By Sofia Paiva Goncalves – ENIL Trainee
On the 14th of April, staff members from ENIL organized a workshop in collaboration with Inclusion Europe, an umbrella organization representing the voice of people with intellectual disabilities across Europe.
This workshop was part of Inclusion Europe’s UNITY project, which aims to connect self-advocates with intellectual disabilities with organizations fighting for disabled people’s rights.
The meeting started with a lively discussion where everyone shared their ideas on what Independent Living means for them. Inclusion Europe’s vice-president László Bercse shared his definition of independent living, which resonated deeply with all attendees:
Independent Living means not having my hands tied.
After this discussion, ENIL’s staff members presented their work and shared some ways the self-advocates could be involved in ENIL’s future activities.
Finally, the self-advocates sought advice from ENIL on how to approach policy makers when voicing the concerns of people with intellectual disabilities.
These meetings are very important, as they are an opportunity to create new ties between disabled individuals and organizations fighting for disability rights across Europe.
