September 2019

As from March 2019 the EBU Focus newsletters will now be available, as word documents only, in Polish, Serbian and Turkish.

The GEAR conference took place in Malmö, in June, coordinated and hosted by the Swedish Association of the Visually Impaired (SRF), with the financial support of the European Blind Union and the European Commission as part of the GEAR (Gender Equality Awareness-Raising) project, a three-year long initiative which aims to increase awareness of gender equality issues across the EBU region. Its purpose was to share means to empower blind and partially sighted women within our organisation and to encourage all participants to put Gender Equality higher on their national agendas.

We took the opportunity of the GEAR conference, to gather the perspectives of some of the most representative women, active within EBU and other organisations, who have greatly contributed to further the rights of blind and partially sighted persons in Europe and beyond. Each in their own ways are role models and pave the way for a more inclusive, empowered and balanced society. Interviews conducted and compiled by Valerie VIVANCOS, Observer on behalf of the EBU OFFICE.

The conference was hosted by the Swedish Association of the Visually Impaired (SRF) and was organised by SRF’s Karin Hjalmarsson and Stefanie Steinbauer from the Austrian Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted. Planning began in November.  They spoke to four participants about their expectations and experiences of the GEAR Conference, and what the next steps can be.