ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides a clear and consistent view of the kind of environments that women would like to see emerge. It outlines the social costs to women of living in urban areas primarily designed by and for men. The book examines an example of the involvement of women in such an abortive participation exercise. The Women’s Movement, either directly or indirectly, created the general atmosphere for change that led to women and environments work being undertaken in the first place. Human environments reflect far more than the stylistic intention of their designers or the functional uses for which they are intended. The book discusses the limitations associated with women’s membership in the organizations controlling public and private environments is part of a very much broader issue—the nature of the roles women play in large organizations.
