Hasta La Ideas

Most able-bodied folks probably don’t spend a lot of time thinking about how people with disabilities navigate the world, particularly in developing countries. However, Amos Winter did, and still does. Winter, a recent PhD graduate from the MIT department of Mechanical Engineering, went to Tanzania as part of his work in 2005. He wanted to understand how people who needed wheelchairs got around and how well current wheelchair technology met peoples’ mobility needs. Winter’s work was part of an internship with Whirlwind Wheelchair International, a group that designs wheelchairs in developing countries. He learned that people in wheelchairs often just didn’t get where they needed to go.

In fact, according to the Wheelchair Foundation, it is estimated that the number of people who need wheelchairs will increase by 22 percent over the next 10 years, with the greatest need existing in developing countries. And USAID estimates that 20 million people in the developing world need a wheelchair.

For instance, wheelchair-accessible buildings and roads are rare in countries like Tanzania. Beyond that, individuals must overcome narrow doorways, steep hills, bumpy, muddy roads and long distances to destinations like school — often upwards of two to three miles. All of these issues combined make it virtually impossible to get anywhere with a conventional wheelchair. Beyond that, they were too expensive for individuals who often can’t work due to their disability, or make about $1/day if they do work.

Hand-powered tricycles were the other existing option in developing countries. But they’re too large for indoor use and too heavy to maneuver over rough terrain.

In Winter’s mind, the chair he wanted to create would offer individuals:
+ Independence – the ability to live with as little assistance as possible
+ Empowerment – the ability to get to where they want to go, when they want to go
+ Access – the mobility that allows them to access resources and employment when these things won’t come to them
+ Affordability – a tool that’s at a price that they’re able to afford

(more…)

The final, we-really-mean-it-this-time, final deadline for entries to this year’s Creative Review Annual is February 9. You just have time to enter

If you’d like to enter, or to find out more, step this way.

For those of you not familiar with The Annual, here are some images from last year’s

Kerameikos, an area of Athens, used to be the potters’ quarter. The ancient ceramicists developed a typical aesthetic style. Nonetheless the craftsmen..

Dutch company OAT have designed a range of biodegradable shoes with seeds embedded in the tongues.

Top photograph is by Corriette Schoenaerts.

Called The Virgin Collection, the shoes can be discarded by burying them in the ground, where they completely decompose and a bouquet of wild flowers grows to mark the place.

The collection of trainers for men and women was launched at Amsterdam International Fashion Week last month.

Above photographs are by Peter Stigter. Product photos are by Marielle van Leewen.

More shoes on Dezeen »
More green design »

Here’s some more information from OAT:

Sneaker grows plant: OAT Shoes win at Fashion Awards

Dutch innovation at its best: Amsterdam based OAT wins at the Amsterdam International Fashion Week 2011 (AIFW 2011) with a collection of fully biodegradable sneakers. Sneakers that grow flowers when you plant them in the ground.

OAT, a young innovative company founded two years ago by designer Christiaan Maats, presented the fresh Virgin Collection at the Green Fashion Competition of the AIFW 2011. The show featured the sneaker planted in a white wheelbarrow pushed forward by a scantily clad Adam and Eve. ‘SAved from the garden of Eden’ was the theme of the show, building on the idea of a sneaker collection made of ‘all the good stuff mother earth has to offer’.

‘To us it’s logical’, OAT explains. ‘It makes fashion seen to make products that are part of the planet we party on. We all like the nice bits in fashion, so why not make those bits fully biodegradable? You can call it a vintage-killer, but you leave something much better behind: A tree, flowers or even a cotton plant that provides you with your new shirt.’

OAT spent two years in search of the best materials and kept a strong focus on clean design. OAT: ‘The challenge was to make a sneaker that’s got a fresh style, with materials that break down when you bury them. There were no real alternatives on the market, so we had to develop and source our own materials and processes.’

The Virgin Collection carries shoes for men, women and a unisex pair for those who don’t mind sharing. All models embrace natural shades, fine classic lines and popping spring colours. The soft canvas makes the sneakers breathable and the flexible sole ensures a comfortable fit. They’ll be available in several European stores by spring 2011.

See also:

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Woodwalk by Paul Coudamy	Lolice shoes by Belma Arnautović	Bread Shoes by R&E Praspaliauskas

Nuvola magnetica da parete ‘porta-chiavi’. Disegnata da Duncan Shotton, verrà presentata durante la Stockholm furniture fair che si terrà dall’8 al 12 febbraio 2011.
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