During the 2024 Summer Paralympic Games, Ottobock aimed to raise awareness of barriers in the daily lives of people with disabilities. While para athletes compete for medals in the stadium, they struggle with obstacles in their day-to-day lives – just like everyone with disabilities. In this unofficial discipline, 1.3 billion people compete involuntarily every day. They “compete” against defective elevators, stairs, cobblestones, narrow doors or prejudices. In Paris, the venue of the event, Ottobock highlighted barriers in everyday life with posters and light shows. People around the world shared their challenges on social media using the hashtag #UnofficialDiscipline.

Ottobock is part of #WeThe15. As the world’s largest movement for diversity, the global campaign works against discrimination against people with disabilities. Together with various international partners from the fields of sports, human rights, culture and politics, we are driving changes to ensure equal participation of people with disabilities.

In addition to barriers, people with disabilities often experience stigmatisation in their everyday lives. We do our part and encourage people to consider their devices part of themselves and to become more confident in their ability to cope with their disability. From paintable knee joint covers via highly customisable wheelchairs to height-adjustable prosthetic feet. Together with our partners, we are also committed to making life more inclusive, for example through adaptive fashion for people with limited mobility.

The Ottobock Global Foundation is dedicated to relieving human suffering after national and international disasters. It provides people in need with devices that help them regain an element of normality and quality of life. The primary focus of the foundation is to provide treatment to traumatised children and adolescents in the form of prostheses, orthoses and wheelchairs.

A safe place for children and adolescent – friends Professor Hans Georg Näder and musician Peter Maffay started with an idea dear to their hearts, and they put it into action with the Tabalugahaus Duderstadt: In two historic timber-framed houses in the midst of the old town, children with physical or mental disabilities or difficult social backgrounds find a protected space where they can regain their strength. Individual nature and adventure programmes introduce the children to new experiences, boost their self-confidence and impart a strong sense of community and a positive attitude towards life.