Short Summary
Ole Kassow started Cycling Without Age as a way of helping nursing home residents get back into society. As a cycling Copenhagener for whom the bicycle as transport is a given, Ole felt the need to help those with limited mobility. His solution? A classic Copenhagen rickshaw (see picture below). He was inspired by an elderly man, Thorkild, from his local nursing home and he offered to take him for a ride.
Soon all the other residents wanted a ride, too. He then hooked up with Dorthe Pedersen, a visionary "boundary spanner" consultant from Copenhagen Municipality, and together they bought the first 5 rickshaws. Dorthe has since joined Cycling Without Age.
The reward of giving someone the experience of mobility and wind in the hair was indescribable. Before we knew it, Cycling Without Age spread to many cities in Denmark and beyond. There are now 25 cities in 14 countries that have been granted a royalty free license to give their elderly in their local nursing homes the same fantastic experience (view zoomable map here).
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We are passionate about this movement. For us it’s not just riding a rickshaw with the elderly, but rather building that bridge between generations. Exchanging stories, starting new friendships and giving back to them while we are still able to. It’s the most amazing form of social inclusion. We are, after all, heading down the same path at some point.
What We Need & What You Get
We have passionate local ambassadors around the world who are working hard to start Cycling Without Age in their community. We want to kickstart their efforts by providing them with the first bicycle rickshaw and all the know-how they need. We’ll join them and organize community meetings, get their local governments and nursing homes excited about creating renewed relationships between old and young people and we will teach them how to run, operate and maintain the Cycling Without Age rickshaws.
Each take-off package (bike, transport, education, transfer of know-how and campaign fees) costs 8,200 USD. The number of licensees is increasing all the time. With this campaign we hope to raise money for bikes and know-how for at least 12 cities, but our wildest dream is that we can raise money for all 25 or 30 cities, so we can get them started down this amazing road. In total, we need 98,000 USD for 12 cities. If we don’t reach our full campaign target, we will help kickstart as many cities as we can. Just one bike in a city can make a huge difference to 20 volunteers (called rickshaw pilots) and 100 elderly citizens. The elderly will once again be handed the opportunity to connect with their local community and the people in it.
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Our rides provide experiences and amazing stories. If you help us reach our target, we will offer you the opportunity to get involved by joining our rides, meeting the founders and Thorkild, the pilots and many others. You’ll get to feel what it’s like to put a smile on the face of an amazing stranger.
The Impact
Rides have a striking impact on the elderly, the voluntary pilots, the staff and on the local community. We’ve learned over the last two years that nursing homes with rickshaws use them as tools for conversations, for creating relationships and for enhancing the quality of life of everybody involved.
The pilots are rewarded with a dopamine kick for making someone else smile and the elderly passengers regain their mobility and ability to take a trip down memory lane. In addition, the nursing home staff experience increased happiness at work and everybody is given an opportunity to develop new friendships.
Risks & Challenges
We're well aware that cycling cultures vary greatly from country to country. The same thing goes for volunteering and how people look upon their elderly citizens. These are all risks to be factored in, however, we already have passionate and committed locals around the world, who are already demonstrating that the idea behind Cycling Without Age bridges cultures and generations.
Cycling Without Age always brings a smile on the face of those who encounter a group out for a ride. We believe that we can change the way people around the world look upon cycling - the happiest means of transport.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you're unable to make a contribution, you can still help us:
- Get the word out and make some noise about Cycling Without Age. Show the video to friends, family members, staff at the local nursing home, local businesses, the municipality.
- Use the Indiegogo share tools.
Thanks a million for helping out!
