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Edouard Detrez

Entrepreneur

Édouard was a very premature baby and has been disabled all his life, suffering from Little's disease. Against the expectations of all his doctors, thanks to surgeries, physiotherapy and pure determination, he can now stand up and is able to walk several meters. Para sportsman and entrepreneur (in 2015 he founded Le Fauteuil Roulant Français, a range of sports and active wheelchairs made in France), Édouard set out to raise awareness around disability, adopting a constructive approach. He once travelled over 700 kilometers to meet Emmanuel Macron, and flew to Australia to experience accessible tourism for himself. Today, he is part of the task force working towards the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the group of Creatives involved in the Hekla Tower project.

How can universal accessibility be built into Hekla and La Défense?

Universal accessibility extends beyond wheelchair users: to impairments of sight and hearing. Age and temporary disabilities should be taken into consideration in a comprehensive manner, and incorporated into thinking around flows, both inside the Tower and in the surrounding area and approach routes.Looking at different types of disability and the solutions which should be implemented improves collaboration for everyone involved. It is a vector for inclusivity, productivity, innovation, service and collective wellbeing.Édouard is working on this concept of universal accessibility and collaborating with other Creatives on common themes.

With Grégory Dupont, he is finding ways of adapting the sporting programs to make them suitable for disabled persons.

With Rand Hindi, he is drawing inspiration from new technologies to make it easier for everyone, disabled and able-bodied persons, to find their way around the tower.

With Marion Flipo, he is working on finding ways for everyone to use the restaurant facilities autonomously, whatever their disability.