Rita and Ana on inclusive and accessible events & European Youth Event

Rita is a history teacher with a passion for learning new things and traveling. She also likes to workout and read. Ana is a psychomotor therapist at APCAS (Cerebral Palsy of Almada Seixal – Portugal) where she is also a Coordinator of the Sports, Education and Citizenship Area and the Inclusive Summer Camp.

 

In October 2021, they travelled (together) to Strasbourg and represented ENGSO Youth at the European Youth Event (EYE2021).

 
 

How did you plan the transfer (plane, train, etc) to Strasbourg? What were the biggest obstacles and difficulties for Rita?

 

We booked the plane tickets but we had to catch two different planes and the waiting to board the plane was long. Nonetheless we had lots of help from people. Also when we were going back home the entrance to the bus was very narrow which made it a bit difficult for Ana to enter picking me up on her lap.

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Did you find EYE2021 inclusive and accessible enough for people using a wheelchair? If not, what were the obstacles?

 

We had a very good treatment and a person was always guiding us through the compound. But the way to the events could be more accessible.

 

How did it feel going to the event, representing ENGSO Youth and youth sport?

 

We loved it. It is always nice to meet new people and exchange opinions and understand why other people think differently in the same situation, knowing people have different solutions for the same problem and knowing that it can work also, to think outside the box and these meetings allow us to do just that.

 

Based on your experience, what would be your suggestions for the organisers of such events to make events more accessible and inclusive?

 

We think the debate part should have lasted longer and we think that maybe we could have witness a conference of inspiring life stories and how they change their lives and make the world more inclusive.

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