Technology & Special Needs
People with disabilities should be able to develop their autonomy in order to integrate and actively participate in the different spheres of society – public, professional, private.
Technological innovations developed with and for people with disabilities will enable Switzerland to be more inclusive and to participate in the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
In collaboration with the HES-SO Valais-Wallis and the HE-Arc, the FRH has obtained an Innosuisse funding of approximately 2 million Swiss francs for the years 2021 to 2024. This funding aims at supporting and promoting ideas related to disability.
Contact us
Benjamin Nanchen, Living Lab for Special Needs Manager
benjamin.nanchen@hevs.ch
Video Portrait
How the Innovation Booster Technology and Special Needs works
The process is described in the diagram below and in the text that follows. The diagram is available in standard French, simplified French, German, Italian and English. Switch to other languages with the left and right arrows.
From 2021 to 2024, the Innovation Booster Technology & Special Needs has allocated funding as a seed fund to help new ideas get off the ground:
- The needs are defined by the people concerned
- Ideation sessions allow all interested people to come up with ideas to meet the defined needs
- Transdisciplinary teams are formed around innovation ideas
- The teams participate in the ideation day with the experts of the methodological group.
- In the framework of the funding round, teams submit their idea for a feasibility study, exploratory research or a prototype
- The Innovation Booster jury, consisting of concerned persons (experts) and scientists, evaluates the proposals, selects the most relevant ideas and awards funding.
- The selected teams receive support from the experts of the methodological group
- Teams carry out their project, then submit a final report presenting the results
- Teams can
- submit a new idea in the next Innovation Booster funding round, to develop a new aspect of their project
- apply for funding from Innosuisse or another organisation
- terminate the project.
For the implementation of projects, different funding can be used (Innosuisse innovation cheque, Innosuisse project, etc.). The Living Lab Disability can support the teams in this step.
Innovation Booster brochures
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The brochure presenting the Innovation Booster Technology and Special Needs is written in simplified language. |
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It is written in French, German and Italian. |
The Innovation Booster programme
Innosuisse – Swiss Innovation Agency
Together with all interested parties, the Swiss Innovation Boosters formulate concrete work topics within their respective innovation themes.
The Swiss Innovation Boosters work on these topics in interdisciplinary innovation teams. They aim to encourage radical innovation in Switzerland through open innovation and user-centred innovation approaches, in two stages: the “challenge” stage and the “idea” stage.
Swiss Innovation Boosters teach teams methods for the agile development of ideas. They support promising innovation ideas with direct contributions.
In this way, selected teams can test their hypotheses and develop the basis for decisions in order to further develop their idea or to be qualified to discontinue it.
The Swiss Innovation Boosters provide successful innovation teams with assistance in launching projects for which they can seek support from Innosuisse or other public and private organisations.
Our partners
Organisations of and for people concerned
Institutions and social actions
Companies
Public authorities
Academics
