In partnership with the EOG and the It’s Great Out There Coalition, the European Network of Outdoor Sports (ENOS) is organizing a new award series to promote greater participation in the outdoors by under-represented groups, including those with disabilities. The new Outdoor Sports Inclusion Award will recognize the brands developing the best piece of accessible equipment that is useful for all.
Following the principles of inclusive design, which is user-centered, the equipment submitted for the award should be relatively easy to use and useful for people with disabilities, but also for everyone else. It should reduce impairment limitations through technology, ingenuity or design innovation, and should not be more expensive than other similar outdoor equipment. The working group at ENOS is planning a number of categories for the award: apparel, water sports, climbing, snowsports, MTB and trail-use equipment.
In its official announcement of the award, EOG explains: ”The competition for EOG partners is to initiate inclusive design solutions to meet identified needs. In an industry that grew from sports practitioners initially amending their ‘gear’, that was not fit-for-purpose, pioneers (such as Rab Carrington, Helly Hansen, Yvon Chouinard and others) subsequently established their own brands, that are still respected today. This user-centered design approach may be applied to a wider and inclusive audience.”
Applications to register an interest in this award should be submitted to the EOG by Sept. 1, 2021. A prototype design must be available for review testing by Sept. 10, prior to OutDoor by ISPO, where the award is planned to be presented.
