Readapt is a student project based out of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, working on advancing the adoption of assistive technologies and accessibility innovation. Our two major projects currently in development are the world's most comprehensive database for accessibility devices, and a digital educational resource center with interactive learning modules for accessibility innovators.
Our Story
The origins of our project are from February of 2015. This is when one of our co-founders, Arslan Azeem, began ideating a camera rig that allows DSLR cameras to be more naturally utilized by people without functional right arms or hands. This device was born out of his personal pain point, as Arslan has a paralyzed right arm. He was further inspired by a failed petition from a disabled photographer with the same disability as him, who attempted to convince Canon to commercialize a left handed camera. It was at this point that our team understood the importance of accessibility innovation and design, and we sought to solve this problem ourselves. By late 2016, a functional prototype of our accessibility device was complete, and in April of 2017, our team won an innovation award at the Regina Regional Science Fair. Our team was honored by the Government of Canada in June of 2018, when Arslan was invited as a representative of Readapt to Ottawa as part of the Youth Can Do It program. Later, in December of 2018, our team graduated from the very first cohort of the League of Innovators program. Since then, we have expanded our horizons, and hope to be a global strategic supporter of accessibility technology, innovation, and design.