GROWING A NETWORK
Thousands of visitors to the Adaptive Design Association (ADA) in New York can attest that we encourage everyone to learn to design and build user-specific adaptations, and to help establish adaptive design communities everywhere.
There are children (as well as adults and seniors) in every community who need custom adaptations. Every community is also filled with people who would love to be part of the design and fabrication of those adaptations. With a small workspace, skilled staff, and a group of savvy volunteers—an adaptive design center can play a key role in transforming our understanding of disability in education, employment, transportation, recreation, rehabilitation, veteran services, and senior care.
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To promote the formation of new adaptive design communities worldwide, ADA offers intensive classes and ongoing consultation. We encourage organizations to send highly motivated staff to New York City for intensive study to gain essential skills. These intensives are custom-designed for each circumstance. When they return home, people who have taken intensive training should practice and expand their skills (by regularly building adaptations) and they should be expected to engage colleagues, parents, and local makers.
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OTHERS COMMITTED TO UNIVERSAL ADAPTIVE DESIGN SERVICES
A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE WITH CARDBOARD
PRODUCED BY BLIND LYLE FILMS
Prótesis Imbabura’s mission is to provide Ecuadorian patients with quality affordable prosthetics (artifical limbs), orthotics (braces) and adaptive equipment. Bob Frank, Prosthetist, and Kit Frank, Occupational Therapist, are volunteer consultants at PI.
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Kit has led the Adaptive Design Workshop since 2008, providing custom adaptive equipment such as standing tables, adapted seats, trays, easels, and wheelchair adaptations.
GUATEMALA
A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE WITH AN ADAPTIVE DESIGN CENTER
PRODUCED BY BLIND LYLE FILMS
FUNDAL, in Guatemala City, is an organization providing educational programs for children with deaf-blindness and other multiple disabilities. Since 2012, FUNDAL and Adaptive Design have worked to establish Diseños Adaptados, a workshop to make adaptations for the students.
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The video above is from one of the training visits Adaptive Design staff made to Guatemala. It focuses on a unique adaptation for a student whose father brings her to school on his motorbike.
Adaptive Design Syracuse, NY, is an interdisciplinary, community-based initiative to ensure that people with disabilities have the equipment they need to live vibrant, full lives. It's a volunteer collective of people with all types of abilities, their families and friends, clinicians, designers and makers.
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In less than two years ADA Syracuse has grown from an idea to a movement.
ARTICLE: Adaptive Design and ARISE:Helping Children with Disabilities Reach Potential
In 2017, Pennsylvania’s Initiative for Assistive Technology launched Adaptive Design Greater Philadelphia with funding from the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. The project is training physical and occupational therapists to build fast, affordable, customized solutions – entirely from cardboard – for children ages birth to six.
It’s also creating a community of makers.The designs are strong and beautiful. The children who use them provide input to their creation. And the results are easy to love!
ECUADOR
PHILADELPHIA, USA
Appropriate Paper-based Technology (APT) techniques were developed in Zimbabwe by Bevill Packer in the 1970s, who made furniture, toys and household items as well as some equipment for people with disabilities. Applying basic engineering principles and working with therapists has led to further developments: specially adapted chairs, standing frames, ride-on animals and wheelchair inserts for children with disabilities in various parts of the world. Today, Jean and Ken Westmacott in the UK are further developing Packer's work and training instructors who teach APT techniques worldwide.
​Cerebral Palsy Africa is actively encouraging the setting up of local workshops for making assistive equipment to fulfil the positioning needs and measurements of each child. In the countries where CPA has been running training, more therapists are learning the skills to help children with cerebral palsy (CP) and consequently more families are coming forward for help for their children. CPA works to provide initial training in Appropriate Paper-based Technology (APT) techniques and then follow-up courses.
The Perkins Assistive Device Center is a workshop that creates customized materials for children with disabilities. A young girl might need a seat insert for more back support; a boy with severe cerebral palsy who loves animals may need an accessible scoop to feed his pet lizard; and many children who cannot work at flat tables may benefit from slanted book rests and activity centers.
The Assistive Device Center designs and constructs such custom devices that help children lead more independent lives. Custom-made items meet the unique needs of individuals while being affordable, durable and attractive. Teachers, therapists, aides and parents from Perkins and the general public are invited to make adaptive devices in the Assistive Device Center by appointment.
The ADC was established by Adaptive Design Association founder, Alex Truesdell. Molly Campbell, OTR has led and grown the center since 1998.