17 Years of Sense International Romania, 17 reasons for joy

Today, February 2^nd 2018, our organisation turns 17 years old. A special day, one to reflect upon what was and think about what comes next. It was like this:

1. We intensively and continually promoted the rights of people with deafblindness.
2. We managed to have deafblindness recognised as a distinct disability by the Romanian legislation.
3. We offered children with deafblindness the chance to receive an education tailored to their needs, supported by teachers who understand deafblindness.
4. We drew attention upon the importance of early intervention. The first 3 years in the life of a child are the most important. By intervening in time, their chances significantly increase.
5. We set the foundations for an independent living for young people with deafblindness, who learn trades which are sought on the labour market, supported by teachers trained in the field.
6. We drew by our side many specialists – teachers, psychologists, special education teachers, social workers, physiotherapists, doctors – special people that made everything possible.
7. We always placed in the parent up front – as the best specialist when it comes to the needs of their child.
8. We courageously and optimistically stepped into the online, with www.sensabilitate.ro, the first platform in Romania accessible to people with sensory impairments.
9. We travelled with the Sensory Tent to 12 Romanian towns, where over 1000 people experimented deafblindness.
10. Together with important authors, we developed numerous materials for specialists books, magazines, articles, all available for free on the www.sensabilitate.ro library.
11. We trained over 250 teachers in the field of deafblindness, training materials also available for free on the www.sensabilitate.ro library.
12. We developed curricula – both for education and for early intervention for children with multisensory impairments.
13. We worked in partnership with various universities, schools, hospitals, authorities and other organisations because together, we can achieve a lot more than alone.
14. We organized a giant conference, the Deafblind International World Conference in 2015, with over 400 participants from 38 countries, because we proved we deserve this opportunity.
15. We received recognition and good practice awards.
16. We inspired trust and proved transparency in the eyes of our donors and funders.
17. We realized there is still so much to do…