Symposia overview
The AT2030 Frontiers symposium, Inclusive Innovation in Action: Community-led Assistive Technology Solutions in Local Context, will take place from 8 to 10 October in Kathmandu, Nepal. The event is brought to you as a collaboration between the Royal Academy of Engineering and GDI Hub's AT2030 Programme, and in partnership with Kathmandu University. AT2030 is funded by UK International Development. The event will bring together leading researchers, innovators and practitioners to explore innovative, context-appropriate, and sustainable strategies to strengthen assistive technology (AT) solutions, with a particular focus on low-resource settings.
The event will offer a unique opportunity for delegates from different disciplines to connect and network with experts from around the world, and to explore cross-cutting issues through three sub-themes:
- Local innovation and Production for Sustainable AT Provisioning
- Integration and Inclusion for Transformed AT Delivery
- AT Solutions for Improved Access
Symposium format
- Event structure: at the core of the event there will be three cross-cutting, challenge-led sessions that bridge different disciplines. Please familiarise yourself with the structure by reading some of our previous event reports
- Participants arrive: on the evening of 7 October, with a welcome dinner and networking to start the event.
- Participants will be: from all disciplines (i.e. not just for engineers) and sectors, and from all around the world.
- Event cost: There is no cost to participants for attending the event. We welcome a diverse group of participants and offer to cover your travel, accommodation and subsistence costs during the event. We actively encourage candidates from a diverse range of backgrounds, especially those with lived experience of disabilities or who use assistive technology. If there is anything we can do to support your applications or participation, whether related to mobility, communication, sensory needs, or any other access requirement, please let us know. Please note: we do not cover usual salary costs.
Post-event funding
Seed funding grants worth £20,000 over one year will be awarded to successful collaborations developed via the symposium. See here previous grant awardees to familiarise yourself with the types of projects.
Event Chairs
Professor Nerrolyn Ramstrand - Jönköping University, Sweden
Professor Nerrolyn's background is in clinical Prosthetics and Orthotics. She has completed both her undergraduate degree PhD at La Trobe University, Melbourne. After several years working in Vancouver, Canada, she has moved Sweden where she has lived and worked for over 20 years. As a full Professor in Prosthetics and Orthotics I currently divide my time between teaching and research. Her research focuses on optimising prosthetic and orthotic devices and services in different country contexts. She uses both qualitative and quantitative methods to better understand client needs and to develop technologies that respond to those needs, while being mindful of cultural and contextual factors that affect access to services, perceptions of disability, and satisfaction with outcomes. Currently, her projects are based in Cambodia, Ukraine, and Sweden.
Professor Pramod Shrestha - Tribhuvan University, Nepal
In the last 44 years, Dr. Shrestha has held several important posts such as Professor, Campus Chief, Project Co-coordinator/Project Chief and International/National Consultant with various World Bank/Asian Development Bank/UNDP and several Bi-Lateral financed projects aimed at the improvement of engineering and technical education and training system in Nepal, India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Iran, the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, Canada, Norway, Australia and Thailand. He is the first Professor (1993) in Mechanical Engineering in Nepal and retired as a Professor from the Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University in 2007 after 34 years of service.