Like many able-bodied people, Yolanda Bashir had never really considered how difficult it was for people with disabilities to travel around the Island.Those challenges “became crystal clear” last February, after her father Edwin Bashir Sr suffered a stroke.Ms Bashir, a compliance officer with the Planning Department, noticed that small things, like uneven pavement or a narrow hallway, could actually be a big hurdle for a person in a wheelchair.She has since become an advocate within her workplace, dealing with physical challenges.This week she received a Built Environment Accessibility Award for fighting tirelessly to make new residential building codes that would improve life for people with mobility issues.She said of the award: “It's just nice being recognised and knowing there are people who believe in the cause and the same movement.”Ms Bashir said life changed dramatically for her family after her father's stroke.“We would have never thought it would happen because my dad was a healthy man, a small man, who never smoked or drank, so when it did affect him it was like 'wow', and our lives have never been the same ever since.“He's at home, but he will never be the same. He has to get around with a wheelchair and you know a lot of Bermudians have to suffer with the same thing,” she said.When she brought her father home she noticed the doorways and hallways were too narrow and the bedrooms weren't laid out for a person in a wheelchair.Her parents are now looking to move out of their upstairs apartment and installing items like grab rails in the bathroom and removing “trip hazards” like carpets and rugs.“We had to put threshold mats down to have a smooth transition to get from one elevation to another.“Even if it's an inch-and-a-half [space in between the floors], it's still a challenge for a person with a disability, “she said. “From there it brought home and made things much clearer where we need to have more advances for people that have physical challenges.”Ms Bashir, who graduated with a master's degree in planning this year, decided to go a step further from making changes in her home.As chairwoman of the Bermuda Residential Building Code 2012 Review Committee, she was able to make changes to the chapter on accessibility.Now owners of multi-dwellings must make at least one out of every five properties accessible; that applies to condos, apartments and dwellings attached to a house.She said: “There is a market out there and once people start doing that it will create that market or niche, it will become the norm.“So we are trying to make something that seems tangible because it will help“I am very proud because for me it was fighting for people who don't have a voice and often get overlooked and to let them know we are thinking of them in the grand scheme of building codes for planning.”Thinking of accessibility before the construction of a project is underway is more cost-effective in the long run and just requires small changes to the design, she said.Ms Bashir was honoured for her efforts earlier this week along with Speciality Cinema and Grill, Cooper Gardner Architecture, Freisenbruch Meyer Group, Colonial Insurance and Melbourne House/ Wilkinson Group.She said it was nice to see so many architects on board to support universal access.“I am pleased to know there are others interested in this kind of field.“It was very encouraging and enlightening because when I came to the awards ceremony in 2008 in support of my colleague, there weren't as many people being honoured.”But on a personal note, she has become more cognisant of the daily challenges scores of people on the Island face each day.Ms Bashir said: “For me I learned a lot in just seeing my dad and it's one thing to look at the codes but to actually see the realistic nature of it was eye-opening.“I have honed in on both and while the code is one dimensional, when it really happens it can become three dimensional and real to the community.”