03/12/2021
On the occasion of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, an international webinar on accessibility of cultural heritage was held on December 3, where representatives from several museums across the Balkans spoke about the best practices for increased and improved accessibility of cultural institutions and localities. The webinar was organized on the initiative of Dr. Irena Ruzhin from the NU Institute and Museum - Bitola, and with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of S. Macedonia. The webinar was moderated by Aida Vežić from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Aida Šabac (Bosnia and Herzegovina) spoke on the topic "Art museum program for children with autism", Milena Milošević Micić (Serbia) spoke about digital tools and applications that facilitate accessibility in museums and sites, Irena Ružin and Jove Pargovski presented their "Accessible City Tour" and "Bitola without barriers", and Željka Sušić (Croatia) spoke about the importance of inclusion in cultural life for older citizens, who are often neglected. Accessibility to cultural heritage was considered from several aspects, including obvious physical barriers, as well as the attitude of employees of cultural institutions towards people with disabilities, so the conclusion of all was exactly the sentence shared by Dr. Ruzhin, that "People are not disabled, their city is disabled", which perfectly summed up the purpose and meaning of such projects and commitments for greater accessibility and involvement of all citizens in culture, without discrimination. Dr. Ruzhin also referred to the latest standards, regulations and strategies of world and international organizations, such as WHO, UN and EU, whose goals are to make tourism accessible to everyone by 2030. Jove Pargovski's presentation on "Accessible City Tour", which uses the latest technologies and digital tools for self-guided tours that visitors can design according to their own needs and capabilities, was particularly interesting and highly praised. An example of this is the project "Rural Adventure" (https://ruraladventure.mk/mk/dobredojdovte-vo-mariovo/), where the tourist attractions in Mariovo are covered and the visitor's phone turns it into its own audio guide with narration by in Macedonian, English, French and German, a 360* interactive tour, as well as sign language videos for domestic visitors. Another example is "Cineculture" - an interactive and virtual presentation of cultural heritage and cinema (https://cineculture.online/), made in cooperation with our long-time friends from the "Gauss Institute". The webinar was attended by representatives of cultural institutions and humanitarian organizations from the Balkans and other European countries and was held in English, and the representative of "Mobility Bitola" was Ivona Jankova, manager of our "Alter Trip" project, whose goal is exactly the alternative touristic experience. We hope that such projects and commitments of all institutions will be as large as possible and will complement our activities in achieving the goals of "Mobility Bitola".
