Organization
Bundesverband für körper- und mehrfachbehinderte Menschen(bvkm)
Germany's largest self-help association for people with physical and multiple disabilities, connecting around 280 regional member organisations and 27,000 members. It provides advice, peer support, and policy advocacy for disabled people and their families across all life stages.
About
Founded in 1958 and based in Düsseldorf, bvkm is the principal German umbrella body for people with physical and multiple disabilities. It connects roughly 280 local and regional associations, making it the largest self-help network in this disability area in Germany.
What They Do
bvkm provides specialised information and counselling on legal rights, social services, education, and inclusion. It runs working groups on early intervention, school inclusion, and employment, and advocates at federal level for accessible policy and adequate support structures.
Who They Serve
Children, adults, and older people with physical or multiple disabilities, as well as their parents, siblings, and carers.
Related Organizations
The Arc
FeaturedWashington, DCNationalThe Arc is the largest national community-based organisation in the United States for and with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families, with more than 600 chapters nationwide providing direct services and advocacy.
Mixed LeadershipIntellectual & Developmental DisabilityAdvocacyADAPT
Denver, CONationalADAPT is a national disability rights organisation known for its direct-action tactics — demonstrations, protests, and civil disobedience — that have shaped disability rights policy since the 1970s. ADAPT has been central to the movement for Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) as an alternative to nursing home institutionalisation.
Disabled-LedCross-DisabilityPhysical DisabilityAdvocacyNational Council on Independent Living(NCIL)
Washington, DCNationalNCIL is the national membership organisation for Centres for Independent Living (CILs) and the people they serve, providing cross-disability policy advocacy rooted in the independent living philosophy that people with disabilities are the best experts on their own needs.
Disabled-LedCross-DisabilityPhysical DisabilityAdvocacy