We would like to see a more inclusive world, but what needs to be done concretely to achieve this? These and many other questions are asked by the participants of our congresses in the context of Berlin 2023.
In addition to the sporting competitions and the Special Olympics Festival, our three congresses are an important part of the Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023. An inclusive future is the core goal, along with the important exchange.
The Global Athlete Congress kicked off yesterday. This was followed today by the opening of the Global Youth Leadership Summit, and on 17 and 18 June the Global Forum for Inclusion will take place.
Further information on all three congresses, which by the way can only be attended with an invitation, is available here.
The Global Athlete Congress brings together Special Olympics athlete spokespeople and mentors from the 7 Special Olympics programs worldwide.
Together, they discuss ways to create a more inclusive society. Ideas are developed on how the implementation can be actively shaped.
The Global Youth Leadership Summit was officially opened today. In addition to an inspiring welcome speech by Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver, the siblings Mara and Anca from SO Romania were in the spotlight.
They welcomed participants from around the world and moderated through the opening of the congress. The two formed a moderation tandem and earned much sympathy and applause.
The Global Youth Leadership Summit brings together young people with and without intellectual disabilities. In inclusive tandems, they plan their own projects, which they then implement in their home countries.
Hanna and Joana form one of these inclusive tandems. Together with their supervisor Nadine, they will design a project in the coming days on the occasion of the next Special Olympics National Winter Games in Germany 2024.
The three young women are pleased about the invitation: "The atmosphere in society towards people with an impairment must become more open. We would like to help with that."
The participants of the Global Athlete Congress and the Global Youth Leadership Summit will also take part in the Global Forum for Inclusion and meet with government representatives, representatives of international NGOs and other organizations as well as scientists from all over the world to talk about inclusion.
The major goal of this meeting is the so-called Berlin Declaration, in which concrete demands are made for inclusive education and a more inclusive society overall.
Details and the final declaration at the end of the congress can be found here on the Special Olympics International website.
