Empowering Young People with Disabilities Through Sports for Inclusion, Equality and Non-Discrimination
Association “FOR YOU” has the privilege of being part of a new and extremely valuable initiative that addresses an important and urgent problem in society – to create a more equal social environment without discrimination and to bring a positive change in the lives of young people with disabilities and their families.
“Empowering Young People with Disabilities Through Sports” is an international project, co-financed by the EU programme “Erasmus+”. The project addresses two main topics: “Inclusion, promoting equality and non-discrimination” and “Physical and mental health, well-being”. By engaging young people with disabilities in sports activities, the project aims to promote inclusion, equality, and non-discrimination. The “FOR YOU” Association is a partner in this initiative along with other European NGOs – “Stowarzyszenie Rodziców I Opiekunów Działających na Rzecz Dzieci Niepełnosprawnych” (“Association of Parents and Guardians Working for Disabled Children”) from Poland, “H2O”-Associação de Jovens de Arrouquelas (H2O- Arrouquelas Youth Association), Portugal and “Jaunuolių Dienos Centras” (“Youth Day Center”), Lithuania.
The first project meeting was hosted by our partners from Poland. The town of Czersk is located in east-central Poland and is 33 km southeast of the capital Warsaw. The town is not far from Chersko Lake, which is a riverside lake on the Vistula River. Our participants in this mobility were Ralitsa Dimitrova and Mariyka Mihaleva. The project was officially presented, as well as the partners and the program, at the Center for Work with Disadvantaged People in Chersk. Partners also planed the following trainings in Bulgaria, Poland and Lithuania.
There are various rooms for different activities in the Day Center – kitchen, workshop, art room, gym, etc. A nice surprise for the guests was the lunch prepared by the disadvantaged people on site. The participants in the youth exchange had the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful nature and the sightseeing and to choose suitable places where trainings under the project may take place.
The aims of the project are to promote the inclusion and diversity of young people with disabilities in sports, activities, fostering their personal and social development and enhancing their physical and mental health and well-being;to improve the quality, innovation, and recognition of youth work related to sports activities for young people with disabilities, enhancing the skills and competencies of youth workers and sports trainers and ensuring that they are equipped to provide high-quality services to young people with disabilities.
The target groups of the “Empowering Young People with Disabilities Through Sports” project are young people with disabilities, their families, and the wider community. The direct target group are the workers of our NGOs who will attend the mobilities and work on the achievement of the objectives of the project. The primary target group is young people with disabilities, aged between 13 and 30, with limited access to sports and physical activities due to their disabilities. This includes young people with physical disabilities, visual or hearing impairments, intellectual disabilities, and other disabilities that limit their mobility or sensory abilities. The families of these young people will also be a target group, as they are often the primary caregivers and advocates for their children. The project will provide them with support, information, and resources to help them better understand the benefits of sports and physical activities for their children and how to support their participation.
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