Fundraising by Eleonora Piceni

Hello everyone, as many people know by now I have been in Santiago, Chile for three months to carry out my year-long civil service experience.

Here I have chosen to participate and contribute to a very special project, its name is Proyecto Sol and its goal is to provide social, cultural and relational inclusion for women with deafness.

In Chile, the issue of disability is still underdeveloped; there are few resources and services available to people with physical or cognitive disabilities. Some of the services that are taken for granted for us such as education or health, for some people here represent a privilege and not everyone has the right to access them.

Some of the women who participate in Proyecto Sol have not received a basic education, have not had the opportunity to participate actively within society, and their condition represents a strong barrier of isolation and estrangement from participation in the social and cultural life of their country.

Every Monday and Thursday I go to the city center of Santiago to share my day with the girls of the project. Together we carry out different activities aimed at cognitive and cultural stimulation that allows them to share, relate and feel part of their own culture and society.

Based on the funds and resources the project receives, different workshops are held such as sewing workshop, art workshop, cooking workshop, and cognitive and cultural stimulation.

This experience is giving me so many special emotions and memories, I am sharing and deepening my knowledge with respect to Chilean deaf culture, I am learning Chilean sign language, and I am sharing my days with special women who teach me something new every day!

Unfortunately, this year the center is facing a financial difficulty that jeopardizes the opening of the project for next year! There is a need to cover the annual cost of the facilities (€6,000) and the cost of hiring an occupational therapist (€5,000), a key professional figure in helping deaf women develop employable skills and personal abilities.

And here I am also volunteering my help and proposing it to you: help us make the world a more inclusive and open place by making a contribution to allow Proyecto Sol to remain open and accessible to all!

Support the activities of "Proyecto Sol" with a donation and multiply your support by starting an online fundraiser to share with your friends to raise even more together. Your support is essential to keep the light of inclusion and integration burning!!!