Ability Heroes

Our guest speakers at our last meeting were Adam Hewber (Community Empowerment Access & Inclusion Consultant) and Chris Dickmann (Adam's Support Worker and Technical Project Manager).

Adam has encountered access issues from a young age.  He has had to ensure that his full attention was focused on walking and staying upright.

At the age of 33 he started using a wheelchair and encountered new restrictions.  He also now realises people with a disability aren't the only ones who have difficulty.  Anyone, as they age or parents with young children, constantly encounter access difficulties of some kind.  Adam gave examples such as opening an electric public toilet door or a heavy manual door with a toddler or pram, or when using other mobility aids such as a walker or a walking stick.

This prompted him to develop a concept of crowd-sourcing information to provide detailed information on community facilities and venues regarding infrastructure and available services accessability.

Chris took us through the prototype website designed to give a basic idea of what they have in mind.  They are only just at the beginning of the project.  They are looking for sponsors and the community's participation so they can create a unique and informative resource for everybody.  They also intend to inform the general community about the challenges people with a disability are faced with every day, a reality most abled people are unaware of.