Hello dear human! We are delighted that you are interested in our concept for removing barriers at System Change Camp 2025. Our aim is to provide you with a transparent overview of the measures we are taking to enable people with disabilities to participate in the camp in a self-determined and equal manner. This page is a summarized overview. You can find more detailed information in the full concept document, which you can download as a PDF here. Our experiences from the System Change Camp 2024 and other contexts are incorporated into this planning. We see our concept as open and we invite you to critically scrutinize it and give us tips on how we can improve it. You can register your support requirements via an online form, by email or by telephone. We are available before, during and after the camp for questions and feedback.

All our offers can be used and booked free of charge.

To register your support needs, please complete our online form in advance.

If you have any questions, please contact us.

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“A closed system of thinking and behavior that manifests itself in various forms within society and institutions. Non-disabled people are privileged in this system. This means that they have social and structural advantages over disabled people that oppress disabled people.

Non-disabled people have the power of interpretation over life and the characteristics that they ascribe to disabled people. These can have both positive and negative connotations, but always follow stereotypes. The means of attribution are, for example, language, laws, objects of all kinds and social relationships.

At the center of the interpretations is the evaluation of people and their bodies according to performance, determined by the non-disabled dominant society. Ableism therefore also directly affects the living environment of non-disabled people”

according to Andrea Schöne from “Behinderung und Ableismus” (2023)

For us, the System Change Camp is a place of diversity and exchange. Our aim is to enable all people – regardless of ability, disability or social background – to participate in a self-determined, equal and enjoyable way. To achieve this, we rely on comprehensive structural measures and targeted individual support services. We want all participants to feel welcome and safe and to experience the camp as a space in which barriers can be broken down together.

We provide early and broad information about barriers at the camp and our measures to remove them. Our website is available in German and English, in both easy and difficult language and is screen reader compatible. So that we can best adapt our offer to the different needs, we ask you to register your support needs as early as possible – via online form, e-mail or telephone consultation. You can also take advantage of many measures spontaneously on site, but advance registration helps us with personal assistance. Our working group is available for queries for up to one month after the camp. After the camp, we collect targeted feedback in order to further improve our services.

We provide early and broad information about barriers at the camp and our measures to remove them. Our website is available in German and English, in both easy-to-read and easy-to-navigate languages and is screen-reader compatible. So that we can best adapt our offer to the different needs, we ask you to register your support needs as early as possible – via online form, e-mail or telephone consultation. You can also make use of many measures spontaneously on site, but advance registration helps us with personal assistance. Our working group is available for queries for up to one month after the camp. After the camp, we collect targeted feedback in order to further improve our services.

Low-barrier access to information and communication is key for us. We use technical solutions such as automated subtitling and induction loops for deaf and deafened people. We provide information not only verbally, but also visually and in writing – for example through notices and digital notifications. Our camp guide is available in large print, digital and plain language and contains orientation aids and information on support structures.

We use acoustic signals at key points for time orientation. When designing the programme, we pay attention to linguistic accessibility and ask programme designers to speak slowly and clearly and to verbalize visual content. Buttons with clear statements such as “I feel like sharing” or “I don’t want to be approached” facilitate social interactions. We use sunflower buttons to draw attention to invisible disabilities and to signal consideration.

The camp follows a clear daily structure with three workshop time slots (11:00-12:30, 14:30-16:00, 16:30-18:00) and sufficiently long breaks, in particular a two-hour lunch break. We reserve and mark seats in the workshops, especially in the front row, to make it easier for deaf and visually impaired people, for example, to absorb information. You can borrow seats with backrests at the information tent.

Our program items are varied in order to take into account different needs and preferences – from creative to physically active to relaxing formats. The program is determined and communicated in advance. You can put together your own personal program in our app. There is also a PDF to download and large, easy-to-read notices at the information tent. Participation in content is always voluntary, individual breaks are possible at any time. We use the simplest possible language, explain hand signals in plenary sessions and ensure that there are plenty of long breaks. Noise protection headphones and regulation aids can be borrowed.

Our “Low Barriers Day” will take place on August 22 (information to follow). On this day, the focus will be on activism and disability. We will create targeted spaces for exchange and networking, offer workshops in easy or simple language and design the evening program by and for people with disabilities. The offer is specifically advertised to institutions for people with disabilities. Trained contact persons for orientation and support are visibly present on this day.

The infrastructure of the camp is a central component of our barrier reduction. Most visitors sleep in their own tents. To reduce barriers when camping, we offer two large sleeping tents, each with 10 camp beds and floor plates. These tents have power connections so that ventilators can be operated and electric wheelchairs can be charged. We organize lifts for transfers if required and provide support in using the sleeping tents.

We are setting up a solidarity bed exchange, which arranges sleeping places in closed rooms for people who cannot sleep at the camp. In particular, we would like to offer people with increased rest requirements, chronic illnesses or other disabilities suitable overnight accommodation. The bed exchange is open to anyone who cannot sleep in a tent for health or other reasons. We provide support in arranging and organizing travel to and from these accommodations.

The sanitary facilities at the camp are designed to be as accessible as possible. We provide mobile, wheelchair-accessible toilets and showers and ensure short distances between the most important areas. For people with increased care or assistance needs, we offer additional support in accessing the sanitary facilities.

Quiet and retreat rooms are open to all participants who wish to rest or withdraw. These rooms are clearly marked, designed to be low-stimulus and also offer space for assistance animal owners and their animals. For people with sensory or psychological stress, we create areas where they can regulate themselves and recover.

When planning the overall layout, we make sure that paths between the central areas are as short, level and well signposted as possible. Orientation aids in the form of high-contrast markings help people to find their way around the site. For people with visual impairments, we offer individual assistance on request.

We also make the provision of food and drink accessible: there is a separate allergy kitchen and two different food counters to avoid cross-contamination. People with allergies, food intolerances or other dietary requirements can indicate this when registering so that we can cater for them.

News on the topic of inclusion