An article from Portugal...

"INCLUSION?! Are we doing the BEST we can DO?

Dear All!

My name is Daniel Martins, i am from Portugal.

I am just finishing to perform as trainer a TC in Mersin, Turkey, where the main aims of the project was to increase the involvement of Youth with disability and other special needs on the YiA, as well as to promote the programme as a TOOL for Youth Workers, Social Workers and Youth Leaders to more and better work in their organizations, mostly working with disable youth.

Fortunately for me, i got the opportunity to have in a group of 20 participants , 2 are disable (was the first time)- Zeliha the responsible and head of the project, she have a physical disability, and Devrim, blind since he born, 30 years ago.

Maybe some of you have an idea how challenge was it, to arrange the tools, the materials, to manage the motivation of the group and to respect the flow planned for the TC taking in consideration the aims defined.

The reason i am writing for all of you it´s to remind you the some issues we still have to solve concerning with INCLUSION and INVOLVEMENT OF YOUTH WITH FEW OPPORTUNITIES as a TOOL for INTERCULTURAL LEARNING and NON-FORMAL LEARNING for ALL!!!

Some question i am keeping in my mind day-by-day i am hard working on this field:

Are we providing all the conditions we can provide to involve ALL? navigating in some of the websites of the National Agencies in our Programme Countries i can´t find out how a blind youth can get the information, the some on the EACEA website, as well as SALTO, something that always surprise me taking in consideration that we (as a member of the pool) are all days around Europe, and not only, promoting the EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES, the INCLUSION... for WHO are we providing the INCLUSION? are we the MAIN resource to promote the non-formal education for ALL in Europe or not? Who is ALL for us? Remark for YOUTHPASS, are ALL able to fill it in their own as recognition of individual learning under Non-formal methods? i don´t think so!

Devrim (the blind participant i spoke above in this reflection, he told me after i asked how he want to receive the supports of the TC (i was thinking to record some guidelines in voice track) "Dani, can you provide for me the material of in Word format? because for us (blinds) it´s easily to get the information because exist a software which could read the documents"... WHY we still provide almost all the information in PDF?
Zeliha, the Responsible of this Training Course which have a a visible physical limitation, during the preparation told me that the AIM for her it´s to have projects that involve disable and non-disable in youth, becuase she believes that it´s the only way for INCLUSION of Youth with disability - not so ambitions and doesn´t look hard to get it... but why are we still so in the beginning after almost 10 years with YiA (before on the YP) and LLP with the "flag" of INCLUSION.
...she said - "almost all the projects are disable with disable!! Dani, are this a good way for INCLUSION?"
The truth is... I HAVE NO ANSWER for her, taking in consideration that we are running quickly for 2009 (21st Century) almost living in the MOON .. and still NOT ALL can have access to the LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES (the most simple ones) that we can offer.

It´s not a lesson or training sesion i wanted to do with this reflection, but i am SURE that we can do MORE and BETTER concerning with this. No more than 5% are the youth with disability involved in he YiA and, personally, i have serious doubts that the majority of projects are WE supporting promote the values we defined as EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY for ALL in the perspective of REAL INCLUSION.

Have a nice work.. we still have to much to do!

DaNi"