European Association of Service Providers for Persons with Disabilities: Project Launch! Hi-Ability – Developing social and professional skills through outdoor experiences

Hi-Ability is an Erasmus+ funded project which aims to open doors to new spaces of education, promoting the empowerment and social inclusion of adult people with intellectual disabilities, in currently inaccessible fields including hiking and eco-tourism. Hi-Ability will provide its target groups (adult educators, caregivers and people with intellectual disabilities) with an outdoor learning methodology that will help them to develop both personal and professional skills.

To achieve this objective, Hi-Ability will empower people with intellectual disabilities in developing the skills needed for supporting professional guides during outdoor touring, trekking and nature tours. This will result in the promotion of social integration and psycho-physical wellbeing, enhancing the quality of education for persons with intellectual disabilities as well as their professional opportunities. At the same time, it will allow educators and training providers to access an innovative methodology for the implementation of outdoor activities with people with intellectual disabilities.

Hi-Ability held its virtual kick-off meeting in December 2020 with the 6 partners from various European countries including Italy (Cooperativa Sociale Controvento ONLUS and ASD Trekkify), Croatia (Health Life Academy), Greece (EPIONI & Epos Fylis) and Belgium (EASPD). The partners discussed the overview of the project activities and work plan, focussing on the various intellectual outputs and future dissemination activities. The project will last approximately 24 months, ending in November 2022.

The project will look to produce:

  • Hi-Ability Toolkit for educators (Nov. 2021)
  • Hi-Ability App (Nov. 2022)
  • Hi-Ability Green Guide (Oct. 2022)
  • Policy recommendations and guidelines for transferability (Nov. 2022)

To follow the project’s progress, keep an eye out on EASPD’s page dedicated to the project on its website!

Full article.