What's up on the borderland - the world of Lemkos in the eyes of deaf children and youth from Poland and Slovakia

Beneficiary:   Association of Parents and Friends of Children with Hearing Impairment

Slovak partner:   Logosluch

Implementation period:   March 1, 2017 - February 28, 2018

Realized project value: € 49 757.76 , including ERDF co-financing: € 42 294.07 ,

The aim of the project was to show deaf children and teenagers the multicultural roots of the people living in the Polish-Slovak borderland. The main task was to create and disseminate the social portal "What's up?", Which is an integrative forum for the exchange of insights on places related to the Lemko culture. "The world of Lemko borderlands" is, in turn, several-month-long workshops carried out simultaneously in Poland and Slovakia. Participants could also take part in two Lemko Culture Festivals, each of them constituted a summary of the above-mentioned workshops. The culmination of the project was an international conference entitled: “What's up on the border? - about getting to know culture by deaf people ”. The essence of all activities was to present the independent and free functioning of children and adolescents with hearing impairments in the social system in all areas of life.

The main activities carried out under the project:

• International conference "What's up at the border?   - about learning about culture by deaf people "stayed in Krosno for 160 participants from Poland and Slovakia. The conference was attended by speakers from Poland and Slovakia from various academic and medical centers (Katowice, Krakow, Warsaw, Rzeszów, Sanok, Prešov, Poprad). The subject of the conference referred to the history and culture of the Lemkos on the Polish-Slovak border. Through the prism of getting to know this culture, the possibilities and limitations of learning about multicultural origin by people with hearing impairment were discussed. a discussion panel attended by representatives of schools, rehabilitation centers, educational institutions and parents of deaf children. The difficulties and opportunities in acquiring cultural competences of people with hearing impairments and active participation in social life were discussed. life of Lemkos on the border "prepared by deaf participants of the project from Poland and Slovakia.
• Workshops "The world of Lemko borderland" were divided into two cycles lasting 4 months, each in Poland and Slovakia simultaneously. The first series of workshops was intended for deaf children aged 4-8 years, and the second series of workshops for deaf children and adolescents aged 9-16 years. The topics of the workshops focused on the regions inhabited by Lemkos on the border. Workshop participants learned about the topography and elements of Lemko culture: language, costumes, architecture, religion, handicraft, folk dances and songs.
• Organization of Lemko Culture Festivals , which are a summary of the series of workshops "The world of Lemko borderland". The Summer Festival of Lemko Culture was organized in Rzepedź for a group of deaf children aged 4-8 from Poland and Slovakia. The program of the Festival consisted of 4 trips around the Podkarpackie Province in order to exchange experiences and insights on the nature and culture of Lemko in the borderland (churches, architecture, folk art, cultural centers, exhibitions and areas significant for the Lemkos). In turn, the Winter Festival of Lemko Culture was organized in Prešov for a group of deaf children aged 9-16 from Poland and Slovakia. The trip program included workshop activities and four tours around the Prešov region in order to exchange experiences and insights on the Lemko nature and culture in the borderland (churches, architecture, folk art, cultural centers such as museums, theaters, exhibitions and areas of importance to the Lemkos). During both Festivals, children from Poland and Slovakia jointly carried out a program of activities under the supervision of therapists and caregivers. A total of 100 people participated in the Summer and Winter Festivals.
  Creation of a social networking site fanpage "What's up?". The main promotional base of the microproject was the social networking site "What's up?" with active participation of deaf project participants, who could create content for the website, thus promoting the natural values of the borderland and the culture of the Lemkos.

To learn more about the implemented micro-project, please visit   fanpage