New project will enable the disabled to act with unlimited possibilities

The program of the Office for the rights of persons with disabilities and School of leaders was created only a year ago, but its members already organized several projects aimed at assisting PWDs.

Even in the capital of our country there are not enough special conditions for persons with disabilities. There are a lot of problems in Oblast centers and there is no need to talk about the conditions in small towns. The program “Acting with unlimited possibilities” which is being realized by the Office for the rights of persons with disabilities and School of leaders (Poland) helps active people to solve local issues and realize useful projects. The program “Acting with unlimited possibilities” was created a year ago but nevertheless its participants managed to organize several projects aimed at assisting PWDs. Its second year graduates are not just following the steps of their predecessors but they are looking for new ways of their ideas realization. They presented their initiatives on October 25-26 2014 at the final meeting of all the participants.

The coordinator of the project Elena Zhminko mentions that it is not a closed project meaning anyone who wants can join it.

- The project is not aimed at involving only PWDs it is oriented at assistance and creation of barrier-free environment in a local region and further development of the idea of what can be done for its improvement. The important thing is not only that participants are doing something good but they are also learning to be leaders, they learn how to realize their own potential.

Besides, a ten days visit to Poland for experience exchange was also in the program. Organizers say that polish colleagues were not trying to be an “elder brother” who tells you what and how to do in this or that case. Vice versa, there was a mutual experience exchange between Belarus and Poland.

Foreign specialists were invited to take part in the event. The director of the Center of NGOs under the mayor’s office of Konin Bartosz Jędrzejczak came to tell about the experience of social projects for PWDs realization in Poland. The topic was continued by a representative of “TUS” fund Małgorzata Peretiatkowicz, who also has a huge experience in this field.

Presentations of the realized projects became an important part of the presentation.

The head of the “Center of assistance to autistic children” Oleg Trofimovich told about the project aimed at early diagnosis of autism. 

-          It is impossible to diagnose autistic disorders even with help of qualified specialists among children under 3 years old. But it is the age when you have to pay attention to peculiarities of a child’s behavior. For a long time there was no such diagnosis as autism in Belarus at all. Our project is aimed at teaching the methods of diagnostic, first of all to psychologists.

Information leaflets and posters were prepared and distributed in the city’s policlinics in the frames of the project’s realization. The development of a training program for specialists of psychiatric service aimed at autism diagnostic became the team’s main achievement. For these purposes the project’s participants have prepared video instructions, handouts and diagnostic kits and gave them to psychologists and psychiatrists of the capital’s medical institutions. All state children psychiatric services of the city took part in the project; private medical centers and clinics haven’t taken part in the project.

Natalia Pronkina presented a joint project “People among People” of PA “Association of parents raising disabled children Strumok” from Polotsk and sport club “Prometei”.

According to Pronkina there are 245 children with disabilities in Polotsk what is a significant number if to consider all the children of the city. The idea of the project is to submerge pupils into everyday world of PWDs. Games for 11-17 year olds were held in the frames of their mini-project. The games show how PWDs perform basic daily activities. Similar events took place in schools and specialized secondary schools of Polotsk and Novopolotsk. Besides, for reaching the goal special information leaflets and 2 social videos were prepared.

The project of Zhitkovichi PA “Belarusian association of assistance to disabled children and young disabled” was aimed at assisting disabled in employment. The head of the organization Elena Strakh told how children and young people make souvenir dolls. Several master-classes for PWDs were held in the frames of the project and after it all the dolls made were donated during the collection of donations.

Lida inter-district Association “Republican Association of wheelchair-bound disabled” presented the project on integration of PWDs in public environment. A contest of essays was held in Lida on the topic of search for decisions of disability issues in the city and special classes were held at school showing what problems PWDs face in everyday life. Special comic book was prepared about Batman in a wheelchair. A group of active pupils prepared a flash mob.

The series of presentations was finished by the project “Art-weekend “Apple fresh”. BelOI of Moskovskiy district of Minsk became the organizer. An outdoor even was organized for BelOI members, which included art exhibition. 14 people took part in the event but the team of organizers is sure that in some time they will manage to attract much more active and interested in art people.

The results of presentations were discussed by mentors and specialists and further directions of work for every group of the program’s “Acing with unlimited possibilities” participants were prepared.