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The product that change the World, for many.
I have designed a sustainable trike wheelchair that can carry pay load. By including members of society, who has functional disabilities, in the unofficial transport economy, I believe that they can increase their self esteem, feel a sense of belonging and start families by generating a income. By this I also aim at creating awareness around the desperate situation of people with functional disabilities in poor regions of the world. There is an alarming need for assistive technology for the poor of our world. I’ve concentrated around victims of land mines and polio. My project defining words are social inclusion, dignity, mobility, freedom to choose and income generating.
1914 Charles Poitiers designed a hand pedaled wheelchair for invalid soldiers of the WW1. The outdoor wheelchairs used in many poor parts of the world today looks and functions almost identically, but clumsier. I asked myself why and decided to look into this. I spent Christmas in Marrakech, Morocco doing research on the situation for disabled people. I interviewed many interesting and warmhearted people. One obvious problem I found is that if you don’t have any money in a culture where there is no social security, you are doomed to live without any kind of assistive technology, such as a wheel chair. Maybe you find yourself lucky to get hold of a skate board. One other problem is the view the rich part of the world has of the so called "developing world". It seems to me that we are stuck in the old perception of the wild and natural people in the bush, like Tintin in Congo. This applies to the world of designers as well. Many have focused their well meaning efforts on functional studies, and sadly enough, ignored the different aspirations in life each individual has, even if they are poor. They want dignity and happiness just like us.
Lifestyle design can have the same amount of functions as any design for the same cost if the consumer is invited to take part in the form giving process. In this case I have crossed a wheelchair with a transport vehicle and come up with the Badjat Trike System. It is an open source project consisting of a platform to be styled individually. My target group are strong and healthy people living in rural areas who has little or no leg function. If somebody has been maimed by a mine or has suffered from polio as young, I believe that he or she suffers from low self esteem and social exclusion just as much as from hunger. If this person can work in the community, helping to increase family turnover by bringing farm products or crafts to the market, then this can be enough reason for a poor family to buy this inexpensive trike on down payment. I thought of using the same kind of system as the Grameen Bank System in Bangladesh, using micro credits.
A wheelchair is per definition a lifestyle product, since a large part of life is spent using it. It has a strong connection to the person for the surrounding society and is a barer of social aspirations. I find it essential to wash away the hospital feeling of the wheelchair to signal that a person is not ill just because he or she can’t walk. One important issue I’ve focused on is the self esteem a person aspires and the varying ways it can be increased. The point of this project is not to stress the functions or technicalities of a trike, but rather finding one possible solution for a person with damaged legs to meet his or her social aspiration, e.g. to bring the sound system to the party, to bring the kids to school or transport goods to the market.
The rich part of the world is sending heaps of wheelchairs to the poor. This is very motivating in the giving, but creates dependency in the receiving and does not create a sustainable solution in poor regions regarding economy, supply chains, maintenance, technology adapted to local conditions or for the environment. The donated wheelchairs are often discarded hospital equipment from west hospitals or low quality products from china. These break down very fast and since they are not made to be mended or simply because there are no parts available, they are thrown on a pile. In warm climates life is outdoors and requires out door equipment. To make the Badjat project sustainable I have decided to use bike parts as much as possible. Push bikes has been around for more than a century and exist in every corner of the world. The bike technology is also easily accepted in many cultures since it isn’t a new one. All moving parts of the trike will eventually break down, but if they can be replaced and maintained, then it is sustainable solution.
Kind regards,
Martin Jones
  
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Pictures free to publish
martin.jones@konstfack.se
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