685
I heard something else, a familiar rattle.

0:01:17.685,0:01:19.362
It sounded familiar,

0:01:19.362,0:01:21.102
and I quickly considered another possibility,

0:01:21.102,0:01:22.925
and I reached out with my left hand,

0:01:22.925,0:01:26.190
as my fingers brushed against something fuzzy,

0:01:26.190,0:01:28.527
and I came across an ear,

0:01:28.527,0:01:33.028
the ear of a dog, perhaps a golden retriever.

0:01:33.028,0:01:35.064
Its leash had been tied to the chair

0:01:35.064,0:01:36.823
as her master went in for coffee,

0:01:36.823,0:01:38.706
and she was just persistent in her efforts

0:01:38.706,0:01:41.860
to greet me, perhaps get a scratch behind the ear.

0:01:41.860,0:01:44.518
Who knows, maybe she was volunteering for service.

0:01:44.518,0:01:46.836
(Laughter)

0:01:46.836,0:01:49.244
But that little story is really about

0:01:49.244,0:01:52.335
the fears and misconceptions that come along

0:01:52.335,0:01:55.362
with the idea of moving through the city

0:01:55.362,0:01:57.087
without sight,

0:01:57.087,0:01:59.603
seemingly oblivious to the environment

0:01:59.603,0:02:02.453
and the people around you.

0:02:02.453,0:02:06.097
So let me step back and set the stage a little bit.

0:02:06.097,0:02:08.976
On St. Patrick's Day of 2008,

0:02:08.976,0:02:11.608
I reported to the hospital for surgery

0:02:11.608,0:02:13.849
to remove a brain tumor.

0:02:13.849,0:02:15.951
The surgery was successful.

0:02:15.951,0:02:19.136
Two days later, my sight started to fail.

0:02:19.136,0:02:22.657
On the third day, it was gone.

0:02:22.657,0:02:24.661
Immediately, I was struck by an incredible sense

0:02:24.661,0:02:28.598
of fear, of confusion, of vulnerability,

0:02:28.598,0:02:31.057
like anybody would.

0:02:31.057,0:02:34.077
But as I had time to stop and think,

0:02:34.077,0:02:35.753
I actually started to realize

0:02:35.753,0:02:38.244
I had a lot to be grateful for.

0:02:38.244,0:02:41.239
In particular, I thought about my dad,

0:02:41.239,0:02:43.314
who had passed away from complications

0:02:43.314,0:02:45.463
from brain surgery.

0:02:45.463,0:02:50.493
He was 36. I was seven at the time.

0:02:50.493,0:02:52.787
So although I had every reason

0:02:52.787,0:02:55.510
to be fearful of what was ahead,

0:02:55.510,0:02:58.019
and had no clue quite what was going to happen,

0:02:58.019,0:02:59.932
I was alive.

0:02:59.932,0:03:02.598
My son still had his dad.

0:03:02.598,0:03:04.500
And besides, it's not like I was the first person

0:03:04.500,0:03:06.329
ever to lose their sight.

0:03:06.329,0:03:08.262
I knew there had to be all sorts of systems

0:03:08.262,0:03:10.350
and techniques and training to have

0:03:10.350,0:03:13.062
to live a full and meaningful, active life

0:03:13.062,0:03:14.913
without sight.

0:03:14.913,0:03:16.936
So by the time I was discharged from the hospital

0:03:16.936,0:03:19.486
a few days later, I left with a mission,

0:03:19.486,0:03:21.771
a mission to get out and get the best training

0:03:21.771,0:03:26.427
as quickly as I could and get on to rebuilding my life.

0:03:26.427,0:03:30.276
Within six months, I had returned to work.

0:03:30.276,0:03:32.507
My training had started.

0:03:32.507,0:03:34.337
I even started riding a tandem bike

0:03:34.337,0:03:36.103
with my old cycling buddies,

0:03:36.103,0:03:38.412
and was commuting to work on my own,

0:03:38.412,0:03:40.964
walking through town and taking the bus.

0:03:40.964,0:03:43.114
It was a lot of hard work.

0:03:43.114,0:03:46.195
But what I didn't anticipate

0:03:46.195,0:03:48.489
through that rapid transition

0:03:48.489,0:03:52.669
was the incredible experience of the juxtaposition

0:03:52.669,0:03:56.316
of my sighted experience[br]up against my unsighted experience

0:03:56.316,0:03:59.022
of the same places and the same people

0:03:59.022,0:04:02.569
within such a short period of time.

0:04:02.569,0:04:04.726
From that came a lot of insights,

0:04:04.726,0:04:06.611
or outsights, as I called them,

0:04:06.611,0:04:09.598
things that I learned since losing my sight.

0:04:09.598,0:04:12.502
These outsights ranged from the trival

0:04:12.502,0:04:14.337
to the profound,

0:04:14.337,0:04:16.798
from the mundane to the humorous.

0:04:16.798,0:04:19.876
As an architect, that stark juxtaposition

0:04:19.876,0:04:22.266
of my sighted and unsighted experience

0:04:22.266,0:04:24.644
of the same places and the same cities

0:04:24.644,0:04:26.564
within such a short period of time

0:04:26.564,0:04:28.724
has given me all sorts of wonderful outsights

0:04:28.724,0:04:31.975
of the city itself.

0:04:31.975,0:04:33.989
Paramount amongst those

0:04:33.989,0:04:35.859
was the realization that, actually,

0:04:35.859,0:04:39.892
cities are fantastic places for the blind.

0:04:39.892,0:04:42.092
And then I was also surprised

0:04:42.092,0:04:45.288
by the city's propensity for kindness and care

0:04:45.288,0:04:48.922
as opposed to indifference or worse.

0:04:48.922,0:04:50.823
And then I started to realize that

0:04:50.823,0:04:52.673
it seemed like the blind seemed to have

0:04:52.673,0:04:55.866
a positive influence on the city itself.

0:04:55.866,0:04:59.535
That was a little curious to me.

0:04:59.535,0:05:02.695
Let me step back and take a look

0:05:02.695,0:05:07.965
at why the city is so good for the blind.

0:05:07.965,0:05:11.602
Inherent with the training for recovery from sight loss

0:05:11.602,0:05:15.427
is learning to rely on all your non-visual senses,

0:05:15.427,0:05:18.653
things that you would otherwise maybe ignore.

0:05:18.653,0:05:21.336
It's like a whole new world of sensory information

0:05:21.336,0:05:23.110
opens up to you.

0:05:23.110,0:05:24.822
I was really struck by the symphony

0:05:24.822,0:05:27.120
of subtle sounds all around me in the city

0:05:27.120,0:05:28.813
that you can hear and work with

0:05:28.813,0:05:30.556
to understand where you are,

0:05:30.556,0:05:33.207
how you need to move, and where you need to go.

0:05:33.207,0:05:35.885
Similarly, just through the grip of the cane,

0:05:35.885,0:05:39.369
you can feel contrasting textures in the floor below,

0:05:39.369,0:05:42.294
and over time you build a pattern of where you are

0:05:42.294,0:05:44.050
and where you're headed.

0:05:44.050,0:05:46.851
Similarly, just the sun warming one side of your face

0:05:46.851,0:05:48.958
or the wind at your neck

0:05:48.958,0:05:51.025
gives you clues about your alignment

0:05:51.025,0:05:53.513
and your progression through a block

0:05:53.513,0:05:56.955
and your movement through time and space.

0:05:56.955,0:05:59.373
But also, the sense of smell.

0:05:59.373,0:06:01.981
Some districts and cities have their own smell,

0:06:01.981,0:06:04.853
as do places and things around you,

0:06:04.853,0:06:06.814
and if you're lucky, you can even follow your nose

0:06:06.814,0:06:10.197
to that new bakery that you've been looking for.

0:06:10.197,0:06:12.026
All this really surprised me,

0:06:12.026,0:06:14.866
because I started to realize that

0:06:14.866,0:06:17.619
not my eye-sighted experienced

0:06:17.619,0:06:20.053
was so far more multi-sensory

0:06:20.053,0:06:22.618
than my sighted experience ever was.

0:06:22.618,0:06:25.544
What struck me also was how much the city

0:06:25.544,0:06:27.715
was changing around me.

0:06:27.715,0:06:29.651
When you're sighted,

0:06:29.651,0:06:31.469
everybody kind of sticks to themselves,

0:06:31.469,0:06:33.358
minds your own business.

0:06:33.358,0:06:34.672
Lose your sight, though,

0:06:34.672,0:06:37.287
and it's a whole nother story.

0:06:37.287,0:06:39.015
And I don't know who's watching who,

0:06:39.015,0:06:42.132
but I have a suspicion that[br]a lot of people are watching me.

0:06:42.132,0:06:44.539
And I'm not paranoid, but everywhere I go,

0:06:44.539,0:06:47.383
I'm getting all sorts of advice:

0:06:47.383,0:06:50.289
go here, move there, watch out for this.

0:06:50.289,0:06:51.965
A lot of the information is good.

0:06:51.965,0:06:54.343
Some of it's helpful. A lot of it's kind of reversed.

0:06:54.343,0:06:57.759
You've got to figure our what they actually meant.

0:06:57.759,0:07:01.420
Some of it's kind of wrong and not helpful.

0:07:01.420,0:07:04.645
But it's all good in the grand scheme of things.

0:07:04.645,0:07:06.321
But one time I was in Oakland

0:07:06.321,0:07:09.041
walking along Broadway, and came to a corner.

0:07:09.041,0:07:11.722
I was waiting for an audible pedestrian signal,

0:07:11.722,0:07:14.254
and as it went off, I was just about[br]to step out into the street,

0:07:14.254,0:07:16.225
when all of a sudden, my right hand

0:07:16.225,0:07:18.136
was just gripped by this guy,

0:07:18.136,0:07:20.442
and he yanked me arm[br]and pulled out into the crosswalk

0:07:20.442,0:07:22.144
and was dragging me out across the street,

0:07:22.144,0:07:24.055
speaking to me in Mandarin.

0:07:24.055,0:07:25.820
(Laughter)

0:07:25.820,0:07:29.774
It's like, there was no escape[br]from this man's death grip,

0:07:29.774,0:07:31.636
but he got me safely there.

0:07:31.636,0:07:33.508
What could I do?

0:07:33.508,0:07:35.720
But believe me, there are more polite ways

0:07:35.720,0:07:37.816
to offer assistance.

0:07:37.816,0:07:39.569
We don't know you're there,

0:07:39.569,0:07:41.503
so it's kind of nice to say "Hello" first.

0:07:41.503,0:07:43.454
"Would you like some help?"

0:07:43.454,0:07:46.412
But while in Oakland, I've really been struck by

0:07:46.412,0:07:49.080
how much the city of Oakland changed

0:07:49.080,0:07:51.610
as I lost my sight.

0:07:51.610,0:07:53.699
I liked it sighted. It was fine.

0:07:53.699,0:07:56.275
It's a perfectly great city.

0:07:56.275,0:07:57.991
But once I lost my sight

0:07:57.991,0:07:59.875
and was walking along Broadway,

0:07:59.875,0:08:02.778
I was blessed every block of the way.

0:08:02.778,0:08:04.718
"Bless you, man."

0:08:04.718,0:08:06.873
"Go for it, brother."

0:08:06.873,0:08:08.745
"God bless you."

0:08:08.745,0:08:10.497
I didn't get that sighted.

0:08:10.497,0:08:12.713
(Laughter)

0:08:12.713,0:08:17.790
And even without sight,[br]I don't get that in San Francisco.

0:08:17.790,0:08:21.243
And I know it bothers some of my blind friends,

0:08:21.243,0:08:22.990
it's not just me.

0:08:22.990,0:08:24.869
Often it's thought that

0:08:24.869,0:08:27.937
that's an emotion that comes up out of pity.

0:08:27.937,0:08:30.820
I tend to think that it comes[br]out of our shared humanity,

0:08:30.820,0:08:34.236
out of our togetherness, and I think it's pretty cool.

0:08:34.236,0:08:36.112
In fact, if I'm feeling down,

0:08:36.112,0:08:38.059
I just go to Broadway in downtown Oakland,

0:08:38.059,0:08:40.725
I go for a walk, and I feel better like that,

0:08:40.725,0:08:44.040
in no time at all.

0:08:44.040,0:08:46.108
But also that it illustrates how

0:08:46.108,0:08:47.969
disability and blindness

0:08:47.969,0:08:50.098
sort of cuts across ethnic, social,

0:08:50.098,0:08:53.069
racial, economic lines.

0:08:53.069,0:08:57.028
Disability is an equal-opportunity provider.

0:08:57.028,0:08:58.953
Everybody's welcome.

0:08:58.953,0:09:01.959
In fact, I've heard it said in the disability community

0:09:01.959,0:09:04.311
that there are really only two types of people:

0:09:04.311,0:09:06.299
there are those with disabilities,

0:09:06.299,0:09:09.854
and there are those that haven't[br]quite found theirs yet.

0:09:09.854,0:09:12.481
It's a different way of thinking about it,

0:09:12.481,0:09:15.036
but I think it's kind of beautiful,

0:09:15.036,0:09:17.598
because it is certainly far more inclusive

0:09:17.598,0:09:19.564
than the us-versus-them

0:09:19.564,0:09:22.210
or the able-versus-the-disabled,

0:09:22.210,0:09:25.099
and it's a lot more honest and respectful

0:09:25.099,0:09:28.002
of the fragility of life.

0:09:28.002,0:09:30.139
So my final takeaway for you is

0:09:30.139,0:09:33.931
that not only is the city good for the blind,

0:09:33.931,0:09:37.172
but the city needs us.

0:09:37.172,0:09:39.061
And I'm so sure of that that

0:09:39.061,0:09:41.221
I want to propose to you today

0:09:41.221,0:09:44.491
that the blind be taken as[br]the prototypical city dwellers

0:09:44.491,0:09:47.853
when imagining new and wonderful cities,

0:09:47.853,0:09:49.653
and not the people that are thought about

0:09:49.653,0:09:52.027
after the mold has already been cast.

0:09:52.027,0:09:54.909
It's too late then.

0:09:54.909,0:09:57.923
So if you design a city with the blind in mind,

0:09:57.923,0:10:02.063
you'll have a rich, walkable network of sidewalks

0:10:02.063,0:10:04.821
with a dense array of options and choices

0:10:04.821,0:10:08.208
all available at the street level.

0:10:08.208,0:10:10.529
If you design a city with the blind in mind,

0:10:10.529,0:10:13.635
sidewalks will be predictable and will be generous.

0:10:13.635,0:10:15.925
The space between buildings will be well-balanced

0:10:15.925,0:10:19.487
between people and cars.

0:10:19.487,0:10:23.130
In fact, cars, who needs them?

0:10:23.130,0:10:26.645
If you're blind, you don't drive. (Laughter)

0:10:26.645,0:10:30.061
They don't like it when you drive. (Laughter)

0:10:30.061,0:10:32.625
If you design a city with the blind in mind,

0:10:32.625,0:10:35.407
you design a city with a robust,

0:10:35.407,0:10:38.561
accessible, well-connected mass transit system

0:10:38.561,0:10:40.686
that connects all parts of the city

0:10:40.686,0:10:43.052
and the region all around.

0:10:43.052,0:10:45.755
If you design a city with the blind in mind,

0:10:45.755,0:10:48.543
there'll be jobs, lots of jobs.

0:10:48.543,0:10:50.305
Blind people want to work too.

0:10:50.305,0:10:52.344
They want to earn a living.

0:10:52.344,0:10:55.145
So, in designing a city for the blind,

0:10:55.145,0:10:57.554
I hope you start to realize

0:10:57.554,0:11:00.006
that it actually would be a more inclusive,

0:11:00.006,0:11:03.621
a more equitable, a more just city for all.

0:11:03.621,0:11:05.843
And based on my prior sighted experience,

0:11:05.843,0:11:07.758
it sounds like a pretty cool city,

0:11:07.758,0:11:11.213
whether you're blind, whether you have a disability,

0:11:11.213,0:11:13.758
or you haven't quite found yours yet.

0:11:13.758,0:11:16.185
So thank you.

0:11:16.185,0:11:20.185
(Applause)