Sadržaj ovog članka isključiva je odgovornost Udruge IKS.
18.5.2023. As part of this year’s manifestation “Croatia volunteers”, volunteers and employees of the Association IKS actively participated in the activity called “Walk in the Dark”( mrak=dark on Croatian language has double meaning, it can reffer to darkness but also be used as an expression for something that is ”cool”). This initiative was realized thanks to the engagement of volunteers, employees and beneficiaries of the partner organizations the Association of the Blind SMŽ and the Association IKS from Petrinja, as well as the volunteers of the European Solidarity Corps, Melvyn and Laura from France.
“Walk in the Dark” was designed to emphasize in public space that blind people also have a natural need to move. However, due to the deterioration of the space and the presence of architectural barriers as well as the lack of an sighted assistance service, movement becomes a great challenge, and the need for sighted assistance for blind people increases. A sighted assistant, plays a key role in this context. It enables blind persons to better understand the world around them, recognize architectural obstacles and successfully overcome them, find their way in unfamiliar areas and move safely in the environment. On this occasion, blind and visually impaired people, with the assistance of their volunteer sighted companions, went on an exploratory walk in Petrinja, during which they learned information about the history of the city, especially Petrinja Park, the structure and shape of the streets and buildings, the purpose of the space, the legends and personal stories of the people of Petrinja that are woven into the spaces and their meanings, but also how the buildings they knew look today after interventions in the space in the post-earthquake process or urban structure change and reconstruction. Movement and stories are a well know recepie for learning and exchaning, we used the opportunity to ask our blind friends to tell us how they imagine space around them and compared our different perspectives. The walk was multilingual as participants had the opportunity to interact in english, croatian, french and using other means and senses like touch, smell and narration. Getting to know eachother, our needs and experiences while walking/moving is also part of putting new meanings into physical space and connect it with positive attitueds.
It is important to emphasize that movement and sighted assistance have an extremely significant impact on the lives of people, especially blind and visually imapired people, as it enables them greater autonomy, independence and integration into society. As with all of us, mobility and movement are basic prerequisites for an helathy and independent life.
We would like to thank everyone who participated in the implementation of this activity and supported us. Your support makes an exceptional contribution to promoting awareness of the needs of blind people, and creating an inclusive environment for all.
The contents of this article is the sole responsibility of Association IKS.
The project Voltige is funded by the French National Agency throughout the European Solidarity Corps program.
