General Information       return to index
This page is a starting point for those searching for machines to solve special needs. The attempt is to direct the searcher to people or companies solving different types of problems. We concentrate on innovative handcycles and wheelchairs although some of the standard solutions are included.

Self Sufficiency Nonprofit Assistance, Handcycles and Wheelchairs return to index

• Important to read International Wheelchair Standards including the history of their development.
• Article on nonprofits providing wheelchairs
  Well documented overview article which describes in depth a few of the organizations listed below. From Disabilityworld.org

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Partial list of nonprofits providing handcycles & wheelchairs worldwide (20+)

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• Whirlwind Wheelchair Int'l
  Network of independent wheelchair-producing workshops in developing countries.
  "Through the Whirlwind Wheelchair Network wheelchair technology has been taken to 45 developing countries ....Ralf Hotchkiss of San Francisco State University has made it his mission to establish a network of nonprofit wheelchair manufacturing shops in developing countries." "All of WWI’s designs are placed in the public domain in order not to add to the cost of village wheelchair shops using these designs."
  Date Started: 1989
  Headquarters:
  Founder(s): Ralf Hotchkiss - Whirlwind Wheelchair International (WWI) is a program of the Urban Institute at San Francisco State University (SFSU)
  Delivered: In the past 15 years over 200 mechanics have been trained to build the Whirlwind wheelchair. Over 10,000 wheelchairs have been produced, mostly in small workshop settings.
  Distribution: Worldwide
  Other Info: WWI's primary mission is 1 to teach wheelchair riders in developing countries to design, build, and repair their own wheelchairs; 2 to enable rider/builders to create businesses for the manufacture and distribution of wheelchairs to others; 3 to foster the ever-widening Whirlwind Network of rider/builders around the world who exchange ideas for the continuous improvement of wheelchair design.
  Discussion with founder
  Whirlwind Women focuses on women with disabilities in the manufacture, maintenance and repair of their own wheelchairs while developing leadership and business skills and expanding the global network supporting women with disabilities learning essential technology.
  See article on work being done: Current / Existing Testing
  The Whirlwind wheelchair's design is the product of international collaboration and is always evolving. The design is tailored to the needs of wheelchair users - the wheelchair is inexpensive and lightweight, it is built with materials available in most of the world, and it can be ridden on unpaved roads and paths.

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• ROC Wheels (Reach Out and Care)
  Mobility and Hope For the World, One Person at a Time. "Providing wheelchairs and other mobility products for people in developing countries without regard to political affiliation, religious beliefs or ethnic identity." "...special emphasis on developing wheelchairs for children up to age 15 regardless of their level of disability." "Our ultimate goal is to help people help themselves." "It is one thing to give a generic wheelchair to a person and another thing to provide them with the right chair."
  Date Started: Currently starting own production with design created by Hanson.
  Headquarters: Bozeman, Montana USA
  Founder(s): Wayne Hanson and his wife, Lee, co-founded ROC Wheels
  Delivered:
  Distribution: Iraq, West Bank, Ukraine, Benin, Jamaica
  Other Info: Built for about $150, but has features found on $2,000 models" "The ROC Wheels Team will design and set up the production process for the pediatric wheelchairs that are designed specifically for the conditions of developing countries." "...When we distribute wheelchairs, we work together with healthcare providers incountry. We help empower them to continue to provide the proper intervention for people in need after our distribution teams leave."

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• Motivation
  [We] provide wheelchairs designed for the local environment, and the training necessary for wheelchair users to live independent lives. Worldmade is the Global Wheelchair Service (part of Motivation UK).
  Date Started:
  Headquarters: Bristol UK
  Founder(s): David Constantine
  Delivered:
  Distribution: Motivation is currently working in Africa, Central America and Sri Lanka.
  Other Info: "Worldmade is a global programme to supply large numbers of appropriate wheelchairs, through a network of wheelchair services all over the developing world" "The first Worldmade wheelchair is designed for use in rural areas. It has three wheels for stability and a large front wheel for rolling easily over rough ground. It is made of durable materials and has been designed to exceed ISO standards. Worldmade wheelchairs are mass produced by a factory in eastern China. The parts for the wheelchairs are assembled into boxes, and then the boxes are packed into a shipping container. Motivation aims to deliver the wheelchairs for US$150 each. This includes the cost of production and shipping. Motivation are committed to only working with manufacturers who observe certain standards of working practises, and the first Worldmade manufacturer has been audited by Kingfisher Asia."

"Our activities include the design and provision of low-cost mobility products, capacity building and training with disabled people's organisations and rehabilitation institutions, rights based initiatives, employment programmes and community based peer group training."

There will be a range of wheelchair designs suitable for different environments and needs and they are to be produced in a kit form and flat packed for ease of transport. WorldMade will draw on the knowledge and experience ... gained since 1991. For this to successfully happen we need to be able to document and share this information throughout Motivation globally, with our local partners and other NGOs. To do this we are setting up MIRO, the Motivation Information Resources Office, and its aim is to incorporate all of our know-how into searchable databases, accessible from anywhere in the world. The information stored on MIRO is to be divided into three key areas: Drawings Browser: Drawings and technical information on wheelchair production Topics Database: Specialist information on health education, workshop management and fundraising Design Viewer: Information used in development wheelchair designs.
A unit with special seating - The Moti Activ offers good support with minimal obstruction. The seating unit can be detached from the chassis and mounted on to a variety of units, including a snowboard! It can be used in three or four-wheel mode. In three-wheel mode it can be used in an all terrain environment and in four-wheel mode it is more maneuverable and therefore suitable for children with the ability to self-propel.
Includes four, three wheel wheelchairs, tricycles (a frame which is attachable to three wheel wheelchairs).

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• Motivation Romania [English Romana]
  To initiate self-sustaining projects to enhance the quality of life of disabled people.
  A number of shops in Bucharest with a wheelchair factory planned producing for Romania and potentially other countries in region. Eligible for free if not receive from social services. Must apply.
  Date Started: 1993
  Headquarters: Com Bragadiru, Jud Ilfov, Romania
  Founder(s): The first team: Cristian Ispas, Nigel Garvey, Barbara Rau and Richard Frost with the help of Motivation UK, and Swedish partners from Radda Barnen and RBU Stockholm
  Delivered: More than 300
  Distribution: Throughout Romania
  Other Info: Other services also performed by Motivation: Rehabilitation, services for children, camp, adaptive sports, and others. Funding from many sources.

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• The PET Project
  "The Personal Energy Transportation (PET) Project's mission is to provide mobility for all of God's children in need." The majority of the gifts of mobility have been the three-wheeled, hand-cranked wheelchairs now affectionately called "PETs". "The PET (Personal Energy Transport) was designed to restore mobility to land mine victims and others, and to enhance it. It is meant to be used as a vehicle for personal mobility, to provide physical therapy and exercise, to serve the parent in hauling small children, to provide the craftsman or worker with the means to transport the tools of their trade, to carry goods and produce, and to serve as a mobile chair or work platform."
  Date Started: 1995
  Headquarters: Columbia, MO USA
  Founder(s):
  Delivered: list of shipments
  Distribution: Worldwide, PETs are built in Columbia, Missouri, US, from donations received. PETs are picked up and shipped to Africa by Hope Haven in Iowa, US. PETs are distributed by Samaritan’s Purse in Eritrea, Africa, in March 2005.
  Other Info: Those who are presently lacking mobility have great potential for regained self sufficiency and contribution to society. The PET Project seeks to restore mobility to these people

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• Wheels For the World
  "Wheels for the World is the overseas arm of Through the Roof. We restore and distribute refurbished wheelchairs and other mobility aids which are given to hundreds of people in Africa and eastern Europe – allowing them a freedom of movement they could only dream about and demonstrating the love of God in a practical way."
  Date Started:
  Headquarters: Salisbury
  Founder(s): Through the Roof’s vision is to make the Christian message of salvation through Jesus Christ available to people affected by disability, by:
  Delivered:
  Distribution: So far: Romania, Albania, Kenya, Ukraine, Jordan, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Tanzania.
  Other Info: "Working in partnership with another charity, the Inside Out Trust, we take wheelchairs no longer required by the NHS to UK prison workshops for restoration to almost-new condition. Prisoners find great satisfaction in this work which helps restore their self worth and dignity. They recognise that immobile disabled people are, in a sense, prisoners too. One prisoner in Parkhurst prison said “It’s great working on something for people who are worse off than I am. For the first time in seven years I’m starting to feel good about myself.” We have established good sources for wheelchairs, but we always have a shortage of children’s manual wheelchairs."

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• Wheels for the World, Joni and Friends
  "Wheels for the World aims to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the disabled around the world by providing wheelchairs and sharing the love of Jesus Christ."
  Date Started:
  Headquarters: Agoura Hills, California U.S.A.
  Founder(s):
  Delivered: Wheels for the World through the year 2005 has distributed over 35,000 wheelchairs to over 70 countries and have trained hundreds of ministry and community leaders, including people with disabilities.
  Distribution:
  Other Info: "Dedicated volunteer Chair Corps Area Representatives collect wheelchairs across the United States" "WFTW currently restores wheelchairs in 12 prisons in 10 different states. These prisons include federal, state, and private institutions..." by specially trained inmates to a like-new condition."

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• Wheels For Humanity
  People Helping People. "We refurbish donated wheelchairs and hand fit them to children and adults with disabilities in developing nations. We then partner with international health-care organizations to identify those in greatest need. With a team of volunteer health care professionals, each recipient is individually fitted to the wheelchair that best fits their needs. "
  Date Started: 1996
  Headquarters: North Hollywood, California
  Founder(s): David Richard started WFH in his garage in 1995
  Delivered: "Since 1996, Wheels for Humanity has helped more than 31,000 people with disabilities in more than 61 countries gain increased mobility and dignity"
  Distribution: Worldwide
  Other Info: "Now the organization operates from a 10,880-square-foot warehouse in North Hollywood, California, where a small professional staff and a large volunteer workforce of over 400 collect donated wheelchairs and refurbish them to suit the needs of individual people with disabilities in developing countries-people who would otherwise be unable to afford a wheelchair. WFH is able to keep its costs at a minimum by securing free shipping in order to send these refurbished wheelchairs to developing countries"

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• Turtle Will
  "Turtle Will is dedicated to the improvement of the lives of traditional peoples in Ethiopia, Mali and Niger in a manner that is consistent with their traditions and cultures, through locally driven projects that maintain choice."
  Date Started: 1998
  Headquarters: Niger
  Founder(s): Irma Turtle
  Delivered: 30 Wheelchairs
  Distribution: Niger
  Other Info: Part of the Guardian Angel Projects, a number of the most needy individuals have been provided with the African tricycle wheelchair: Blue Tricycles from the factory in Niamey at a cost of $250 per bike.

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• Mobility Without Barriers Foundation
  New Mobility for Children and Adults With Disabilities
  Date Started: Research on new three wheeled, multi gear all terrain cycle ongoing with development of manufacturing facilities in Ethiopia.
  Headquarters: Based in Vermont, with field operations in India and Ethiopia
  Founders: Robert Cowles
  Delivered: The Ethiopia Mobility Initiative is a five-year program to advance the goal of universal access to education, training and employment for children and young adults with disabilities including manufacturing facilities and training and employment for disabled.
  Distribution: India and Ethiopia
  Other Info: The new designs are all-terrain, multiple-gear mobility cycles that resolve many of the difficulties associated with conventional push rim and tricycle wheelchairs." three-wheel, multiple-gear. seat activated rear-wheel steering, good on uneven terrain, reverse gear, increases range of travel, effective with one arm, ergonomic means of propulsion and steering, improved center of gravity, low cost in large production. Design drawings will be posted in June 2006

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• Wheelchairs For Iraqi Kids
  Brad Blauser: "This is just the beginning...With a population of over two million in Mosul, I don’t think we’ll be able to get every child a wheelchair, but I’d love to see as many sent over as possible.”
  Date Started: 2004
  Headquarters: Iraq
  Founder(s): Brad Blauser, Major David Brown MD and members of the 1st Brigade, 24th Infantry of the Stryker Brigade (known as Deuce Four) out of Fort Lewis, Washington
  Delivered: 36 children got into wheelchairs last year.
  Distribution: Iraq
  Other Info: Organizations which have helped in the past: chairs manufactured by Colorado correctional system designed for the dirt streets and uneven terrain of Iraq." Some of the chairs have been donated by Wheels of Love, Wheels For The World, Joni and Friends, Invacar, and Huguley Hospital just South of Fort Worth, Texas and flown in by FedEx, Smile of a Child, and 101st Airborne.

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• Wheelchairs To Tibet
  "Providing mobility to disabled Tibetans" "Kham Aid Foundation is operating a major program to serve a neglected invisible community: the disabled."
  Date Started: 2000
  Headquarters: Pasadena, California USA
  Founder(s): Pamela Logan, Kham Aid
  Delivered: From 2000 to 2002 we've given away more than eight hundred wheelchairs. In addition, our volunteer experts trained local officials and health care workers in how to fit chairs to the needs of individual disabled people." Hopes to distribute 200 chairs in 2005.
  Distribution: Tibetans and other disabled people in Sichuan Province, China.
  Other Info: "Our team of 6-12 volunteer medical specialists travels to remote towns and villages to deliver wheelchairs to the disabled and, when possible, treat their disabilities." Produced in local factories at reduced price of $100 with help of Chinese partners. See source PTs Play Key Roles in Wheelchair Donation for other charities listed.

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• Wheels of Love
  Where There's a Wheel, There's A Way "...committed to meeting the children's needs first, and then adult needs, no matter what race, creed, or religious background."
  Date Started: 2000
  Headquarters: San Antonio, Texas
  Founder(s): Toby Miler
  Delivered: Russia, Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Alaska, Kenya, Peru, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria
  Distribution: WOL is building a wheelchair distribution center and a learning center in Kenya.
  Other Info: Part of their mission is to "...providing medical equipment including, but not limited to, wheelchairs, walkers, canes, crutches, etc>"

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• Eleanore's Project
  Improving the life of children with disabilities "... wheelchairs are adaptable to growing children with a variety of special needs and posture problems that make it difficult for them to sit up in "off-the-shelf" wheelchairs."
  Date Started: 2004
  Headquarters: Missoula, Montana
  Founder(s): Tamara Kittelson-Aldred and Rick Aldred - Parents of a disabled Missoula girl who died just before her 12th birthday in July 2001
  Delivered: Shipments of wheelchairs scheduled for Lima, Peru and Jordan
  Distribution: Worldwide
  Other Info:
  news article
  "The school's children range in age from 3 to 18. Some adults who were former students afflicted with polio also will receive chairs, Kittelson-Aldred said. The children who need the wheelchairs have disabilities similar to U.S. children who have spina bifida, cerebral palsy or muscular dystrophy..."

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• The Free Wheel Chair Mission
  Our vision: To deliver 20 million wheelchairs by 2010." "...The first step was to develop the least expensive wheelchair satisfying the greatest range of needs, and the second step was to dispense the wheelchairs at no cost to the physically disabled poor in developing countries on a non-discriminatory basis. The wheelchair uses simple common parts, easily assembled with little instruction, and the components nest together efficiently insuring modest shipping costs."
  Date Started:
  Headquarters: Irvine, California USA
  Founder(s): Don Schoendorfer
  Delivered: over 130,000 wheelchairs have been delivered in over 57 countries. See world map and statistics of deliveries
  Distribution: Worldwide
  Other Info: "...Our vision has been implemented by contracting with manufacturers in China..."
  We've developed distribution partnerships with charitable organizations so that wheelchairs can be given free of charge.
  "We encourage organizations to copy our design, or our passion. ...In essence, these are open source wheelchairs for the world's poorest people."

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• Wheelchair Project - "A Gift of Mobility"
  "With an average cost of 120 for a wheelchair and $160 for a tricycle, SAP-VN has assisted many children who could not received orthopedic surgery due to severe physical disability to become mobile independently. With a wheelchair or a tricycle, these children can go to school or work by themselves. "
  Date Started: 1992
  Headquarters: Garden Grove, California
  Founder(s): group of young and caring professionals
  Delivered: 286 as of 2003; 'Vietnam Summer 2006 Trip June and July will deliver wheelchairs among other services'
  Distribution: Vietnam
  Other Info: SAP-VN (Social Assistance Program For Vietnam) is a non-profit, non-governmental and non-religious humanitarian organization based in Garden Grove, California. ...SAP-VN's primary objective is to provide direct relief to poor and needy people, especially orphans and handicapped children, mainly in health care, education and social welfare. All of SAP-VN's relief efforts are carried out directly by SAP-VN's members (from the U.S.) and associates in Vietnam.

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• The Geoff Bone Wheelchair Project
  Bringing the Gift of Mobility to the Disabled of the World. The disabled of the world have a basic minimum human right to DIGNITY. Translated to meaningful terms, that means the ability to move around freely using a WHEELCHAIR.
  Date Started: 2006
  Headquarters: Bemel Hempstead Herts
  Founder(s): Geoff Bone
  Delivered:
  Distribution: Worldwide
  Other Info: "Wheelchair specially designed by an MIT trained engineer from the USA. It is in production NOW in China! Can the world afford 130 million of these life changing machines. The answer is a resounding yes ! It costs just £50 to manufacture and deliver a chair to a disabled person in the Third World. The factory can work round the clock and each Container filled with 550 Wheelchairs sent on their way non-stop."

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• Hope Haven International Ministries       wheelchairs
  "... These wheelchairs are often the first step toward independence and self worth to the recipient."
  Date Started: First shipment 1994
  Headquarters: Rock Valley, Iowa USA
  Founders: Hope Haven International Ministries
  Delivered: last update: As of end of 2008 total Number of Wheelchairs Shipped: 74,880 to 105 countries.
  Other Info: "volunteers ...collect, clean, repair, and pack donated wheelchairs and other equipment. They sort and organize parts." For the past several years' volunteers have been involved in the manufacture of wheelchairs as well. "Currently, there are 9 shops located in the tri-state area that are involved in this process. These shops are located in Iowa: Rock Valley, George, Orange City, Ireton, Ft. Dodge and Sanborn; South Dakota: Volga and Sioux Falls; Minnesota: Edgerton. We also have two shops located within the South Dakota prison system where inmates volunteer their time as well."

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• The Doit Foundation
  Helping Costa Rica's Less Fortunate Help Themselves We want to help those people who live in conditions of poverty, in the first instance, by giving them the gift of mobility.
  Date Started:Headquarters:
  Founder(s): John Scheman (President)
  Delivered: 100s
  Distribution: Guanacaste, on Costa Rica's Pacific Coast
  Other Info: Diary excerpt from only one day: "Eighty volunteers gathered together to assemble 250 wheelchairs for the Doit Foundation. These chairs where shipped from China with the help of the Free Wheelchair Mission."

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• Gemini - A wheelchair for developing countries
  SINTEF (The Foundation for Scientific and Industrial Research at the Norwegian Institute of Technology) produces a functional, hard-wearing, and inexpensive nonfolding aluminum wheelchair for disabled people in developing countries.
  Date Started:
  Headquarters:
  Founder(s): Tone Oederud, Project Leader
  Delivered:
  Distribution:
  Other Info: Cost: 1000 NOK (162 US$) It comes flat-packed and is easily assembled with basic hand tools. "This low-cost wheelchair is the result of collaboration between SINTEF Unimed Rehab, Alu Rehab AS and The Mobility for All Foundation. In addition, Norad has given financial support to the project."
  "... Researchers at Alu Rehab are working on «prefabricated packages» which contain technical equipment such as wheelchairs, crutches and prostheses to countries that have been hit by a disaster."

"We know that communities in developing countries do not need all these experts coming in to solve their immediate problems. They need to develop their own competence in order to achieve self-management and it is very important that as many parts of this chair as possible can be produced locally. It is just as important to build up an infrastructure at the receiving end as it is to deliver the product itself..."

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• The Wheelchair Foundation
  "New Life Comes with each Wheelchair" "...It is the Wheelchair Foundation's goal to deliver a wheelchair to every man, woman and child in the world who needs a wheelchair. The Nevada Chapter of the foundation is seeking contributions, endowments and corporate sponsorships to help in fulfilling its humanitarian goal."
  Date Started: 2000
  Headquarters: Danville, California with sites in other US cities, Australia, Canada, China, Spain
  Founders: Kenneth E. Behring
  Delivered: Over 440,000 wheelchairs delivered or committed as of June 2006. "...Rotary Clubs and Districts have become an integral part of this distribution effort. Since March of 2001, Rotarians have sponsored the delivery of over 70,000 wheelchairs to more than 80 countries."
  Distribution: Worldwide
  Other Info: "...nonprofit organization leading an international effort to deliver a wheelchair to every man, woman and child in the world who needs one. For those individuals, the Wheelchair Foundation offers freedom, self-reliance, mobility and hope." "We can purchase and deliver a wheelchair to our distribution partners worldwide for an average of $150....The need for proper fitting of wheelchairs for persons with special needs and specific afflictions is very important. For this reason we offer wheelchairs in varying seat widths. Our wheelchairs are built in 5 sizes; 12, 14, 16, 18, and 20 inch seat widths. (The Wheelchair Foundation Australia)"

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• FODAC Friends of Disabled Adults and Children, Too
  Since 1986 refurbished and distributed without charge over 13000 wheelchairs to disabled people without resources. Other sections of the organisation provide other types of durable medical equipment such as hospital beds, medical supplies, and equipment for disabled children.
  Date Started: 1986
  Headquarters: Stone Mountain, GA USA FODAC has provided over 20,000 wheelchairs. The retail value of all medical equipment that has been given away now totals over 50 million.
  Other Info: FODAC also repairs wheelchairs, provides vehicle lifts and home ramps to the disabled. "FODAC provides over $8 million each year in equipment and services to the community at little or no cost to the recipients. FODAC is a 501(c)(3) and does not have direct funding from Medicare/Medicaid for the services offered. Most equipment is issued for a suggested donation but some services have mandatory fees. Our Philosophy and Strengths: We provide home health (mobility and daily living) equipment to people of any age or any disability, temporary or permanent, for medically necessary and medically helpful reasons. These items are provided for a suggested donation. Clients do not have to qualify financially but our waiting lists place a priority on Medically Necessary and low income individuals."

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• Variety International "Dedicated to improving the lives of children around the world". "Through our network of 50 Tents (or Chapters) in 14 countries, Variety reaches into communities across the globe to offer financial assistance and services to children and organizations that serve children with special needs."
• U.S. Variety We provide direct grants to children with disabilities. U.S. Locations Map

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  Societies and Groups       return to index

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• Handicap International (HI)       wheelchairs & handcycles
  The main organisations which produce wheelchairs are JRS/Mekong and VI. Most NGOs purchase their wheelchairs from JRS/Mekong and they distribute them for free to patients through the orthopedic workshops or in the villages. HI produces a tricycle, which it also distributes free of charge. Any wheelchair or tricycle repairs are usually the responsibility of the patient. Crutches are also distributed free of charge. These are either purchased by the NGOs from ICRC or are produced by the NGOs themselves, as is the case with HI.
  There are currently several NGOs running CWD programs. These include ADD, AFSC, VI, the "Programme
  http://www.fao.org/sd/PPdirect/PPre0065.htm

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• Foundation For Spinal Cord Injury Prevention Care & Cure      mainly wheelchairs and adaptive equipment
  Resources That Help. Provides information on resources (institutional, medical, prevention, government), publications, support groups, discussion, disability & sexuality, sports, disability rights law, safety standards, organizations, gun safety, vacations, adaptive technology, vehicles, home care supplies, wheelchairs

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• ABLEDATA      wheelchairs and handcycles
  class="small"> http://www.abledata.com/
  Source of Information on Assistive Technology
  Extensive descriptive database on equipment and on wheelchairs of all types and manufacturers including prices, contact, etc. Sponsored by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department of Education
  ABLEDATA is a federally funded project whose primary mission is to provide information on assistive technology and rehabilitation equipment available from domestic and international sources to consumers, organizations, professionals, and caregivers within the United States." Sponsored by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), which is part of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) of the U.S. Department of Education.
  Extensive database of products with descriptions, links and prices including by not limited by the following categories: Architectural elements, safety, assistive computers, educational aids, health care, information storage, alternative and augmentative communication, sensors and production accessories for sensory disabilities, software, hardware, computer accessories, environmental controls, amplification devices, classroom & instructional materials, home management food preparation housekeeping and furniture, daily needs home and office (physical, educational, creative, athletic), seating, therapeutic aids facilities & accessories, training, office equipment, tools, walking and wheeled mobility (manual, sport, mass transit, wheelchair, chair alternatives & accessories, carts, transporters, stretchers)

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• Paralyzed Veterans of America      mainly wheelchair Association and topical news, events, legislation, sports information

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• Northeast Passage      adaptive equipment Northeast Passage is an impact program designed to improve access, independence, and quality of life for individuals with disabilities. ... provides recreation possibilities that offer mastery over physical skills and provide a means to access sports and recreation and reduce stress.
  Extensive resources and connections for just about everything from accessibility, equipment, sports equipment, sites, events, animal assistance, programs

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• Mobility Engineering      handcycle and sports equipment
  Mobility Engineering designs and manufactures adaptive sports equipment that opens up new adventures for disabled persons. ...build[s] human arm powered vehicles that will take where you have never been before. Our products are unique not copies of what everyone else makes.

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• Green Cross       wheelchairs
  Social Assistance Program for Vietnam (SAP-VN)

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• Creating Opportunities with disabled people "Leonard Cheshire International is the international arm of the UK registered Charity, Leonard Cheshire, which is the largest provider of services for disabled people in the UK. The international work of Leonard Cheshire extends to 57 countries worldwide and includes projects in education, employment, economic empowerment, rehabilitation and day care services, short and longer term residential care, and community programmes."

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• Good Links Page Very good list of Advocacy and Organizations, Industry Suppliers, Tours by The Handcycle Store.

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Societies and Groups (SPORTS)       return to index

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USHF United States Handcycling Federation       handcycles
http://www.ushandcycling.org/2008/
Lists upcoming events (races) and includes qualification guidelines 2002 USHF National Points Series (NPS) Events & Qualification Guidelines for World Championships

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The International Human Powered Vehicle Association       all sorts of human powered machines
http://www.ihpva.org/
currently including member associations in Australia Belgium Denmark Finland France Germany Great Britain Netherlands North America Sweden Switzerland is an association of national associations and organizations, dedicated to promoting improvement, innovation and creativity in the use of human power, especially in the design and development of human-powered vehicles for anyone worldwide, who does not have a national association.

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Adaptive Adventures       association
http://www.adaptiveadventures.org/
Adaptive Adventures mission is to identify, promote, and provide progressive recreational opportunities for people with disabilities and their families. "Our goal is to provide a comprehensive, easy-to-use database that will connect disabled individuals and their families to the organizations that provide equipment, information, products and adaptive sports and recreation programs to meet their needs and desires."
See Highlighted Activities
Cycling, paddling, water skiing
Organizations Database for particular activity either internationally or by US state. Equipment database soon.

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The Official Website of the National Wheelchair Basketball Association       association
http://www.nwba.org/ Teams, standings, bulletin board, chat, resources, calendar of events, national championship

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British Wheelchair Sport       association
WheelPower "WheelPower is the national organisation and charity for British Wheelchair Sport. Sport is the medium by which WheelPower help people with disabilities improve their quality of life."

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Wheelchair Sports, USA
Wheelchair Sports, USA Many useful Links including member organizations Contains Rules and Standards for Wheelchair Sports

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America's Athletes with Disabilities       association
http://americasathletes.org/
"Our mission is to promote and sponsor sports, recreation, fitness and leisure events for children and adults with physical disabilities. These events are held every year, across the country, under the banner of the Victory Games. "
National Athlete Registry, Newsletter, Youth Program, Disability Awareness Education Program

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The National Disability Sports Alliance (NDSA)       association
http://www.ndsaonline.org/main.htm
Calendar of activities, games, meets, competitions
The National Disability Sports Alliance (NDSA) is the National Governing Body for competitive sports for individuals with cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injuries and survivors of stroke. NDSA was originally formed as the United Cerebral Palsy Athletic Association (USCPAA) in 1987. As the National Governing Body for cerebral palsy sports, NDSA is responsible for conduct and administration of approved sports in the United States. NDSA formulates the rules, implements policies and procedures, conducts national championships in twelve sports, disseminates safety and sports medicine information and selects the athletes to represent the United States in international competition.

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Wheelchair Sports USA       association
http://www.wsusa.org/
Founded in 1956. Since the early 1970's additional efforts were undertaken to organize Wheelchair Sports, USA, programs on more local and regional levels throughout the United States. Today, Wheelchair Sports, USA, is organized geographically into fourteen regional associations, each responsible for developing local wheelchair sports programs and for conducting qualifying meets for the National Wheel chair Games. Recognition by U.S. Olympic Committee in 1982. The WSUSA Junior National Championships, the organizations largest annual event, was first held in July 1984.
Calendar of events, rules, records, directories, qualifying standards

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Disabled Sports USA       association
http://www.dsusa.org/
"Organization established in 1967 by disabled Vietnam veterans to serve the war injured. DS/USA now offers nationwide sports rehabilitation programs to anyone with a permanent physical disability. Activities include winter skiing, water sports, summer and winter competitions, fitness and special sports events. Participants include those with visual impairments, amputations, spinal cord injury, dwarfism, multiple sclerosis, head injury, cerebral palsy, and other neuromuscular and orthopedic conditions." Chapters found in many states.

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World T.E.A.M. Sports       association
http://www.worldteamsports.org/
World T.E.A.M. Sports brings individuals with and without disabilities together to undertake unique athletic events throughout the world to encourage, promote, and develop opportunities in sports for all people.

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The International Paralympic Committee (IPC)       association
http://www.paralympic.org/
The International Paralympic Committee is the international representative organisation of elite sports for athletes with disabilities. IPC organises, supervises and co-ordinates the Paralympic Games and other multi-disability competitions on elite sports level, of which the most important are world and regional championships. It is an international non-profit organisation formed and run by 160 National Paralympic Committees and 5 disability specific international sports federations.

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Disability Resource Directory       directory
Disability Sports, Recreation and Leisure
http://www.kansas.net/~cbaslock/sports.html

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Forums       return to index

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RESNA SIG 17
SIG-17 Special Interest Group on International Appropriate Technology
"...forum for persons who are actively interested in providing appropriate rehabilitation technology and services to people in third world and other limited-resource countries.
Resource List An excel spreadsheet listing organizations and people working toward providing appropriate rehabilitation technology and services to people in third world and other limited-resource countries.

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BikeSpeak Forum USA very active http://bike-on.com/bikespeak/index.cfm?forumid=1">http://bike-on.com/bikespeak/index.cfm?forumid=1

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Faszination Handbike Forum - German       handcycles
http://www.handbike.de/

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Startrampe.net German Forum and Chat       handcycles
http://www.startrampe.net/

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Yahoo Groups - handcyclists · A Community for Handcycling Information.       handcycle
http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/handcyclists/messages

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Links Pages       return to index

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Faszination Handbike links
German and International including vacation, sports for disabled and other links
http://news.handbike.de/

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www.recumbents.com Evolution
www.recumbents.com
Manufacturers Database

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Many Programs and Links to Disabled World by Spokes 'n Motion
www.spokesnmotion.com/program%5Flinks

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Links to Wheelchair & Equipment Recycling Programs of United Spinal Association
www.recumbents.com

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Disability Links for People with All Abilities
All Abilities Many links in different categories. Worth looking at.

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World T.E.A.M. Sports
http://www.worldteamsports.org/
Special links to other groups: Alliance for People With Disabilities, American Association of Adapted Sports Programs, Dwarf Athletic Association of America, Erik Weihenmayer, Foundation for Spinal Cord Injury Prevention, Care and Cure, Handcycle Friends, International Committee of Sports for the Deaf, International Paralympic Committee, Landmine Survivors Network, Miracle Marathon, National Center for Physical Activity and Disability, Northeastern University's Center for the Study of Sport in Society, United States Association of Blind Athletes, United States Deaf Sports Federation, United States Disabled Athletes Fund, United States Handcycling Federation, United States Sports and Fitness Center for the Disabled, Women's Sports Foundation, Wheelchair Sports, USA

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Access Services Org
"Our vision for people with developmental disabilities is that they have the opportunity to be active members of their local neighborhoods, to work, belong and contribute to their communities." Although a regional organization, has many useful links nationally U.S.

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Magazines, Journals, Newsletters       return to index

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Disability World      all
http://www.disabilityworld.org/index.htm
A bimonthly web-zine of international disability news and views
"The web-zine is the heart of a larger project, IDEAS for the New Millennium, funded in 1999 by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research as a five-year project. "

Others of Interest We Have Run Across       return to index

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Institute for Independent Living       mainly wheelchairs
http://www.independentliving.org/
General help for independent living & wheelchair design and self production
"...serve[s] self-help organizations of disabled people who work for equal opportunities, self-determination and self-respect. ... offer[s] training materials, technical assistance and information on personal assistance, advocacy, access, legislation and peer support.
Manufacturing assistive devices in developing countries       wheelchairs
http://www.independentliving.org/toolsforpower/tools32.html Describes a booklet which "with four year's support from Appropriate Technology International and the assistance of wheelchair builders in over 20 countries, Ralf Hotchkiss has designed a sturdy wheelchair that is ten pounds lighter than similarly featured commercial models. It can be manufactured locally by small groups of skilled mechanics in areas with access to thinwall steel tubing and simple welding equipment. It costs approximately $80 (U.S.) for materials plus the cost, with overhead, of less than a week's work by a skilled mechanic. This book contains detailed instructions for making the ATI-Hotchkiss Torbellino wheelchair, plus detailed information on the establishment and operation of the successful small businesses which have manufactured and sold the Torbellino wheelchair."

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Online Community Resources Directory
NSCIA
Resources by State, Information and resources for all disabilities, resources compiled by the Missouri Model Spinal Cord Injury System (MOMSCIS) staff.

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Disability Resources.org http://www.disabilityresources.org/" class="small">Disability Resources On the Internet
Thousands of the best disability resources on the Internet by subject, and resources for each U.S. state. Impressive directory. Plus FAWs, publications, listing of the most popular pages, etc. Check it out [editor].

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Ableize UK Disability Resources
Disability Directory of Disabled Information aids and Mobility Services Owned and run by people with disabilities. Most listings in UK but links in other countries also listed.