Jan Tomandl received the Josef Hlávka Award for 2021

Ing. arch. Jan Tomandl has been dealing with the issue of accessibility of the environment for people with specific needs in his research work for a long time with the aim to present architecture as one of the important tools for creating the built environment and to prove to what extent architecture influences the condition of those who are exposed to its influence. His work focuses in particular on the needs of people with Parkinson's disease, which until now have been perceived only from a medical point of view.

As part of his research, he initiated a collaboration between architects and the medical profession. One of the results of this cooperation was the success in a grant competition and the award of a three-year project GAČR Principles of Creating an Environment for People with Parkinson's Disease, which Jan Tomandl was the holder of, and which was implemented in cooperation with the Neurological Clinic and the Centre of Clinical Neurosciences of the 1st Faculty of Medicine and the University Hospital in Prague.

The research started by analysing the key symptoms of Parkinson's disease and defining the possibilities of consciously influencing them by designing the environment. It was shown that in the case of episodic gait disturbances (freezing of gait), the possibility of stimulus strategies, spatial or temporal cues to influence movement can be used. Based on the results of the research, the publication "Principy tvorby prostředí pro osoby s Parkinsonovou nemocí" and its English version "Design of Space for People with Parkinson's Disease" were published.

The publication is accompanied by illustrative video materials presenting selected manifestations of typical symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Interest in the results of the research has been expressed mainly by physicians and other professionals involved in the treatment of patients with Parkinson's disease. This is evidenced by the fact that the article "Pavement Patterns Can Be Designed to Improve Gait in Parkinson's Disease Patients", co-authored by Jan Tomandl, was published in the journal Movement Disorders. Movement Disorders is the highly referenced official scientific journal of the International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society, covering all topics in the field - clinical and basic science research.

Jan Tomandl applies his knowledge and skills not only in practice in cooperation with organizations dealing with the issue of barrier-free accessibility, but also in other grant projects. For example, in the TAČR Beta 2 project "Search for new methods to support the implementation of the principle of universal design in housing investment support", in which one of the results is a certified methodology for the application of the principles of universal design and lifelong living in housing construction.