Enhancing the independence of older people and people with disabilities
Author | Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (European Commission) |
Pages | 26-27 |
SOCIAL INNOVATION: INSPIRATIONAL PRACTICES
SUPPORTING PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES
26
© Regional Centre for Social Policy in Krokow, 2019
Raincoat designed for people in wheelchairs
Problem addressed
The ageing population poses a range of personal and policy
challenges across the EU. By 2050, one third of citizens in
Malopolska, Poland, will be over the age of 65, and one tenth
will be over the age of 80. People with pronounced disabilities
make up almost 12% of the population of Malopolska – a
proportion that is set to grow as the population gets older.
Many of these people will require home-based care and
residential care systems may lack the capacity to meet
growing demands for appropriate assistance.
Innovative solution
The Malopolska Incubator for Social Innovation was set up
to implement innovative, bottom-up solutions to address
the needs of older people, people with disabilities and their
caregivers. Established in Krakow by the Regional Centre for
Social Policy, the Incubator provided citizens with grants (up
to EUR 20 000) for developing, testing and implementing
projects to address the needs of dependent people.
Ideas for innovative products and services were developed
by elderly people or people with disabilities themselves.
All innovators went through a counselling process with an
innovation advisor who provided them with guidance on
how their idea could be transformed into a real innovation.
Ideas were then submitted to the Regional Centre for
Social Policy and assessed. Selected ideas were tested by
300 older people and people with disabilities. Innovators
were guided through all stages of the development
including the needs assessment, concretisation of the
idea, technical and organisational support, networking and
legal and financial advice.
Examples of innovations that were developed include a model
for a self-service shop for people with visual impairments,
a raincoat for people in a wheelchair to ensure thermal
comfort and high functional utility (thus strengthening the
independence of people with reduced mobility), and a voice
navigation application, Teleasystent, which allows people
with visual impairments to get around public utility buildings
more easily.
Enhancing the independence of older
people and people with disabilities
Malopolska Incubator for Social Innovation
Poland
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