MEETING WITH MOBILE IN THE CITY

MEETING WITH MOBILE IN THE CITY

The association Mobile en Ville aims to promote the accessibility of cities for wheeled users. It is made up of 150 members, including about twenty very active individuals who advocate for the rights of people with reduced mobility, skaters, rollerbladers, and cyclists.

Their reason for being: to raise awareness and provide advice on disability and accessibility, but also to play sports together.

This inclusive sport is expressed through hikes, competitions, and challenges in wheelchair roller-skating where individuals in wheelchairs are pushed by skaters.

It is a committed and diverse partner that Flaneurz is dedicated to supporting.

Comment: for each pair of detachable skates sold, we donate a sum of money so that a person in a wheelchair can cover 1 km of hiking.

We interviewed Mathilde Brodel, in charge of communication and activities, an employee of this association.

Tell us a little about the history of Mobile en Ville. How did it all begin?

Mobile en Ville was created in 1998. At the origin of this beautiful idea was the meeting of two individuals: a researcher, passionate about rollerblading, and a person in a wheelchair. They realized that they faced the same difficulties in getting around: cobblestones, excessive slopes, poorly parked cars, urban obstacles. They decided to skate together to map accessibility in Paris while doing sports. Intrigued by this way of doing sports and by this cause, the duo became an increasingly important and committed group. Mobile en Ville was born.

How do you practice sports together?

We practice roller-chair outings, which are more commonly referred to as solidarity roller skating. This term combines entertainment and mutual support; it reflects a state of mind, our state of mind. To put it simply, we have fun, we share, and we roll.

What are your activities?

We are working on the accessibility of the city along three main axes. First, we carry out awareness-raising actions about disabilities in both the private and public sectors to reach as many people as possible. In this context, we conduct simulations regarding motor, visual, and auditory disabilities. We also offer expertise and advice for ensuring compliance of public venues. Finally, our association promotes "Living Together": hikes, sports challenges, 6 or 12-hour races... The goal is to share and practice sports together. To this end, we work to integrate wheelchair users pushed by skaters with able-bodied individuals during sports competitions. We maintain social connections through two monthly events: a friendly gathering (once a month, on the first Wednesday of each month) and a themed hike (once a month, usually on the third Sunday of the month).

© Arnaud Dennery

What are your greatest achievements?

For example, it is the publication of the guide: “Like on Wheels.” All the streets of Paris have been traveled, measured, mapped, and this has resulted in a color rating system indicating the level of accessibility of these streets. 

It is also the 4,000 people we raise awareness among each year about disability issues. Our greatest successes happen over time: in 10 years, we have observed and contributed to a real evolution in the accessibility of streets and public transportation. 

We also work every year with Roland Garros and many other stakeholders who are motivated to make accessibility to everything for everyone a standard. There are also our sports challenges that take place every two years.

What are your upcoming plans?

We have officially launched a new focus for our association a few days ago, training on disability. The aim is to offer employees, HR, and managers the opportunity to acquire new skills to better integrate staff with disabilities. (Feel free to check out their training proposal: http://www.mobileenville.org/formation-au-handicap/ !) 

We also hope to resume our mapping activities while continuing our awareness, expertise, and "Living Together" initiatives. We will also participate in the Berlin marathon in September in the "able-bodied" category. We invite you to come in large numbers to these events. 

Tell us about your collaboration with Flaneurz

For each pair of detachable rollers sold, Flaneurz donates an amount that allows us to fund a kilometer of hiking for a beneficiary in a wheelchair. This type of funding is not sufficient to sustain the activities of our association; we are still looking for generous hands. This type of collaboration is at the heart of our work, which is based on exchange and mutual aid. Through its support, Flaneurz share these values with us.

Do you have a message for our readers?

At Mobile en Ville, there are no taboos, we listen to each other, we dare to act. Mobile en Ville is a way to rediscover urban mobility and disability in a fun way. Laughter, sharing, solidarity, and much more are on the agenda. That’s why we invite you to meet us and share. We want to introduce you to inclusive roller skating, where diversity, originality, and inclusivity are the guiding principles.