A PATH FOR EVERYONE
Accessibility is not just a convenience, it is a fundamental right. Yet, millions of people around the world still face barriers that limit their ability to access local businesses, services, and public spaces.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 16% of the global population lives with some form of disability, representing more than 1.3 billion people. Among them are individuals with reduced mobility, wheelchair users, elderly citizens, and people with temporary or permanent physical limitations. These barriers can range from inaccessible entrances and narrow pathways to a lack of information about accessibility features.
For many people, something as simple as visiting a local shop, restaurant, pharmacy, or community service can become a daily challenge. Limited accessibility not only affects independence and quality of life, but also restricts social participation and economic opportunities.
Creating pathways to a more accessible and inclusive future.
With the goal of creating more inclusive environments, we developed InfinWay, an innovative accessibility pathway designed to improve mobility, independence, and comfort for people with visual impairments and reduced mobility. By helping businesses become more accessible, we aim to create spaces where everyone can move freely, confidently, and with dignity.
InfinWay is a modular accessibility pathway that combines two distinct surface types into a single solution.
The central textured section provides tactile guidance for people who are blind or visually impaired, allowing them to easily identify and follow the route with a cane. The surrounding smooth surface creates a comfortable and stable path for wheelchair users and individuals using mobility aids.
Businesses can combine multiple InfinWay modules to create customized routes adapted to their space, making accessibility simple to implement and highly flexible. The system is easy to install and can be applied without specialized assistance.
In addition to improving accessibility, InfinWay promotes sustainability by using recycled materials from the leather goods and footwear industries, transforming industrial waste into a solution that enhances inclusion and benefits the community.
The footwear and leather goods industry and its waste
Leather Waste
Between 25% and 35% of all purchased leather is discarded as scrap and offcuts during the cutting process due to natural hide irregularities and edge trimming.
Rubber and EVA Waste
Industrial processes waste 14% to 20% of the original polymer (such as EVA and SBR rubber) through flashes, hollowed matrices, and trimming burrs.
Synthetics and Fabrics Waste
Synthetic polymers and textiles (such as cotton, polyester, and nylon) suffer a 10% to 15% loss as fabric scraps during footwear assembly.
Embracing the Circular Economy
In today's rapidly evolving world, the circular economy has gained significant momentum as a transformative alternative to the traditional "take-make-dispose" linear model. Grounded in sustainability and resource conservation, this regenerative system aims to keep resources in use for as long as possible while extracting maximum value from them. Applying this paradigm to the footwear and leather goods industries—which currently suffer from heavy raw material loss and long-term chemical pollution—presents a crucial opportunity to align industrial activity with environmental stewardship.
To address these challenges, our project directly operationalizes the three core principles of the circular economy:
Designing Out Waste and Pollution: We reuse leather, rubber, EVA, and textile waste from shoe manufacturing (up to 35% of materials lost) instead of letting it pollute landfills and groundwater.
Keeping Products and Materials in Use: We collect industrial and post-consumer scraps and upcycle them into durable tactile paving mats, keeping these materials in use for longer.
Regenerating Natural and Social Systems: This lowers production costs, reduces environmental impact, and improves accessibility for visually impaired individuals