The concept of the Campus took form shortly after Ed's death in 1995. The Berkeley Mayor's Office convened a meeting of representatives from the City Council, UC Berkeley, CIL, WID and other disability leaders to discuss how to memorialize Ed's work. Disability community leaders decided they could best commemorate Ed's work by supporting the organizations that he helped start and the Independent Living Movement that he championed. They decided to do this by establishing a center dedicated to fostering collaboration and improving the services and opportunities for people with disabilities locally and worldwide.