Together for our diverse friends!
Basic information
Project Title
Together for our diverse friends!
Full project title
Strengthening the infrastructure for individuals with communication disabilities.
Category
Prioritising the places and people that need it the most
Project Description
You can find us every day at the Residence in Berat Castle, reading, playing and having a good time with our diverse friends.
Geographical Scope
Local
Project Region
Tirana, Berat, Albania
Urban or rural issues
It addresses urban-rural linkages
Physical or other transformations
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
EU Programme or fund
No
Description of the project
Summary
The solutions undertaken by the Albanian government to support groups with special needs are limited. Furthermore, economic challenges, limited access to educational/medical services, the impacts of COVID-19 and inflation in Albania and consequences of the war in Central Europe, pose obstacles for family members seeking to provide assistance for individuals with special needs. In the Municipality of Berat, as reported by the "Population and Housing Census" conducted in 2011 by INSTAT, there were about 114153 individuals with communication disabilities. Regarding this issue, the National Plan for Persons with Disabilities 2021-2025 has been published in Albania, in which the objectives regarding this community are specified 1. Increasing opportunities for participation in inclusive education for children with different types of disabilities; 2. The transformation of specialized schools into resource centers, including the support for lifelong learning. However, differentiated teaching techniques have not been implemented, leaving one-dimensional teaching, which is exclusionary for children with communication problems. Defined by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association as "an impairment in the ability to receive, send, process, and comprehend concepts or verbal, nonverbal and graphic symbol systems" this project aims to address communication disabilities among individuals living in the Municipality of Berat. The main objective of the project is creating a space that has the resources to assist individuals with disabilities in communication. The specific objectives are enabling the latter to perceive one, or several literary works.
This will be realized in two main phases of the project 1.The strengthening of the infrastructure that will host individuals with communication disabilities 2.Communication of literary works to individuals with communication disabilities. The project will be implemented in the residence in Berat's Castle.
This will be realized in two main phases of the project 1.The strengthening of the infrastructure that will host individuals with communication disabilities 2.Communication of literary works to individuals with communication disabilities. The project will be implemented in the residence in Berat's Castle.
Key objectives for sustainability
Since text is a medium that does not meet the needs of individuals with communication disabilities, a text-image manual will be created that contains the text of a literary work in such a way that it can be understood by individuals with communication disabilities. Impaired comprehension makes it difficult for the text to perform its semantic function, so it is important that individuals have non-verbal mediums of the text in question. The handbook is a product that will be ready at the end of the entire project and that will be distributed free of charge to all families in which there are members with communication disabilities. For the production of the manual, it will cooperate with the Berk Publishing House, located in Tirana, whose profile includes academic works, as well as literary works for adults and children. Berk will also put at the service of the project all the necessary literary works to be re-adapted to the format that helps individuals with impaired comprehension to perceive a literary work.
Furthermore, during the first phase of the project, which consists of strengthening the infrastructure, there will be purchased equipment that will make it possible to regenerate the texts.
1. Stationary supplies (Whiteboards; Flip charts; Magnets; Staples; Files; Folders; Paper clips; ballpoint pens, fineliner pens, ink pens, highlighters, permanent markers, materials that will be selected according to need).
2. Electronic tools (Laptop; projector; tablet).
All these tools will be available to individuals with special needs even after the completion of the project, as they will be part of Residence, in which similar projects will be implemented in the future.
Furthermore, during the first phase of the project, which consists of strengthening the infrastructure, there will be purchased equipment that will make it possible to regenerate the texts.
1. Stationary supplies (Whiteboards; Flip charts; Magnets; Staples; Files; Folders; Paper clips; ballpoint pens, fineliner pens, ink pens, highlighters, permanent markers, materials that will be selected according to need).
2. Electronic tools (Laptop; projector; tablet).
All these tools will be available to individuals with special needs even after the completion of the project, as they will be part of Residence, in which similar projects will be implemented in the future.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
Knowing that for individuals with communication problems, their biggest challenge is social life, since they lack social skills, the maximum will be done to create a safe space for all individuals through infrastructure. For this, inclusive slogans will be drafted that will emphasize the superpowers of individuals with communication disabilities, which will be adapted into eye-pleasing designs. Production and design of visibility materials will be done in collaboration with "Apparat Studio", located in Tirana. The created slogans will be designed in tote bags, in notebooks. In addition to slogans, images-symbols will also be distributed, which will be placed on stickers, so that they can be semantically perceptible by individuals who have difficulties in verbal comprehension. The created slogans will also be designed into tote bags and notebooks. In addition to slogans, images-symbols will also be designed, which will be placed on stickers, so that they can be semantically perceptible by individuals who have difficulties in verbal comprehension. Among other things, the activities will be soft skill games, suitable for individuals with communication problems, which will be the key factors in the quality of the experience.
Key objectives for inclusion
In terms of inclusiveness, the project and the Residence will be open to all those individuals with communication disabilities without differentiation. The main goal in this aspect is that all these individuals feel welcome and that the project is useful for them. So that these individuals can be informed about the project so that they can participate, it will cooperate with several schools in the Municipality of Berat, so that a list with the names and contacts of individuals with communication disabilities is available. Also, the same strategy will be used with the "Community Mental Health Center of Berat", from which a list of names and contacts will be obtained. In order to protect the integrity of individuals with communication problems, no open calls/google forms will be made and no news will be published through platforms or social networks, the selection will be completely free and in the hands of the individuals themselves. Thanks to the project, the entire program offered for them will be free for the participants, also a flexible program will be designed based on the needs of the moment or the participants.
How Citizens benefit
Although the main objective of the project is to facilitate communication for individuals with impaired comprehension, and to regenerate a literary text in such a way that it is semantically perceptible, the project program will be flexible according to the needs of the participants. Also, the program is designed in collaboration with experts of the field, distinguishing the general needs of individuals with communication disabilities as well as the best strategies that can help them. Above all, for the specific needs of the participating individuals, ongoing contact will be maintained with the "Berat Community Mental Health Center" as well as with the students' teachers, so that they can be assisted accordingly. During the program, the art of literature will be alternated with the image, physical activity (for soft skill games), and music.
Physical or other transformations
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
Innovative character
First, one of the most innovative aspects of the concept is the provision of a differentiated service tailored to the participant's needs, as opposed to a non-differentiating model as widely practiced in the Albanian education system. Second, is the interdisciplinary approach of the artistic product, transforming and adapting, in this case, the literary text, in order to reach those individuals who cannot receive it in the usual medium. Regardless, the efforts to create safe spaces for vulnerable groups in Albania have not been few and unsuccessful. The assistance provided to them is primarily geared toward addressing basic needs and poverty-related challenges. Useful services related to strategies that can facilitate these individuals to be better integrated into society, whether through therapies or through non-mainstream communication systems, are exclusively provided by private businesses in exchange of a fee, which given their limited number, these services tend to be costly. In this case, the project offers a model that besides assisting in the inclusion of individuals in society, also validates the way they are and function.
Disciplines/knowledge reflected
Some of the disciplines that have served for the conception of the project are semiotics, literature, psychology and graphic design. For this, contact was established with the publishing house Berk, which helped in the selection of a work that is suitable for all ages and with a length that allows the text to be transformed from one medium to another (For this, the work of Rudyard Kipling: Hija e Maleve; So that Stories, Berk, Tirana, 2022 is proposed, which contains short prose and long prose). Then it was discussed with an experienced speech therapist, who helped in the conception of the type of material that can be processed by individuals with impaired comprehension as well as with communication disabilities. She also assisted in the selection of activities that can help these individuals to socialize more and also stimulate their communication skills. With the speech therapist in question, slogans and designs will be conceived which will be produced by "Apparat Studio". Also, the schools and the "Berat Community Mental Health Center" have collaborated in finding individuals with communication disabilities as well as in compiling a profile for each of the participants. Meanwhile, Berat Municipality will promote the initiative, so that it is a concept that creates its own tradition and is implemented again.
Methodology used
The main methodology has to do with the strengthening of an infrastructure that assists individuals with impaired understanding, so the equipment of the residence where the activities will take place will consist of digital tools that enable the generation of non-verbal messages in real time (such as laptops or tablets). In addition to these, there will also be stationary products. Together with the handbook and a manual, all these products will be accessible in the residence even after the completion of the project for all individuals with communication disabilities. The handbook will be distributed free of charge after the completion of the project through centers that assist individuals with communication disabilities as well as other interested parties.
How stakeholders are engaged
First, for the recruitment and identification of individuals who need and can be involved in the project, it was carried out in collaboration with several different schools in the Municipality of Berat and by the "Community Center of Mental Health Berat". Secondly, the selection of the literary work that will be part of the project program as well as its production, will be carried out by the publisher of the Berk Publishing House. The production of visibility materials as well as the design of products that will be part of the project will be designed by "Apparat Studio". Finally, the initiative will be published on the platforms of Berat Municipality, so that this practice reaches a wider audience, preserving the anonymity of the individuals involved or the most vulnerable. Contacts have also been established with the director of the museum "Onufrit" in Berat, to make a personalized guided visit with the participants of the museum.
Global challenges
In the midst of economic uncertainty in Albania, a good part of minorities/vulnerable groups or other communities in the margins are not a priority, since the capacities to address them fully are lacking. The challenges that these groups face on a daily basis are not only economic ones, but also the lack of entities that can assist them accordingly, the lack of infrastructure, access to basic services, and more broadly, the lack of policies that create spaces for monitoring and solving of their problems and needs. This initiative promotes these policies in the poorest region in Albania, such as the Municipality of Berat, emphasizing the importance of investments in the relevant infrastructures for different communities. The initiative involves on-site actions with the assistance of various experts.
Learning transferred to other parties
The concept can be incorporated into the therapeutic programs offered by different health centers, whether public or private. Since a large part of these programs mainly offer stimulating games, the generation of a text especially for individuals with communication disability is more fundamental. Primarily, it encourages policies that allocate funding to support some of the most vulnerable groups in Albania. Especially in rural areas where citizens with health problems, be it in communication or even mental in a wider spectrum, are completely overlooked, similar initiatives will play a key factor in their integration into society and, as a result, in their well-being. Among other things, a copy of the handbook as well as the manual will be distributed to municipalities in Albania that may have an initiative ready in case they want to implement it.
Keywords
Mental Health
Communication
Disability
Literary works
Diverese communities
