Español
Tech school students make beach-accessible wheelchairs.
In December, as the summer season kicked off at the beach, many people could learn about these young students’ work for the Mar del Plata thanks to the local media. Students at the Instituto Industrial Pablo Tavelli, a technical school in Mar del Plata, Argentina, carried out a solidarity-based project to build adapted wheelchairs for people with limited mobility to get to the beach without any trouble.
Students spent the past year in the school workshops manufacturing over 100 specially adapted wheelchairs that were then delivered to different locations on the city’s coastline. This summer, ten additional chairs were delivered, mostly to public beaches.
The wheelchairs feature a large-wheel design for the sand, allowing users to move independently rather than needing someone else to push.
The initiative began in 2017 and continued thanks to the support of social organizations, companies, and local authorities, inspiring other tourist cities to replicate the experience.
It received the “Diego Camerucci” distinction from the City Council for its sustained contribution to accessibility, which also highlights the commitment to the inclusion of people with disabilities in the General Pueyrredón district.
CLAYSS celebrates this initiative carried out by students and their teachers, since it provides a concrete solution to real-world everyday problems on the beaches, requiring students to apply their technical classroom knowledge.
More information [in Spanish]: https://www.mardelplataweb.com/contenido/93935-alumnos-de-un-colegio-tecnico-realizaron-sillas-aptas-para-llegar-a-la-orilla-del-mar