Welcome to the weekly accessible travel news roundup, published on Fridays, which highlights interesting stories from the past week that are worth sharing, but not suited for dedicated, long-form coverage on this website.
Accessible travel and industry news from around the web:
- Could we soon see 'Parastronauts' exploring space? — Canada has cleared the first disabled 'parastronaut,' paralympian and leg amputee John McFall, for travel to the International Space Station. While it remains to be seen when he will be assigned to a future mission, other agencies including NASA are have taken the cue and are researching how disabled people can be included in exploration of the moon, Mars and beyond.
- New Huckleberry Hiking Cascade Cart Makes Hiking Accessible to Disabled People — A father refused to accept the two choices before him — leave his disabled daughter at home, or stop hiking in the wilderness of their native Utah. He instead chose to build a new mobility device, the Huckleberry Hiking Cascade Cart, which allows him to hike with her in a more accessible manner. Kudos to this dad for his ingenuity!
- New Travel Restrictions May Be Coming for Foreign Visitors to the United States — President Trump is considering imposing new restrictions on foreign visitors to the United States from more than 43 countries, a response to his executive order that directed the State Department to identify countries "for which vetting and screening information is so deficient as to warrant a partial or full suspension on the admission of nationals from those countries."
Fishermen casting their nets in the twilight glow of the Godavari River, with the bridge elegantly silhouetted in the background (left) by Sai Mohith and Divine spirit (right) by Aravind R.
- Winners Announced in Global Ability Photography Challenge — The winning entries in the third annual Global Ability Photography Challenge, organized by Youth4Jobs and supported by U.N. India and UNESCO, have been announced. The contest garnered 320 entries from 14 countries, and celebrates the diverse perspectives brought to the medium by disabled photographers. The winning images are remarkable windows into their eyes.
- After 40 Years, This Railway Station is Finally Accessible — Most readers of this website won't be visiting the Cwmbran railway station, located north of Newport and Cardiff in the United Kingdom's constituent country of Wales. I share this article because it highlights how an investment in a new accessible pedestrian bridge and elevators/lifts have made a train station in a local community accessible for the first time in nearly 40 years. Previously, residents had to take a long detour in their wheelchairs to access the platform. One rider commented on the long detour, "I’ve done it in a manual wheelchair as well and I thought my arms would drop off." Needless to say, she's happy with the new accessibility features and her long struggle should remind us that the most important investments in accessible infrastructure happen in local communities where disabled people deserve to live vibrant lives, fully included in their towns and neighborhoods.
- Iowa Nature Center Debuts 3 All-Terrain Wheelchairs for Disabled Visitors — 15-year-old Rylie Erbacher, a wheelchair user from Cedar Rapids, told The Gazette that exploring the Indian Creek Nature Center using an all-terrain track chair "was an experience I didn't know if I'd ever get to have." The nature center recently purchased three all-terrain wheelchairs for use by disabled people. Details on reserving the chairs for use can be found on the nature center's website. Investments like these open the door to the outdoors for disabled people, and I am a huge supporter of organizations that go big on accessibility!
