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Photo: Two male exhibitors in a wheelchair smiling into the camera; Copyright: Messe Düsseldorf/Andreas Wiese

Personality

Reports, interviews, news and videos about a self-determined life with disabilities

Discover our latest articles and interviews:

Maria Kreß stands on a pedestrian bridge and smiles into the camera; Copyright: Maria Kreß

Maria Kreß – That's how she rolls

A man with brown curly hair, a black T-shirt and a tracheostomy tube, Erwin Oudshoorn, looks into the camera; Copyright: private

Erwin Oudshoorn – That's how he rolls
Man with dark hair and black clothes, Acacio Cossa, sits in a power wheelchair and plays football; Copyright: Stefan Wicklein

Acacio Cossa – That's how he rolls
Man in a gray T-shirt, black trousers and prosthetic legs jogs along a country lane at dawn; Copyright: Mika Volkmann

Kim Cremer– That's how he rolls
Man with white hair and a beard, Hans-Jürgen Rohe, sits in his wheelchair in front of a building; Copyright: private

Hans-Jürgen Rohe – That's how he rolls
Woman with blonde hair, Svenja Gluth, smiles at the camera while she sits in a wheelchair in the garden; Copyright: private

Svenja Gluth – That's how she rolls
Image: Woman with short gray hair and colorful clothes, Sabine Klemens, sits smiling in her wheelchair in front of a bookstore; Copyright: Christoph Klemens

Sabine Klemens – That's how she rolls
Photo: Timo Schmiesing playing wheelchair basketball; Copyright: Uli Gasper

Timo Schmiesing – That's how he rolls
Photo: Adam Bleakney and his wife holding hands while he sits in the ballbot wheelchair. Both smile happily at each other; Copyright: Abby Bobrow

Product development: Wheelchair technology on the move
Photo: Sandra Mikolaschek, Valentin Baus, Thomas Schmidberger, Marcel Piwolinski, Alexander Schilling, Lukas Ziemann; Copyright: Borussia Düsseldorf
Borussia Düsseldorf secures ninth straight wheelchair table tennis title
Borussia Düsseldorf continues to dominate wheelchair table tennis: With a flawless season, the team of Sandra Mikolaschek, Valentin Baus, and Thomas Schmidberger secured the 2024/25 German Championship – marking their ninth consecutive title. Without a single defeat, the team triumphed convincingly ahead of surprise runner-up TTC Wiehl.
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Photo: Sabine controls the vehicle with two joysticks on the dashboard; Copyright: PARAVAN
Self-determined participation: Drive-by-wire technology for accessible driving
For people with physical disabilities, mobility is a key factor in leading an independent and self-determined life. Advanced drive-by-wire technology enables accessible driving, allowing individuals to navigate their daily routines and professional commitments with greater ease.
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Interview with Malte Seifert, Director Metals & Autonomous Technologies, about XPONENTIAL Europe 2025
Interview with Malte Seifert, Director Metals & Autonomous Technologies, about XPONENTIAL Europe 2025
From February 18 to 20, 2025, Messe Düsseldorf will host XPONENTIAL Europe for the first time. As a global meeting point for uncrewed systems, mobility and robotics, it stands at the forefront of autonomous technologies. We spoke with Malte Seifert, Director Metals & Autonomous Technologies, about the background, challenges and opportunities of this event.
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Photo: Benjamin sits with his wheelchair in his new Mercedes V-Class; Copyright: PARAVAN
Arriving relaxed – mobile with wheelchair and joystick
Benjamin has been independently mobile since 2011and a good 400,000 kilometres. Now he has taken delivery of his second Mercedes V-Class from PARAVAN. In addition to the new model, the new vehicle also has technical advantages that make driving safer and more relaxed.
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Photo: Bruno sits in his VW T6.1 with joystick and smiles at the camera; Copyright: PARAVAN
From driving school to vehicle customization
Thanks to his successful driving school training at the PARAVAN driving school and individual vehicle conversion, Bruno was able to take delivery of his adapted VW T6.1 just in time for the start of his training. Thanks to various adaptations, such as a cassette lift and secondary functions via the PARAVAN touch system, he can now take part in road traffic independently and safely.
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Photo: Frank Sodermanns receives the White Cross "Honor et Gloria"; Copyright: Automobile Sodermanns Reha-Mobilitätszentrum-NRW
Honoring Frank Sodermanns with the White Cross "Honor et Gloria"
The non-governmental organization "Agape Ukraine" has awarded Frank Sodermanns the "White Cross" for his commitment to the evacuation of people with disabilities from Ukraine. The award underlines the importance of the commitment and the ongoing need for financial support for the relief operation.
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Photo: Saskia sits in her electric wheelchair and places her order at a bakery counter; Copyright: munevo GmbH
Revolutionary mobility: munevo DRIVE – freedom and independence through head control
Saskia lives with GNE myopathy and could hardly control her electric wheelchair due to decreasing arm strength. With munevo DRIVE, a head control, she regains mobility and independence. munevo GmbH is working on using this technology to control smarthome devices as well, thus giving people with disabilities more autonomy.
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Photo: The 20 metre train drawing is unrolled. Around it stand a few people and at the beginning of the drawing stands Harvey with his mom; Copyright: Mencap
Harvey Price sets new Guinness World Record
Harvey Price, son of Katie Price, has set a Guinness World Record for creating a 20-meter-long drawing of a train during Mencap's Learning Disability Week. He proudly displayed the record next to his mother, challenging misconceptions about learning disabilities.
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Image: Blue card with stars of the EU is symbolically thrown into a slot to vote. In the background you can see sun rays; Copyright: Pict Rider – iStock – ID:1148852842
Envisioning the EU elections: Amplifying the rights of young persons with disabilities
The European Disability Forum Youth Committee discusses the significance of youth participation in the upcoming European elections, stressing the importance of accessible education, employment opportunities, and comprehensive accessibility for individuals with disabilities. They emphasize the role of voting in shaping Europe's future and advocating for disabled individuals' rights and inclusion.
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Photo: Interior view of the first-generation Space Drive cockpit, which is located on the road and has various digital extras; Copyright: PARAVAN
25 years PARAVAN, 20 years Drive-by-Wire, 15 years wheelchair construction
Roland Arnold founded PARAVAN after learning about the challenges of accessibility and developed technical solutions for people with disabilities, including a drive-by-wire system for controlling cars. The company has continued to develop since then, expanding its product portfolio and working on innovative solutions for autonomous vehicles.
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Photo: Zainab Al-Eqabi wears the Taleo Adjust prosthetic foot on the left, which allows her to wear high white shoes. She herself is sitting on a dark chair; Copyright: Ottobock SE & Co. KGaA
Height-adjustable prosthetic foot offers more flexibility
The medical technology company Ottobock has launched the height-adjustable Taleo Adjust prosthetic foot, which allows people with prosthetic legs to freely choose between different types of shoes. Thanks to feedback from users such as Zainab Al-Eqabi, the user-friendliness of the prosthetic foot has been improved.
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Photo: Caesar van Heyningen and Thomas Saur shake hands and look into the camera; Copyright: CUREosity GmbH
Changes in the management of CUREosity
Caesar van Heyningen will become the new CEO of CUREosity, a leader in the development of VR therapy systems for the medical field, on July 1, 2023. His predecessor, Thomas Saur, will assume the role of CVO. Together with the CTO, Stefan Arand, they form the company's new management team, which aims to establish and further expand the company internationally.
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Photo: Heidi standing next to a man proudly holding her certificate for the world record; Copyright: Mencap
Mencap 'Myth Busters' smash preconceptions about learning disability with Guinness World Records attempts
Heidi from Coventry set a Guinness World Records title by recalling 70 celebrity birthdays with ease. The record was achieved under Guinness World Records' new impairments initiative, which promotes inclusion for people with learning disabilities. In a separate attempt, Harvey Price, along with ten friends from a residential college, is drawing a 20m long train to break the Guinness World Record.
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Image: Collage consisting of eight images of eight people engaged in an activity, most of whom have a disability; Copyright: Ottobock
Sam Ryder writes life-celebrating anthem for Ottobock's global brand campaign
The Ottobock company celebrates life with its first global brand campaign #IAmAMountain. The song "Mountain" by Sam Ryder, which is the centerpiece of the campaign, is about perseverance and courage while Ottobock's campaign focuses on inspiring people with disabilities and their stories to change the image of them in society.
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Photo: Luca Arnold sits in the Space Drive Mercedes-AMG GT3 with the window open, with Roland Arnold leaning in. Both are wearing motorsport gear; Copyright: PARAVAN
Roland and Luca Arnold in the PARAVAN Mercedes-GT3 #65 at the GTC Race
Roland and Luca Arnold are driving the PARAVAN Mercedes-GT3 #65 together in the GTC Race and are working on the development of new input devices for disability mobility and automated driving. Their goal is to contribute to the future of disability mobility and to develop innovative solutions.
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Photo: Driving and steering system Space Drive is operated in the footwell of a car by means of a shod foot; Copyright: PARAVAN
Ingrid Höhling is relaxed and safely mobile again thanks to Space Drive
The Space Drive driving and steering system from PARAVAN enables Ingrid Höhling, wo has Postpolio, to steer her new VW Caddy 5 with her left foot without much effort and without tiring.
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Photo: Cockpit of the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport with throttle ring and a brake lever; Copyright: PARAVAN
Inclusive racing project: W&S Motorsport cooperates with PARAVAN
The US American Tim Horrell started with Henry Schwalbach in the GTC Race 2023 with a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport specially adapted by PARAVAN GmbH for W&S Motorsport.
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Photo: Back view of Katja in a Mercedes with the camera system set up on the center console; Copyright: PARAVAN
Driving license with a restricted field of vision – thanks to the latest camera technology
Katja, who has a restricted field after a riding accident, was able – thanks to innovative camera technology and environment recognition in the car – to successfully view her driving test at the PARAVAN driving school in the Aichelau mobility park. In her future car, too, a monitor with the necessary environment recognition will be installed on the center console.
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Image: Therapist of KARMA on the left side. Next to him stands the Chairman of National Federation of Associations of Physical Therapists of Taiwan R.O.C.; Copyright: Karma Medical Products Co., LTD.
Flexx Adapt won the Golden Award of Physical Therapists' Choice of 2023
The Golden Award of Physical Therapists' Choice of 2023 was given to KARMA Medical's pediatric positioning wheelchair called Flexx Adapt. The adaptive seating system allows a wide range of accessory options for ultimate personalization.
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Image: Kanya Sesser models in sportswear on a skateboard; Copyright: Kanya Sesser
Meet the female athletes and trailblazers making the fashion industry more inclusive
Para athletes like Robyn Lambird, Frances Rivera and Kanya Sesser are embracing their bodies and leading the revolution to make the fashion industry more inclusive for people with disabilities.
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Image: Denise walks along the water with the smart leg orthosis C-Brace; Copyright: Ottobock
Ottobock: a new lease of life with an app-controlled leg orthosis
Denise was 29 years old when she underwent disc surgery – a seemingly harmless procedure. However, the surgery didn't go as smoothly as planned and when she woke up from anaesthesia, she could no longer feel her right thigh. The diagnosis: incomplete paraplegia. The world's first smart leg orthosis, the C-Brace® has given the mother of two new mobility and improved her quality of life.
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Image: Two occupational therapists help an elderly lady get into a car; Copyright: Showerbuddy
Benefits of working closely with an occupational therapist
The occupational therapist is an important piece of the puzzle for anyone who experiences a significant mobility impairment. Their job is to assess and plan ways to help their client conduct daily activities and maintain the lifestyle they want with as little stress as possible.
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Image: Mao Zhongwu holds up his gold medal and a bouquet of flowers; Copyright: Mao Zhongwu
Interview with Mao Zhongwu: Paralympics winner in skiing and inclusion ambassador
Becoming a Paralympics champion after just five years of training – What sounds like a dream to many became true for Mao Zhongwu at this year's Winter Games in Beijing. In an interview with REHACARE Shanghai, he talks about his career path, how sports changed his life and his wishes for the future.
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