PROGRESS

EBU activity in the framework of the Community Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity (PROGRESS)

progress The abstract logo of Progress with the EU flag in the background.

• The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD):

  Legislative database. In 2011 EBU will continue the work on its legislative database initiated under PROGRESS 2008-2010. Information on articles already dealt with will be updated and two new articles will be processed. Another aspect of article 9 will be covered by investigating national legislative provisions related to accessibility of public places and transport for guide dogs. Article 28 (Adequate standard of living and social protection) will be looked at from two different perspectives: minimal income granted to VI persons who have no other sources of revenue; and allowances to compensate for additional costs incurred because of disability. Visit the Database Web Page
  
  

• EBU 9th General Assembly

  The 9th EBU General Assembly was held on 4-7 October 2011 in Fredericia, Denmark. The assembly is a milestone in the life of the organisation during which EBU's strategic plan 2012-2016 was discussed and approved. Several training sessions, presentations and workshops related to PROGRESS activities were held. More information is available here.
  
  

• Transport:

  In 2011, the EBU Commission on Transport and Mobility will conduct a survey on the rights of VI air passengers to assess the impact of the Regulation (EC) No 1107/2006 of 5 July 2006 on VI air passengers. Read the final report "Survey report on the implementation of the EU Regulation concerning the rights of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility (PRMs) when travelling by air and its impact on visually impaired passengers' air travel experience" and the survey questionnaire.
  
  

• Employment

  As part of its commitment to help implement the European Employment Strategy and the EU Disability Strategy, in 2011 EBU carried out a fact-finding study on the employment situation of visually impaired people in Poland. The survey is now available. It is available here This followed the same methodology and approach used for the studies already carried out in Germany, Italy, Romania, Sweden and the Netherlands.
  
  

• Communication:

  As part of the ongoing implementation of its external communication strategy :
  
  - The EBU Newsletter will be released every 2 months in 4 languages (English, French, German and Spanish). EBU will also benefit from its new website structure and visual layout to upload an even more easy-to-navigate and visually attractive newsletter. When technically possible, spontaneous sharing will be promoted thanks to new Web 2.0 features (e.g. direct share from the EBU website). 
  
  - Press releases will be translated into French, German and Spanish when practicable.
  
  - News flashes will be introduced: they will consist in very short messages sent to EBU members to announce new papers, coming events or important dates related to EBU day-to-day activity.
  
  - The EBU brochure entitled “Making information accessible for all” was updated to incorporate developments in today's technological environment. It is available in English, français, deutsch, nederlands and español.
   
  - EBU will create a database of images and photographs related to visual impairment. Based on images already existing in national databases, it will be at the disposal of EBU members to assist in their communication activities. This database will also be used to compare symbols, signs and images used in different countries on themes concerning visual impairment.